69 years of marriage...

Today after church, a group of us went to a nursing home in town to spend Valentine's Day with the residents.  It was a very unique and wonderful experience.  Dancing, crowing a king and queen, food, and conversation was all involved.  The first half of my experience was rather....interesting.  After having a very inappropriate conversation and being practically felt up by one of the male residents (none of the inappropriate conversation or  being felt up was done by me, by the way), I met a very lovely couple, Lucy and Clarence.   You couldn't help up notice them when you walked in.  Clarence was in a wheelchair because of a missing leg, and he sat there staring off.  Lucy was right next to him, holding his hand.  It was a beautiful scene.  However, after talking with them, you began to truly see how beautiful it was.  Lucy and Clarence have been married for 69 years!  69 years!!!  They told us about how they had suffered many things during their marriage but they came out standing....together.  Lucy did most of the talking because it was hard for Clarence to talk.  As she was talking about their life together, Clarence just sat there, nodding his head to agree with her.  You could see how much they still loved each other, even after 69 years of marriage.  I pray that when I do find the person I marry, that we can continue to love each other more and more each year....hopefully even 69 years later!  Lucy and Clarence brought hope to a heart that needed to be reminded that even after 69 years of marriage, God will sustain a marriage that seeks His face, together.

After a wonderful afternoon with our new friends, some of my wonderful friends came over to celebrate my birthday with cake!  It was great to be with them all, to talk, laugh, and just enjoy each other.  After cake, they presented me with a present....of a $215 for my missions trip to Peru!  I was completely blown away by their generosity and love for me.  I cannot put into words how blessed I am.  God once again has been more than faithful to me, with the most amazing friends AND by proving to me (over and over) how powerful He is!  
"But I will reveal my name to my people, and they will come to know its power. Then at last they will recognize that it is I who speaks to them" --Isaiah 52:6    I am so glad that He is on my side :)  What more could a girl ask for on her birthday?!