Thankful

Saturday was our 4.5 year anniversary, and as we were talking Saturday we realized that so far we have spent about 60% of our 4th year of marriage separated because of Matt’s work schedule and the project he’s been working on in Florida. We’re praying the project is drawing to an end, but it has already taken much longer that I had ever expected. As I was thinking back on the last six months and the struggles we have faced, I’ve realized that through this trial, God has continued to bless us and remained faithful in our lives and our marriage. So, since Thanksgiving is on Thursday, I wanted to share a few things I’m thankful for related to the trial we’ve been facing since June.

I’m thankful for God’s promises: This summer when I was dealing with the illnesses of Barry’s mom and my grandpa and coping with being separated from Matt, I spent a lot of time meditating on a scripture in I Peter.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 1 Peter 1: 3-7

I memorized it and had it taped to my bathroom mirror for awhile. It was a constant reminder to me that the trials we face are not wasted but have a purpose. Whenever I would have a hard day, I would pray that through the trials I was facing, my faith would be strengthened and God would be glorified. I found so much comfort in those verses and in God’s promises to take care of His children.


I’m thankful for our marriage: Honestly, I’m thankful that the time we spent apart has been so difficult for us. I think about how sad it would be if it wasn’t a big deal to be separated from my spouse for so long and what it would be like if we didn’t miss each other when we were apart. I’m glad it’s hard for both of us, because to me it shows the strength of our marriage. In my ladies Bible study, we’ve been studying the Song of Solomon the last couple of weeks, and it’s been a reminder of how thankful I am to have a loving husband and to be in a marriage relationship with him.

I’m thankful for my pregnancy: I know that our time apart would be much harder if we hadn’t been able to get pregnant so quickly. I can imagine how frustrated and discouraged I would feel if we were still trying to get pregnant and Matt was out of town 3 weeks of every month. The pregnancy has also brought some fun distractions that has eased some of the difficulty of our time apart. Plus, it’s hard to get down and feel sorry for ourselves when we have so much to be thankful for and look forward to in the coming months.

I’m thankful for overtime pay: In no way do I want to come across that the extra money Matt is earning from his time in Florida is worth the time we are spending apart, but having the extra money has been a blessing to us. We’ve been able to make some purchases we probably wouldn’t have made because of the extra cash flow including replacing the flooring in our kitchen with ceramic tile. Also, we’ve been able to make some large payments on our mortgage to bring our balance down and increase our savings account which has been a blessing especially with a little one on the way that brings lots of extra expenses with him/her. Plus, I can't imagine how miserable we would be feeling if Matt's company didn't pay overtime and he was across the country working crazy hours and not being compensated anything extra for it. I know my attitude toward the project would be much worse.

I’m thankful for lessons we’ve learned in valuing our time together: Since we’ve spent so many weeks apart lately, I’ve noticed that we both have been more purposeful in the time we do spend together. We’re more focused on valuing our time and doing things as a couple. We put more effort into planning our time together and ensuring that we are doing things that allow us to spend as much quality time together as possible. I hope we continue to be purposeful in the way we spend our time even when we get back into a normal routine after Matt’s work in Florida is over.

I’m thankful for Matt’s job: Whenever I get frustrated or upset about Matt’s constant out of town work, I’m reminded how great of a job that he has. He’s never really been in danger of losing his job, but this project has earned him credibility among his bosses and has secured his job at Flight Safety even further, and we found out yesterday that the next project he is being assigned is never leaving Broken Arrow. That is wonderful news!

I’m thankful that this is the trial we’re facing: I know of many other families whose current struggles and trials are more serious than ours. There are families with sick children, with financial troubles and other struggles that are more difficult than ours. When I start to feel down about our current situation, I remind myself of all the things we do have that many other families do not including our health, a comfortable home, financial security, dependable jobs, supportive families, Godly friends and an incredible church family. We are truly blessed beyond measure.