Clearly, we're too young to have been married this long

My beautiful kids...amazing to think how they have grown in the last two years. Time has definitely not stood still!

Not to us, O LORD, no to us, but to Your name give glory because of Your lovingkindness, because of Your truth. Psalm 115:1

It is a beautiful morning in Prague, and I am settling in to write with a delicious cup of German coffee, courtesy of friends who brought us a treat from their trip to Berlin. One of the joys of living in this part of the world is the ability to travel easily (borders are open between EU countries) and see a little more of the world than we could from Russia (not an EU country, and definitely not an open border!). To be honest, we could do nothing but travel around Czech Republic and see some amazing things--this is one of the most beautiful places God created.

We are settling in slowly but surely. The boxes arrived from Moscow on Wednesday, and while there is still a great deal to do in order to be done unpacking, we are definitely heading in that direction. It is good to have our pictures and the things we have collected in Russia--it makes this feel more like home to us. We have spent some time with friends, which is wonderful. It's a blessing to have some built-in relationships, but also fun to build new ones. Prague is a much smaller city than Moscow, and even the folks who are "way out" from the center aren't more than an hour from us, and many people are only a few blocks away. (In Moscow, it took us right around an hour to get to the homes of friends...that was the norm.) So we feel like we can see anybody we want without making a big production out of it. That's fun. There are a good many kids here, and our children are definitely enjoying that. Hannah spent the week with our friends, the Lewises, in Plzen--about an hour or so by car from Prague--working in an English camp. She had a wonderful time. Hannah loves to go and work...she is definitely not content to just "live life" and have that be her ministry.

Tomorrow is our 19th wedding anniversary. That's just bizarre to even think about, frankly. (I hope you just thought, "Wow! They must have been teenagers when they married." C'mon. Be a little surprised that we have been married that long!) We were young--22--when we married...and so stupid. When I look back and think about some of the decisions we made over the years that were just idiotic...well, I'm amazed by God's immense grace toward us. We ran for years from God's call on our lives. And it isn't like we didn't live a fulfilling, fun life as we ran from that call. But on this side of the call, having finally listened and obeyed, I can definitely testify that God's best for us is infinitely better than the "good" lives we were living. Even when this life is hard, it is far better than what I would have chosen for us if left to my own devices. Safe, secure lives are fine, but living this adventure with my very best friend...so good.

It hasn't been all sunshine and roses for the last two years, though. It's been hard. Really, really hard. For one thing, change of any kind stresses a marriage. Add to that children who are transitioning and a country that isn't your own, and it could be a recipe for disaster. But God has been faithful and gracious, and we've survived. You know the hardest thing about the last two years, at least for our marriage? Marc's happiness and success. He came to the field and thrived. I came to the field and completely lost who I thought I was. Every single thing I counted as mine--my career, my success as a teacher, my ability as a student, my ability to communicate, my singing--gone. Wiped out in one plane trip to Russia. I would love to say that I stepped into Moscow, donned my apron, and became a quiet little wife. That, of course, would be a lie, and I am contractually obligated to tell the truth. In my own defense, I tried. But oooohhhh...how I failed. Failed at being the perfect wife, the perfect mother, the perfect missionary, the perfect language student...the perfect anything. And that was hard, my friends...on me, on the kids, and definitely on Marc and our marriage. Over time, I have learned that being successful in this life looks different than being successful in my former life. I've learned that being a missionary might look a little different for me than for other people, but that's okay. And I've learned that nobody on earth, not even my parents and sisters--who are completely biased about me, thank God--nobody believes in me more than Marc. Marc, it turns out, never wanted me to be anything but exactly who I am. It is one of God's greatest blessings--having someone who loves you exactly as you are, warts and all. Just one more blessing to add to the list of the many, many things I don't deserve, but am oh, so grateful for on a daily basis.

Normally, I would end this by saying something like, "So this morning, I am thankful for my husband," but that would be too little. There is never a morning that I don't wake up and thank God for Marc. Literally. Before my feet hit the floor. It's the first thing I say to God every morning. I hope I never get over the blessing of being married to Marc. Wherever you are in the world, I pray that you are amazed by the person God has given you to love best, and that you get to spend the day with one of your closest friends, too. Blessings to you and yours!

His,
Kellye