James 1:2-4 “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” (NIV)
My husband and I chose this chunk of scripture for our wedding. Yes, we used this to describe our relationship to all our friends and family who shared this very special day with us. Are you laughing? It is okay if you are…we still laugh about it to this very day!
Please let me explain our reason for choosing this particular scripture. We focused on the fact that trials develop perseverance which leads to maturity and completeness. Isn’t that what we all want as children of God, wives, mothers, sisters, friends? During Greg and my dating relationship we faced many trials. We lived 1,000 miles apart, lost jobs and loved ones, battled depression and addiction, and held our breath through my father’s illness. We truly felt, and still feel, these trials made us more mature and complete.
Now four and a half years and two daughters later we are facing two significant trials. We are lacking emotional intimacy and communication in our marriage. We are also up to our eyeballs in debt. By the grace of God and the love and boldness of wonderful friends; we were smacked in the face with reality. After coming to, we have given our marriage and financial state to the Lord.
We are seeing God work miraculously since we have put everything in His hands. We feel closer than we have in years emotionally. We also make time every day to connect and communicate. The Lord has also provided ways for us to pay down our debt by a third in a matter of weeks! Yet again, in the midst of these trials we are joyful. We can already see the maturity and feel more complete in our relationships with God, each other, and our daughters. Praise the Lord!
