Dreams Realized

Psalms 30:5 

For His anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes in the morning.

This past Sunday, I watched my husband stand in front of small congregation, where he shared his testimony. My husband has lived an interesting life.. I love hearing stories about his many adventures. I listen...wide-eyed at the edge of my seat!

What many people don't know... are about the many disappointments, hurts, and losses that he has endured. Due to learning disabilities, he was unable to participate in sports and it even held him back when he wanted be a Navy Seal. He always could pass the physical portions with minimal effort, but when it came to the classroom learning and tests, he struggled and would be held back from living out his dreams. Dan had strong resolve and would always push forward and find a new goal to reach, dream to live... he never dwelt on what he couldn't do, but instead looked ahead.

His strong will and determination where tested yet again, when he experienced the death of his brother in a work accident and then less than two years later, the loss of his father, from cancer. He was reeling from the pain of losing the two closest men in his life, but he pushed forward, again and again.

Again in life, he experienced great loss when his first wife left and then within months, he had to make a difficult decision to close his business and go to work for someone else. Dan and I met  and we had hopes and dreams of a great life together. Listen to me when I say this...WE LOVE ONE ANOTHER MORE THAN ANYTHING and we have a great marriage. We made the decision from day one that we would put God first, NEVER consider divorce, and be more than just spouses, we would be a companion to one another. I'm not saying that it's been a fairytale, but we have to remind ourselves of the vows that we made before God and our family.

In the three and a half years that we've been married.. we have dealt with legal issues, the loss of our home ( God intervened and we were able to short sale), the loss of our income, and my mom suffering a stroke. BUT GOD.. He has proved Himself faithful and provided over our needs. We are currently in the middle of making many heart wrenching decisions and desperately seeking God's direction for our lives.

I sat on the front row of a small church this past weekend.. I listened with tears in my eyes as I heard my husband encourage the congregation. He told them "I'm not here to tell you that when you make the decision to follow Jesus that your life will be easy, but I know this, He will carry you through. We are far from a place where I can tell you that I understand the things that I've been through or why we haven't seen the answers to some of our most desperate prayers. But we remind ourselves that God has a plan and He will uphold the righteous."

It has been a deep desire of my husbands to share his testimony and God's Word with others. So in the middle of all this uncertainty, my heart overflowed with joy. I was reminded that when we face trials and storms in life, God is with us and He is at work, even when we don't see it. He is always faithful!