An excellent wife, who can find? For her worth is far above jewels. The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain. She does him good and not evil all the days of her life. ~ Proverbs 31:10-12
Tomorrow marks our 22nd wedding anniversary. There is nothing cliche about the above passage of Scripture. It is true in my life. It is true about my wife. I could go on and on about the virtue and beauty of my wife, but it would only embarrass her. She has never sought that kind of public adulation. She has always been most comfortable behind the scenes.
God has made me a new creature in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17). Through the help of the Holy Spirit, Mahria has bourne in me a desire to be a better man (Prov. 27:17). She brings out the best in me (such as it is) and, with great grace, mercy, and patience she endures my many flaws (1 Cor. 13:4).
Needless to say, Mahria has endured much (James 5:7-11) being married to me: 20 years of law enforcement; the L.A. Riots of '92; a shooting in '93; the Northridge Earthquake of '94; and countless other critical incidents. She also endured following me into and through a failed church plant. And today, she endures the daily challenges of standing alongside a chaplain, evangelist, and missionary. Along the way, she has managed to provide our three girls with an excellent education at home, with selfless grace and care.
"An excellent wife, who can find?" It's a rhetorical question, with an obvious answer. "An excellent wife, who can find?" Me. I did. I found an excellent wife. Rather, God found her and gave her to me. Second only to the gift of salvation I have received through faith in Jesus Christ, the greatest gift in my life is my precious wife.
Happy anniversary, Mahria. I love you.
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2 comments:
Happy Anniversary to both of you!
You picked my favorite Scripture and I strive to learn from Proverbs 31, and I hope someday, if the Lord is willing, the man I love will be able to the same about me.
I told you your wife could probably write a book for women like me and by the situations you said she went through with you (and you guys are still married) I was right :-) But, now that I know she's content being in the background, I won't hold my breath for a book.
What a blessing this post is to me, because it gives encouragement and hope for marriage when we are faced with so much worldly views of marriage.
This year marks my tenth anniversary to my wife, Molly. I look up to men of God like you who put their family first and make marriage an honorable thing. Congratulations, my friend.
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