Loving Your Man: Sweet Disciplines of Love

And over all these virtues, put on love, 
which binds them together in perfect unity.

Colossians 3:14

Our dear friend, Clayton, got married to the the girl of his dreams this weekend.  After their first kiss as husband and wife, Clayton scooped Whitney into his arms~ 
the congregation giggled and cheered and clapped...

Later, I spotted this sweet arrangement on a table at the reception highlighting a photo of their parents or grandparents...

After years of marriage, I wondered to myself if the man in the tuxedo staring back at me still swept his bride up into his arms.

Mr. Wonderful and I will celebrate 25 years of marriage in December.  During the hard times, when life is too busy to give one another attention, or we are too tired to communicate through the hard places, we climb into bed at night and I am inclined to turn my back to him.  That's when he whispers, "Hey there... I just want you to know that I will never settle for less than God's best for us."  And I roll over in response to his words, because we have committed to remind each other that we will never "settle." It is then that we begin the fight back to that place of laughter and fun and appreciation and intimacy. 
The place where Good + Hard = A RICH MARRIAGE

I've been following Ann Voskamp's blog since I began her book One Thousand Gifts.  Today she wrote about her sweet husband and a challenge for herself to love him well.  Her writing is vulnerable and real and practical.  She linked to another post about simple daily routines that have helped her stay connected to her man.  Her ideas are so. very. simple. 

I found myself challenged by them; I think you will too.
Find them here.  

Sometimes it's painful to ask the question...

"Am I settling in my marriage?" 

and sometimes the fight back to that sweet place is hard.

But when you get to that place where you get lost in each other's arms again, 

it is SO worth the work.

This weekend I think I'll pull out our wedding photos as a little reminder of that season of life when all was hope and love and anticipation of our sweet life together... 

And then I'll take Mr. Wonderful's face in my hands, look him in the eye and tell him that I would marry him all over again.