A Beautiful Love Story

Recently a friend shared a link to a post entitled, "Our Love Story" on another blog.  After visiting the blog, which happens to be that of the Wissman family {a Christian musical family band that travel around playing sweet music}, I fell in love myself with a story of truly waiting on God's best.  My friend & I thought you might enjoy it as much as we did.  I hope you do!

Click here to read!  

 Love in the Waiting, 
-Bess-

Being Thankful

Sometimes the things we don’t have {& desperately want} can blind us to the things we do have. Holidays can be trying on the single girl’s heart, what with seeing others paired up sharing special moments, & relatives from out of town with their ever burning questions about your relationship status {or lack thereof}. But as Thanksgiving swiftly approaches, there is much to be thankful for if we just look outside the sphere that holds what we want, but don’t have, & look into the larger sphere of what we do. “Count your many blessings, name them one by one. Count your many blessings see what God has done,” reads the lines of a hymn. I pray this Thanksgiving you will do as the old song says & “count your blessings…name them one by one…” & remember just “what God has done” in your life. There are hidden blessings all around, dear girl, just look.  

With Thanksgiving, 
-Bess-

Stick Figure Philosophy

Picture it, you’re driving along singing with the radio – things are good - & then you end up at a lengthy red light right behind the minivan with the family stickers plastered on the back window categorized cutesy-style by height.  You know the kind I mean?  Husband, wife, kids, & even pets – the complete package.  It’s hard not to ponder your contentment & trust in God’s plan for your life with these stick people in plain sight, reiterating your single status with each little two-dimensional grin.  Nothing like a window cling to let you know you’re left out.  Have you ever seen a car with just one stick person on the back?  I haven’t.  But, it got me thinking…  

Even in our single years we are not alone if we are Christ’s.  We are part of a much bigger family!  Yes, even larger than those whose stickers reach the far right hand side of the glass.  We are members of the body – the family – of Christ!  The family of God! 

Do you know what I did next?  I set out to find the perfect addition to my car: a stick figure me & a stick figure Jesus.  After some Googling I found this site.  It lets you pick & choose your stick peoples’ bodies & heads, & after playing around a little I came up with this:

We may not have all the other stuff yet, but we have the most important part.  

"For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, His body, and is Himself its Savior." 

-Ephesians 5:23 NIV

"So in Christ we who are many form one body, & each member belongs to all the others."

-Romans 12:5 NIV

"Now if we are children, then we are heirs - heirs of God & co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in His sufferings in order that we may also share in His glory."

-Romans 8:17 NIV

Love & Encouragement for the Road Ahead,

-Bess-

P.S.: I was going to add a pun about window clings & clinging to Jesus, but decided against it.  You have much to be thankful for! =)

image created at www.familystickers.com

Great {Age} Expectations

You know how you imagine, and even plan as if your imaging set the thing in stone, that you will be married by a certain age? You have your life planned – married by this age, children at that age… Yep, life looks good in your perfect age-defined dream maker. However, it just doesn’t always turn out like that. 

I remember when I was younger I would take scraps from old wedding invitations my parents would receive and create an “invitation” to my own wedding. I set the date soon after high school {which, of course, has been long past}, made the location the “banks of Loch Ness” & settled in to dream about the day. Looking back it seems silly. 

 Today is my birthday – 26 years old {which seems crazy to me & way too old} =). Yes, I’m still single and my old “invitation” remains in a shoebox of memories – unsent & unfulfilled. It’s hard to not fall into the “compare snare” when others around you marry off. It’s hard to not ask, “God, why do they get to be engaged now? Why isn’t it my turn?” I can’t help but think about my sister who married at 25… well, I’ve missed that age; now I’ll officially be the oldest of my siblings to marry. It’s not something they give a blue ribbon for. 

But still, there is purpose in the wait & it can be beautiful. I know if I was married my life would be vastly different; my time would be filled & it would be difficult to steal away to the silence of a long drive or a winding park path. I like those times of quiet with God. Life can even seem romantic, as I wait in anticipation & fall more in love with Jesus. He knows the desires of my heart & wants to fulfill them… in His perfect timing. I’ve well noted over the years, that His timing is certainly not my own, as evidenced by my handmade wedding “invitation.” Yet His clock is right on time. Why would I want to rush into the imperfect, when I could wait on the perfect? The imperfect would surely be riddled with problems & simply put, “not be right.” So, this in between waiting time is not always easy, but God knows what He’s doing. It will be beautiful in its time. 

It gives me hope to look upon others’ stories who waited beyond the world’s “ideal” age to be married. I think about Rebecca St. James, the amazing pioneer of purity, who waited for 33 years to be married – staying sexually pure, waiting for her wedding day. That gives me strength to keep moving along this path. I even think about Catherine Middleton who married at 29 and became a royal. Yes, princesses wait. =) She is, in fact, considered the oldest royal bride to marry a future king {for the first time}. 

Whatever stage of life you are in, know God has not forgotten the wishes of your heart. His clock is still ticking & it’s in perfect condition. Let this time be beautiful. Don’t waste it away pining over what you don’t currently have. Don’t keep life on hold, waiting to fully live as you’ve dreamed, until all your desires are fulfilled. Live now! This is the present; live it! What a lovely birthday gift it is. 

 Love {the now 26},
-Bess-