We Turn Eight!

In honor of our eighth wedding anniversary,
here is a list of eight things I love and/or appreciate about James.

** James is a Godly man. One of the things that first attracted me to James was his desire to know and love God. Different things about James and his personality have changed over these last many years, but this one thing has never changed. James loves God and longs to be like Jesus, and I know with absolute certainty that there is no better quality under the sun.

** James is an excellent husband. Long before I ever became a married woman, I had an idea in my mind of what a good husband would be. Little did I know, I had no idea. At various times in our lives together, I've realized he's much more than I ever knew I needed. James is kind and generous, loving and reliable, funny and compassionate. I thank God for bringing him to me.

** James is a family man. There is no place in the world James would rather be than somewhere with his family. A slight disadvantage to this is that his friends often think I'm keeping him home or somewhere else with us, when that is not at all the case. However, that disadvantage is far outweighed by the fact that he loves to spend time with us, just to be with us.

** James is an incredible provider. He works hard and without complaint to make sure we have all we need and much of what we want. He works long hours, spends a lot of time in traffic, travels often -- all for us. Fortunately, James loves his job and finds great satisfaction in his work, but I believe he works as diligently as he does as a sacrifice for us.

** James is an amazing father. James is not a perfect father, just as I am not a perfect mother, but he loves his kids deeply and makes them a priority. He is diligent to spend one-on-one time with both Bub and Gracie cultivating their relationship, and helping them to understand just how special and loved they are. His qualities and capabilities as a dad make me long even more for that "quiver full" of children.

** James is exceedingly generous. James gives of himself and of his resources without question. More than once, he's opened his heart, his home, his checking account to others in our life. He has given hours and hours and hours to others who struggle with various habits and hangups. He didn't hesitate when we had the opportunity to adopt Bub. He didn't hesitate when we had the privilege of taking in Chelsea. He doesn't complain when our house is filled with people and our pantry is rapidly depleted. He actively looks for ways to give.

** James is devoted. Primarily, James is devoted to God; secondarily, to me. Beyond that, he expresses intense devotion to a few select things -- to our children, to our church, to our extended family, to our ministry opportunities, to his job. When he sets his heart towards something, he is completely devoted to it in an unswerving, unmovable way, and I respect him deeply for it.

** James is the love of my life. Before James, I missed out on a lot of love. I came from a very complicated family situation where love and affection wasn't really available, and followed that with dating relationships with men who were quite self-centered. From the time that he knew he loved me, James has never been shy or reluctant to express that to me, and his tenderness towards me has brought healing to very deep wounds in my heart. Throughout the course of our lives together, we've had ups and downs and dramatic challenges, but whether through actions or by spoken words, James consistently reminds me of his unending love.

Happy Anniversary, James!
Here's hoping you can stand me for eight or eighty more years!