All God asks of us is to obey. Obedience leads to righteousness. Faith is the link that joins the two. BUT IT IS HARD!!!
My husband and I met as children. The spring we were both twenty we were having a heated argument about life’s plans and somehow we came to the conclusion we didn’t want to go forward without each other. We knew nothing of healthy relationships, but we stood at an altar and made some promises. Some we kept, others we stumble over regularly. Then, we revisit that night long ago on the shore of Lake Overholser, in Bethany, Oklahoma, when we said, “Yes,’ and wonder what in the world we were thinking.
Exhibit A: I am a persnickety nester. I like my spaces clean, cozy and well organized. Aesthetics is everything to me. Keith is a people person. He couldn’t care less about the color of the wall or the shape of the flower beds. It’s about people within and the experiences shared.
Moving on to B: We, as a couple, stay on the go constantly. In Gretchen world, car time is brain free time. I can’t do laundry, dishes etc., so I relax and read….or look at my device. Keith chatters away beside me, often turning around to go back and show me something I missed, because I didn’t react quickly when he said, “Look!”
As I mentioned prior, I like orderliness and stay in a perpetual state of straightening and putting things away. Keith does not recognize that cabinet doors open……and then close with a gentle push. As I go through the kitchen on my perpetual mission of orderliness, I do question my life’s choices, and when I won’t join him for an evening motorcycle ride because I need to mop the floor, he questions his.
One last thing. Each morning as we are getting ready for our day, Keith, in his exuberance for life, switches between stations to get ALL the morning headlines. From the bathroom I hear, “The declining elephant population on the Savannah will adversely effect the weather in the north east, as thousands are expected to take to the roadways to receive their flu vaccinations.” Yes, I glare, then he tells me it is an outside recess day.
It is a miracle we are still married and neither of us is incarcerated. But how did we accomplish this? One thing only! Obedience, through faith, striving for righteousness. God has a plan for us, together, and it can’t be done with us apart. The most amazing, wonderful piece of real estate in the universe is in the center of God’s will, and for us, that place can only be occupied as Mr. and Mrs.
IT IS HARD! But it is right! And so, it is easy. The one thing Keith and I have always had in common is love for our fellow man, and the one truth that returns to us every single day is, we can’t love them best, if we don’t love each other first. That is why I put my device aside and look out the windshield, and he folds clothes while I mop. Together is best, because we promised we would when we were crazy, stupid kids, and didn’t know any better.
The Big 10!
Love the Lord your God with all your heart,
Don’t bow down to idols, that’s not smart.
Never take the Father’s name in vain,
Keep the sabbath Holy, six remain.
Honor your father and mother,
Don’t take the life of another.
Don’t be a louse, be faithful to your spouse
Never say it if it is not true,
Don’t take things that don’t belong to you.
You might love it, but it’s not right to covet!
(Author Unknown)
Love you all,
Gretchen