My marriage is wonderful, and my husband is incredible, but let me also say that our relationship isn't perfect—it's taken work to get where we are. There have been some rough patches and some days when he didn't seem all that "wonderful" to me, and I can imagine that he's felt the same way.

I've come to see that love is like an oak tree. When nurtured it takes root. We have storms that leave us feeling confused and miserable, but we put effort into seeing them through, because both Michael and I know that with each passing season those roots are growing beyond what our senses observe.

Like most young couples, we started out eager yet unprepared. I was a young bride believing that love was give and take, and that a 50/50 partnership was ideal. As long as I was willing to meet Michael halfway on everything, we’d be just fine. But experience soon taught me that unless I was willing to give 100 percent of myself to this marriage, without expectation of return, my gift of love was little more than a swap of emotions.

"Without expectation of return?" You might ask, "Well that doesn't seem fair."

The truth of the matter is is that the return on my investment comes from the Father in Heaven and Him alone. That's where my confidence lies.

Love is a gift, and if we hand over a gift with one hand open while the other is closed, the gift is lost in exchange.

Marriage isn't a barter system, and love isn't a currency.

It’s exercising patience when your husband’s habits are grating on every one of your nerves
It’s kindness when your partner is grumpy
It’s being humble enough to lose an argument when you feel that you’re right
It’s holding your temper when he says something in anger
It’s protecting his reputation from your own tongue
It’s trusting in his capabilities to handle a difficult task
It’s standing strong in difficult times

The question then would be, Why are we planting seeds without an expectation of return?

The answer is because we aren't planting them for the sake of our husbands or for ourselves, we plant them for the sake of our Lord who loved us before we loved Him, and who gave His life freely while we were yet sinners. Love like that doesn't carry an expectation, but it does carry a hope.

Sow your seed in the morning, and at evening let your hands not be idle, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or whether both will do equally well.~ Ecclesiastes 11:6, NIV

You are loved by an almighty God,

Darlene

www.timewarpwife.com