Marathons, Mud & Muscles

When I was serving a mission in North Carolina, I saw a sign on a church's bulletin board that read "Life is hard, but God is good!" I have reflected on the truth in that message many times throughout my life. Needless to say, life has been very hard for our family this past several years...in every aspect. We have experienced many trials ranging from bruised knees to death of loved ones. Somehow, in the midst of these trials, we have chosen to count our many blessings to see how good God really is...and he really is ~ Good. He really, truly, unconditionally loves us...even in our weaknesses.

I reflect on one of the greatest blessings I have received in this life...and for eternity...my dear husband Matt. He is an amazing man and for the past (almost) 12 years, he has continued to suprise me with his "skills," talents and (unknown to me) abilities. He is strong in stature and enormous in spirit. I mean that with the utmost respect. He has worked so hard to provide for our family temporally and spiritually. He takes great pride in taking care of his stewardship. He is in his last semester of school (10 1/2 years) and we have recently compared it to running the last leg of a Marathon. It seems that the end is so close, but there are days when it seems like his legs are jello and there is not an ounce of energy left in his body. He has come so far and the only way to go is forward, because the way is closer to the finish line than the starting line. It also feels like we are trying to swim in Mud. As we think about these analogies, we realize the many Muscles that are strengthened in the trial process. We realize how strong we have become and will become when this part of the race in life is over. We will be prepared for the next challenge and we know there will be more challenges, for that is why we are here on earth.

I am grateful to have a companion who knows the values of work, persistence and endurance. I am grateful to be by his side as we go through this life's experiences. We are a team and we work together. When one of us struggles, the other is there to pull us up, and this exchange happens quite frequently. How blessed we are to have each other!

I love you Matt!

Eternally yours, Alice.