"Married for Life.....Friends for Eternity"

This was printed on the front of our wedding invitations. My husband and I came up with this phrase to sum up our relationship as brother and sister(friends) in Christ and as married partners. We designed our invitations with the help of an architect friend who just so happened to be an elder at the church we were attending at the time. The design on the front of the ivory card was a cross with 2 rings intertwined around the cross. We have been married for 17 years (18 come June!) so I thought that since this is Valentine's Day and thankful Thursday, I would list the things I am most thankful for in my husband and our marriage.

• Dave's walk with Christ. He is a godly man and I most love that he does his devotions at the breakfast table so that his children can see him in the Word as he models this Christian discipline.
  
• His funny stories and the fact that he knows every lyric to every song. There is never a dull moment in our house when he is relating a T----family story or singing a song from some obscure musical play.
• His love for his children. He is the only male in the house and now that he has a teen and a tween, he seems to be surrounded by estrogen! Yet, amidst the PMS and the mood swings, not to mention the girly-girl clothing and Bratz dolls, cd's, High School musical paraphenalia, Hanna Montana posters and lip gloss tubes rolling around the bathroom, he really loves on his daughters and knows how to speak their love language. His love is deep and unconditional and yet he doesn't hesitate to set boundaries and guidelines. I am thankful that he is showing the love of the Father by his being the best earthly father the girls can have.
• His love for our church. I have written alot lately about his service with the teens at the youth center and his willingness to attend marriage ministry events. It was a difficult transition for us, going from one church to a new one, but I am so thankful that he heard from the Lord and took the steps to make that transistion. I am most thankful that he encourages all of us to be involved yet also encourages us to not do "too much".
• His generosity. I am very thankful that my husband believes in and practices the spiritual discipline of tithing. This can be hard sometimes but I am so thankful that he does this. I am also thankful that he supports various missionaries and organizations here in our own community as well as abroad.
• His love. I am most thankful for the last 17 years and the ups and downs of married life with 2 daughters. Life does have its challenges....we both have had to face issues from our past and if we didn't have each other, plus Christ, I don't know how we would have done life. His love never wavers. Even when we are in a trial, he can find the good in it. We have had challenges with the girls, with each other, with church/ministry issues, with jobs, with extended family. But....he is a rock for me and keeps me focused on the very One who is truly our Rock.

What are you thankful for today? What about your husband, if you are married, do you most love or are thankful for?