One Year Anniversary

“Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. “ Genesis 2:24


In the last 365-no, 366 days-I have learned a lot about the life that lays before Jessica and I. On this day exactly one year ago, Jessica and I stood before our family, our friends and the zoo animals and we were married. It was a beautiful day! We were ideal about what our marriage would look like and we had very little idea of how hard it would be to build the life that we wanted, but we knew God would provide all that we needed through every stage of the first year of our marriage.


In the beginning:
When Jessica and I first met up in 2016 at the Tempe Market Place for a movie, I don’t think either of us knew the story that God was orchestrating. We had re-connected; we had met initially in 2016, and we were both looking for a friend. Then, we started dating.


It wasn’t long before we were befriended and bonded, not wanting to severe those ties again. Within a few months, we knew we wanted to get married, but we would wait-waiting of God’s time to bind us. Through prayer, planning and patience we built our friendship that would strengthen over time; a friendship that grew into love.


The Darkness:
Everyone whose ever been married can attest to the fact that it is not always easy or peaceful. Often times it is described as a full time job that can be emotionally draining for both involved. In our first year of marriage, it seems like Jessica and I battled through a variety of struggles that we had to overcome. The question was: would we overcome them together or find ourselves facing the struggles independently?


In the initial months of our marriage, it seems that Jessica and I were both battling personal battles, but we weren’t fighting side-by-side, we were battling against each other. This is not what God had intended for the two of us.


In the initial months, a lot changed for Jessica and I. She went from working a full time job to being unemployed. Due to her lack of employment, Jessica found herself in a dark place where her mind was able to dwell and plunged her into depression.


While Jessica was battling internal struggles of depression and anxiety, my mind filled with doubt; was this going to work? Was this what we both really wanted? And were we both going to fight to keep the love in the relationship alive?


Early into the marriage I was already wondering how long I can fight through this on my own. I didn’t have the confidence to ask for help and I didn’t want those around us to watch our relationship deteriorate before it really had the chance to grow into what God had initially intended it to be.


Our mornings were usually quiet and tense with very little talking between the two of us, then I went to work where I worried about my newlywed life. I would often return home and I would try to get us both out of the house to ease the building tension on our relationship.


The truth was, I didn’t know how to be a husband and I was fearful that I was not capable of being one; a Godly man who leads his family to trust in the LORD through the most difficult times.


Prayerful Practice:
Every morning before I woke Jessica for the day, I prayed. That was really all I knew what to do in times like these. I would pray for our marriage and I would pray for Jessica in this difficult time and I prayed for our finances.


Even though we seemed to be in a hole of darkness and despair, we realized that all that we could do was focus on God’s promise for our marriage. Even though it was difficult for the two of us Jessica and I would continue to lift our family up in prayer, looking for hope.


Slowly, we saw God working. Jessica found ways to preoccupy her mind through the days while also looking for a meaningful job at the library. We developed deeper connections with the members of our church and our neighborhood group, which assisted with lifting our spirits on a weekly basis.


We continued to pray together, each time further connecting to each other as well as connecting to God. We began to thank God for providing for us and answering our prayers. We soon found our place in ministry, in meaningful employment and more connected than ever.


We now stand here hitting our one year anniversary trusting God as we follow the track that He has placed us on. We stand here now believing that we are able to face any and all obstacles as long as we have each other to lean on and learn from. We now stand here triumphant in all of the trials that we have faced and we are better and stronger than we were a year ago.


God,
Thank you for being our provider through this year and help us to trust in your name through the next one.


Jessica,
I Love you more than ever and I want to thank you for loving me through all of our ups and downs.


Happy One Year Anniversary! ​