Today we are celebrating thirty four years of marriage. It has been an amazing adventure!
We’ve changed a bit over the years. We’ve laughed and cried. We’ve known sickness and health. We’ve been through richer and poorer. But through it all we have grown closer to each other and closer to the Lord.
When I checked in for our weekend getaway, I was asked why we were here. Each time I would explain it was our 34th wedding anniversary. The common response was “Wow! That doesn’t seem to happen much anymore. What’s your secret?”
Our secret? We have never considered there to be any other option than honoring our marriage vows. There is a meme posted on Pinterest that questions how an older couple stayed married for decades. I love the answer: “We were born in a time when if something was broken we would fix it, not throw it away…” The wise woman that taught our Young Marrieds Class in church when we were newlyweds advised us to never even allow ourselves to consider not honoring our vows.
The most important secret to a long and happy marriage? The closer each of us draws to the Lord, the closer it draws us to each other.
We have watched long marriages lived out before us in what I like to call a Legacy of Anniversaries.
My parents Scripture for their marriage was Isaiah 26:3.
“You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.”
Their marriage wasn’t perfect but by being committed to the Lord as individuals, it strengthened their commitments to their marriage. They had been married for 52 years when my father passed away.
My maternal and paternal grandparents were married for nearly fifty years before one of the partners passed away. My husband’s parents will be celebrating their sixtieth anniversary this summer.
I pray that we (and our siblings) will continue this Legacy of Anniversaries for our children and grandchildren.
I know that not all marriages last and there are times when the only choice is to walk away. My heart aches for those that have been hurt as a marriage has been dissolved. Please hear my heart in sharing this post. My heart is filled with grateful blessing for our marriage and prayer that others will be blessed to find and experience the same.
We are enjoying a weekend away to celebrate our love for each other and our shared heart 4 home and family.
Feeling blessed,
