Men!
Thinking about the women who helped shape me into this person, draws my thoughts to the men that also helped "grow" me. Once again, I think of my family and the most influential man in my life, my father. My parents have been married for 48 years. I didn't from any means, come from any sort of broken home. In fact, my family is abnormally "normal". I think what taught me the most about husbands and how they should treat their wives is from my father and how he treated and still treats my mother. My mom used to sing some amazing solos in church. One of my favorite memories of my childhood is Christmas Eve service at church. My mom would always sing "O Holy Night" and it was as if you were there listening to the angels sing it to the newborn King. So all of this to talk about my daddy. He would always sit and listen and close his eyes. Now, my father can "rest his eyes" with the best of them. He can do it anywhere and at any time. My brothers and I would laugh at how easy it was for him to rest his eyes while mom was singing. Then, one Christmas, it dawned on me. He wasn't resting his eyes, he was covering my mom in prayer as she was leading worship to the King. He did that every single time my mother got up to sing. As soon as the first note played, he bowed his head and started praying until the last note. Then, he would raise his head, smile at my mom, and continue with his worship. Such a little thing. Never lasted long, just the length of the song, but still brings me to tears to see that love lived out daily.
The next man that showed me how a husband should treat his wife was my youth pastor. He would come into the class, and the very first thing he would do was bend his wife over and kiss her good morning as that was usually the first time he would see her that day. Then, he would look at all of these high school kids and say "I have a license to do that, do you?" Beyond the love he had (and still has) for his wife, he had a love for God and a passion to share it with others. He had to, in order to put up with a bunch of snotty, bratty teenagers! He would take his Bible that was falling apart, and share with us that passion each week. Now, I don't remember every word he said (it was 20 years ago, give me a break!), but he showed me what an authentic Christian looked and acted like. He would take something profound and make it manageable for a teenage mind to comprehend.
The last man that I have thought of is the man who showed me how to dive deep into the Word of God. He showed me that what may seem like a simple Bible story that I grew up learning about, had such depth and meaning, you had to keep going back to it to completely understand what was happening, and even then, you wouldn't fully comprehend it. He showed me what a life line the Bible was and that it was not simply stories to learn as a child, but the word of the Divine, Holy God and needed to be treated as such.
Because of these men that God gave me, I have the story that I have. My story is simple in its beginnings, but I also know that my story is far from finished. The Author of my story is still writing it and it makes me excited for the next chapter. It also makes me take this chapter that I am in and snuggle deep with it.
The next man that showed me how a husband should treat his wife was my youth pastor. He would come into the class, and the very first thing he would do was bend his wife over and kiss her good morning as that was usually the first time he would see her that day. Then, he would look at all of these high school kids and say "I have a license to do that, do you?" Beyond the love he had (and still has) for his wife, he had a love for God and a passion to share it with others. He had to, in order to put up with a bunch of snotty, bratty teenagers! He would take his Bible that was falling apart, and share with us that passion each week. Now, I don't remember every word he said (it was 20 years ago, give me a break!), but he showed me what an authentic Christian looked and acted like. He would take something profound and make it manageable for a teenage mind to comprehend.
The last man that I have thought of is the man who showed me how to dive deep into the Word of God. He showed me that what may seem like a simple Bible story that I grew up learning about, had such depth and meaning, you had to keep going back to it to completely understand what was happening, and even then, you wouldn't fully comprehend it. He showed me what a life line the Bible was and that it was not simply stories to learn as a child, but the word of the Divine, Holy God and needed to be treated as such.
Because of these men that God gave me, I have the story that I have. My story is simple in its beginnings, but I also know that my story is far from finished. The Author of my story is still writing it and it makes me excited for the next chapter. It also makes me take this chapter that I am in and snuggle deep with it.
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