since i was three feet tall
young neef is getting married this weekend - i'm crazy excited for my dude, he and bethany are so totally suited for each other, complementing each other in a way that's pretty rare. some folks i know get teary and emotional at weddings; some get angry; i usually get sweaty, because i'm in a suit or a tux.
this particular occasion has gotten me thinking about why renee and i work so well together. it seems for every silly way in which we are opposites (temperature preferences, food), there are elements of my personality that meet hers at the perfect spot.
i love to cook and (due to time spent at the compound) have grown to enjoy doing dishes. she rarely even thinks about food (blasphemy!) and hates doing the dishes.
i'm not a big fan of laundry. she seems to get high off the scent of dryer exhaust (you know they make candles with that scent?)
more than that, though, both of us walked into this relationship with an intense desire to take care of the other person. a very surprising sensation to me - a machine of self-obsession, i rarely do anything that doesn't directly benefit myself in some way, and yet i constantly find myself thinking about ways that i can make her more comfortable, happy, stress-free... and it has led the both of us to sacrifice without a second thought for the other. i'm grateful that i've been blessed with someone that cares so deeply for me; and also that my heart has been adjusted by my Lord, and that as a result she is (less frequently) subjected to its vicious, desperate selfishness.
there have been changes in the way i communicate, and the way i listen, as we have gotten used to each other. but i think i've appreciated most the insight into how God loves us sacrificially... the way i hear people gain insight when they have kids... that idea just makes more sense now than it has before.
nate is one of the most spiritually insightful people i've ever known and i've grown immensely from our friendship... i'm excited to see how he and bethany will grow and change as they intertwine.
I agree. I think Nate's gonna' have a blast! The stuff about how marriage is fantastic in part because it teaches us to sacrifice reminds me of Eph 5:25-27:
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing[a] her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.
A lot of guys I know seem to not get this. I don't think this is the same as being a doormat (see the verse right before that quote), but I just don't get how a marriage could be everything it's supposed to be without the husband giving up everything for his bride.
Great prospective :o)
Good thoughts Justin.......thanks.
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dude, thanks for puting up Jimmy Tango on your Flash in the Pan site.
pure hilarity, my friend. yet i wonder, how in the world was that studio audience not in tears during this.
i almost threw up here at work from laughing so hard.
"I'm the devil!"
I love that SNL. Haven't seen it in years. Remember the sketch from that episode where Jim Carry was the Hot Tub life guard. Classic.