Real Talk with My Husband

Well friends, today I get to let my most favorite person take the reins of this little blog space. He's my husband, best friend, and the best man I know. When we had been together for a while, I asked the Lord why He gave me Rory, and He told me "To show you My love for you." And friends, Ror shows me the Lord's love in so many ways-little and not-so-little- every single day. He gives so much grace. I know him pretty well, but I asked him to share some of his own thoughts today so you,too can get a glimpse into his awesomeness. :)

{Elissa Ewald Photography}

When and how did you come to know the Lord and begin to follow Him?

I came to know the Lord at a young age, similar story to most who grew up in the church.  I have had many good seasons and many complacent seasons in my walk with the Lord but have always been lucky to have many good friends and mentors investing in me along the way.

How do you think the Lord allows you to give Him glory in your job?

I think the main thing we can do to give glory to God is to do our jobs well.  I think being excellent at what you do is a great way to give God glory, especially if you are remembering to rely on him in all things!  I think another big factor that can give God glory is the kind of atmosphere you create.  Does the attitude in the room change when you are in the room (for better or worse)?  Do people enjoy being around you?  How do you handle disagreements and conflict?  Do you stress others out with your stress?  I think how we handle ourselves in a work environment can show people how Jesus has transformed us.

What have you learned about yourself and the Lord in six months of marriage?

I have definitely learned about taking life day by day.  When you begin to just coast through the weeks it is easy to become complacent in everything.  I am learning that marriage takes focus and effort each day in order to be a good spouse.  Marriage has been a great blessing because it is a tiny glimpse of our relationship with Jesus.  It provides tangible examples of how I should be relating and investing in God and how he is responding to me.  For example, when things are hard or frustrating at work, it is easy for me to look past it because I know in a few short hours I will get to see my wife.  But in a greater scope of things, that can remind me that Christ is always with me and I can take joy in that now.  Little ways that Jess shows me love always point me towards Christ and little ways I show Jess love can ultimately make me more like Christ.

What advice would you give to men still waiting to find a wife?

Sign up for for online dating and ask out the first girl who sends you a wink. :)  In all seriousness, I don’t have any good dating advice...I was never very good at dating.  As I got older though, even just in being friends with females, it became easier and easier for me to identify what I was and was not looking for.  I could see personality types that although were enjoyable in friendship were probably not ideal for marriage.  Obviously differences are good in marriage, but there are certain things you should never compromise on.  The longer you are single the easier it becomes to look past red flags. You can easily get desperate and excuse red flags that you should not excuse.

What advice would you give to women still waiting on a husband?

I would say the best advice I could give women would be to learn how to be content where you are.  It is very easy to fall into a trap of thinking that once you find someone and are married you will be fully happy and all of your problems will melt away.  That is not the case, and my wife can confirm that I am not even close to awesome enough to make her happy and solve her problems.  Learn how to be whole without a spouse and when you find a husband who is whole without you it will be a great and freeing relationship.  It takes a lot of pressure off of the other person to try and make you happy.  If you are not happy where you are now, you are not going to be happy when you are married.  

{Elissa Ewald Photography}

Describe your perfect day.

I love Saturdays with the wife.  I think the perfect day starts with sleeping in, not too late but at least nothing scheduled that makes you get out of bed.  Next would be brunch, eating in or eating out...no preference.  If the weather is nice I like to be outside for some of the day.  This could include taking our dog Bailey to the park or going to some arts and crafts fair downtown.  After a nice relaxing afternoon, there is not much better than a movie on the couch with cheap Chinese or pizza and popcorn.

And last but not least: coffee or tea?

Tea - Coffee smells great but leaves a bad aftertaste that no amount of gum can get rid of.  Tea is clean and wholesome.