Lessons From The First 10 Months Of Marriage

This month Matt and I celebrated TEN months of marriage!
It's hard to believe that time can move that fast.

When Matt and I first started dating, we unintentionally started celebrating small victories as they came our way. I remember a silly comment he left on my Facebook page a week after he asked me to be his girlfriend, "A week down! Nobody thought we could make it but here we are defeating the odds!" Of course, he was completely joking, but I love and appreciate that humor & acknowledgement of little steps along our journey. Making dinner plans to celebrate every few months of dating, impromptu flowers and chocolates, hand made cards and notes - all little things that helped us celebrate our love throughout the years. This has helped shape my perspective that there is nothing too small to celebrate.

Fast forward time five years from when we started dating, and now here we are - married! (This will forever make me smile from ear to ear!) Looking around at all the amazing examples Matt and I have of Christ-centered, strong marriages is encouraging and fills me with joy. If you are engaged, newlywed, or even just started dating, you may have heard that marriage is so different than anything else. Some might even call it hard work. This is true. It demands you to pour your whole heart into it, every single day. It asks you give grace freely, sometimes without it being returned. It challenges you to think of someone else before yourself, to want what they want, and to be their biggest cheerleader. But it is SO rewarding! Through marriage we get a tiny glimpse of the selfless, grace-filled way that Jesus loves us. But we can still only see a glimpse as to how deep & how wide Jesus love for us truly is!

Can I be honest with you? Some mornings, I dread the day before it even comes; work, chores, bills, and busy schedules can feel overwhelming. Life has a funny way of throwing itself at you very fast, and all at once. I have found that stressing over these things, and letting them cloud your view of all the good right in front of you, is very detrimental to any relationship. Especially marriage! Something I love so much about Matt is that he has continued to keep that same positive, silly, and appreciative outlook that he had all the while we dated. He is a constant source of joy, and is always asking me to keep my focus on what's going to make a positive impact on my life, and away from dwelling on small insecurities and issues that may come up.

Make the choice every day to MAGNIFY the qualities you love about each other and the blessings in your life.

This will DECREASE those negative & stressful thoughts that creep into our minds and make us think that we aren't good enough, our life isn't good enough, or our spouse isn't good enough. And always, always remember that in God's eyes, you aren't just "good enough" but you are MORE than enough! When we face each day with this in mind, it becomes a little easier to celebrate not only the great feats in your life but also the little accomplishments!

P.S. Marriage is amazing!!!