Happy Birthday to my wife…

Dear Vince,
I know you’re thinking, “Jason has lost his mind” as you read
this.  But after 13 years of serving (and surviving) the church and 11
years of marriage (plus 2 years dating), I feel led to take a moment
right now, stop serving the congregation for about 3 minutes, and give
thanks to and for you.
Today is the annual recognition of your first birth.  I thank God
for that.  I thank God for you.  I thank God that He placed you in my
life just shortly before calling me to serve His church.  I thank God
that I was present for your second birth in Boone, NC.  I thank God
for the lessons He has taught me through your patience, through your
tenacity, and through your strength.
While we have journeyed and served together through many and
varied circumstances in the church, in our home, in our community, and
in our families, you have been a faithful wife, an honest friend, and
a loving mother.  You have brought a richness to my mental, emotional,
and spiritual life.  You have served as a refuge to me when times were
tough and you have served as a motivating force when my inspiration
was low or my thinking off-center.
I personally do not believe that everyone in marriage ends up
selecting the spouse of God’s choosing.  However, for several reasons
none of which I will share in this note, but all of which you and I
are aware, I do believe He ordained our marriage.  My life and our
ministry would be entirely different without you as a part.  You
define “help mate”.
So, to a portion of the congregation that we serve, I wanted to
publicly say to the one that gets little to no recognition, “Happy
Birthday!  I love you!  I thank God for you!”.

Your biggest fan,
Jason