Happy 30th Anniversary, Mom and Dad!

Dear Mom and Dad,

I want to thank you for the incredibly important step you took 30 years ago, when you stood at the front of a church and, before “God and these witnesses”, entered into a covenant together. Obviously, I’m very thankful you did so, because otherwise I wouldn’t be here. 🙂

But I’m also thankful for the life you have led together before your children.

Myself, Nathan, and Dad working on my cabin

Dad, thank you for your heart for God. From very little up, I have always known that Jesus was more important to you than anything else. You have worked hard to make a living for our family, first as a carpenter and then as a farmer. But you always have made time for God. In fact, you wanted a farm, in part, so you could work with us and train us to be men and women of God. God has never been Someone that you squeezed in whenever there was enough time or energy left. Instead, you’ve made sure that He was the center of your life. And despite all that we’ve gone through, your love for God has been a strong foundation and anchor that has helped you, me, and all of our family to remain faithful to Him.

Thank you, too, for the love of learning and thirst for knowledge that you have instilled in me. In a very real way, this blog wouldn’t even exist without the support and example you have set for me. In fact, this little cabin where I’m writing right now exists because you wanted me to have a place to be taught by God. Thank you for all the things that you have taught me and tried to teach me over the years, and your desire for excellence. I love you!

Mom preparing a meal

Mom, thank you, too, for your heart for God. While Dad was the spiritual leader of our home, you have been right beside him, supporting him and working as a team with him to train us in the ways of the Lord. Thank you for being a wonderful example of a truly Godly wife. You deserve a big credit, too, for the many, many hours you have spent editing and critiquing Dad’s writings, and supporting him in the work that God gave him. Thank you for never complaining through thick and thin, even when our housing was in limbo and we didn’t know where we were going to live next, or when times were tight and there wasn’t much money to go around.

Thank you for spending over 20 years of your life giving six children an education, even in the midst of pregnancy, gardening, farming, house renovation, and all the myriad of things that you do every day. The other day, I found my CAT scores from first grade, and I found out that I was reading and writing, in first grade, at a ninth-grade level. You must have done something right! 🙂 Thank you, too, for training me in music, for helping me editing the songs that God has given me, and for providing a foundation for excellence in our music.

And thank you very much for the tens of thousands of meals that you have cooked, day after day, not only without complaining, but with pleasure. I love you!

To you both, thank you for the Godly example you have set for us, for the joy and love you created in our home, and for being such wonderful parents. I’ve met plenty of people in my lifetime, but I’ve never met anyone that I would rather have had as my parents. Thank you, too, for honoring the commitment you made thirty years ago, and for creating stability in our home with the knowledge that you had married for life, come what may.

God bless you with many, many more anniversaries together, and may the next 30 years be even better than the first 30!

Love,

Joel

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