My Betrothal Story

Two are better than one because they have a more satisfying return for their labor; for if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion....

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 AMP



I told our betrothal story at my husband's memorial service. It was our favorite story to tell in the presence of others, though we had many to come after this one. I'm sharing it here because it truly glorifies God, and it's already recorded! This is the story that led to 23 years of companionship, and culminated seven months ago. 

My first hope for this post is that you who are desiring marriage will be encouraged. God is fully capable of bringing things to pass that you desire. And his plan is good for you. 

My second hope is to challenge you. Sometimes we can miss God because we don't truly lift our eyes to see with understanding. What he is doing can look so different than how we pictured it coming to pass that we don't realize it IS literally coming to pass, especially if it looks different from culture or tradition. There is a song that Jeremy Camp sings, Keep Me in the Moment, that expresses this well:

... Lord, keep me in the moment
Help me live with my eyes wide open
'Cause I don't wanna miss what You have for me
... Lord, show me what matters
Throw away what I'm chasing after
'Cause I don't wanna miss what You have for me
Keep me in the moment
Oh, keep me in the moment
Keep me in the moment
'Cause I don't wanna miss what You have for me

My third hope is that you will see the hand of God, and thus, the heart of God as a father, guide, shepherd, developer, planner, orchestrater, manager, arranger, and so much more, including friend. He is in the details, and though not always on our time table, if you allow him to open the eyes of your heart, you can see his amazing ways. 

And lastly, my hope is that you see how genuinely God understands that we need companionship in this world. So much so that he is willing to share our intimate attention with another human. He also demonstrates love to us through one other, and that three-stranded cord is not easily broken. There is a reason God said in Genesis that it's not good that man should be alone. He took woman from man, which then is symbolic of the fact that when joined back together, there is a whole picture of mankind. Which is even more deeply symbolic of how God designed us from himself, and we thus feel complete or whole - lacking nothing - when abiding with him. But we're fragmented when apart from him. We are quite literally home when with him. I love this, because one day I'll just close my eyes and cross over the thin plane separating this life from the next, and I'll be with the person that I'm home with in my heart, Jesus. Everywhere he is is home. And marriage is a representation of this union.

Caveat: I'm not proposing (get it?) that all must be married.  I believe there is a special grace for some to not be. Just want to state this here, because we can see it demonstrated biblically.

These are my thoughts as I move past seven months of being without my earthly companion. Yesterday was hard. Of all the things I was missing, I was missing my friend most of all. I look forward to seeing him again. Until then, this is one story I can share to keep his memory alive, and to give examples of things we saw in Christ together. He is cheering me on to continue, because there are more stories to come. 

Blessings,

Jenny 


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