Lovin is what I got! I said remeber that!

1 Corinthians 13:4-13 (NIV)

4Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

8Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. 11When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. 12Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

13And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

So, I know that this may be the most common verse for weddings, (it was central at our wedding too) and that most people find it corny, but I really love it. It shows the completeness of God's love for us. We can strive to follow this tall order with our spouses but, we easily fall short of its completion. There is only one love that is this type of love. Agape- as the bible refers to it. The never ceasing, all encompassing, love that only God can have. I think that this is a great type of love to strive for with everyone that you love, not just your spouse. What better an example for relationships could we have than this?

At the moment I am counting my blessing to have such a wonderful husband. You may think to yourself, what special thing has he done thing week? The answer is, nothing. I just really missed him while I was away on vacation with his parents. I could not imagine what it would be like to be without him for more than a week or so. I kept wanting to tell/share with him every experience that I had while I was gone. It was like my other half was missing. Matter of fact my other half WAS missing. The bible says:

Genesis 2:24 (NIV)
24 For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.

So, Craig, and I, take this literally. You can find it again in:

Ephisians 5:22-32 (NIV)

22Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. 23For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. 24Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.

25Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26to make her holy, cleansing[b] her by the washing with water through the word, 27and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church— 30for we are members of his body. 31"For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh."[c] 32This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. 33However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

I can only hope to live up to this kind of long lasting love. I am sure that we will have our moments, as we have in the past, but I hope that I can slow down occasionally to say thank you to God for providing me with such a wonderful gift of love and for Craig for loving me as much as he does. We may not be perfect but, we are sure going to try our best. If my parents and Craig's parents (who are in the picture holding hands) have been able to get through almost 80 years of combined marriage, I know we can too.

Because how is one half of the body supposed to live without the other half?

It doesn't.