Happy anniversary my beloved

A while back, I read the blogpost of a woman whom in celebration of her and her husband's anniversary had written a long list of things of why she loves her husband. The list displayed the actions of a man who surely puts her before himself. As I read it, I thought of you, about the proximity of our anniversary and figured that I could come up with an equally long account for when our own anniversary rolls around.

And so I started making up the list in my head and I was definitely coming up with a nice, long inventory of things you do to show your love and appreciation for me and for our family.

Then I read something that made me entirely shift my focus on how I wanted to honor you for our 9th anniversary.

What I read was the following:

" A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another". John 13:34-35

The type of love described in this verse is the kind that gives to others even if nothing is given in return. As I pondered on this verse, I was convicted that the kind of love I was to have for you was not to be based on, or in response to all the ways in which you may or may not show that you love me; but that it was to be primarily an attitude, a choice that I made daily as we traveled in this journey called marriage.

So I scratched the making of the list and instead, I choose once more to make a commitment to love you in this way. Intentionally, daily, with my attitude and acts of kindness. To love you in a way that shows that you come first. Before myself, before the children.

Thank you for making it so easy to love you and thanks be to God through whom are all things. to Him be the Glory (Rom 11:36)!