We hit the 30 years of marriage mark this year. Gone are the days of big hair (some things are negotiable) and big shoulder pads. Thirty years has seen many fashion trends come and go. Some make us ask "What were we thinking?" Others leave with fond memories and stay stashed in the back of the closet because they are classic and maybe we will be that size again some day. My college roommate,Laurie Jean and my Capezio almost flat black shoes are a special college memory. I still remember the day we gave them a little memorial before she forced me to let them go. They were good shoes, but they could no longer able to be repaired and re-heeled. The abuse of the brick walkways left them completely used up. They had served me well. Laurie knew I loved them... but their service was over. She was firm and gentle. We said goodbye with something near reverence.
Laurie knew me. We lived together through college in rooms smaller than some of my current friends closets. She loved me like a sister. She knew I needed her help giving up something I treasured when it was no longer good or good for me. I had worked hard to pay for those shoes from Donna's Youngtown (a local boutique with the best stuff and the best sales). I needed her support to do something hard.
You are probably laughing... I should be embarrassed... but I do love good shoes.
Today - our church is having a shower for Chase and Emma. Was it really so long ago that Randy and I were in their shoes. It is the first "homegrown" congregational marriage in 47 years. Ken and Joyce were the last one. They saw these kids born AFTER their children were all in school. Watched them grow up, and I imagine Joyce will be at the shower today, if life permits. Will she remember their bridal shower? Chase and Emma... like Ken and Joyce... have a deeper understanding of what it means to know and be known. Chase and Emma will have nearly 26 years of friendship before they begin again as husband and wife.
To know and be known. It is good. It is real. It can be raw and vulnerable... but it is the sweetest gift.
Our Lord knows us in that way. He wants to be our everything. He wants us to know Him like he knows us. To be known... deeply, truly and completely... and still loved, that is the sweetest of gifts.
Today, we celebrate and shower them with gifts and love. They have been raised in the way of faith and have seen the difference it makes to add the "third chord" of Christ to the marriage covenant.
Love is a decision - a choice and a commitment. It makes all the difference. It is waking up every day and celebrating that someone loves me back. Someone who really knows me can really love me, without reservations.
My Randy does this. My Jesus does this. To love them back isn't just good... it is satisfaction beyond what the world can offer or buy. It's the good stuff.
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. 1 John 4:7
I celebrate that each has chosen well. Chase chose Emma and Emma chose Chase. I am not sure in which order love arrived came. Perhaps, it has been growing for nearly 26 years. An imperfect person that is perfect for them. That is the best part of love.
Today... I am grateful to be loved and known.
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