Everyone who knows Steve and I always thought we had the perfect 'fairy tale' relationship, myself included. He's always made my heart go pitter patter. When we worked in different offices we would talk on our cell phones all the way home and my heart still always seemed to skip a beat when we pulled into the driveway. However, much to my dismay I realized that I was losing Steve a few months before he left to go to Afghanistan. We had been through so much together; years of struggling with a teenager with behavioral problems and mental illness, a failed business attempt with family, both of us losing our jobs and then faced with taking on the responsibility of raising Joshua when neither of us had jobs. I can't begin to describe how devastated I was when faced with this realization. When Steve left for Afghanistan in November of 2009 I had no idea what was going to become of our marriage.
After Steve arrived in Afghanistan he began sharing his thoughts and feelings with me. He began apologizing to me for hurting me and explaining that he felt like a failure because he had not been providing me the things in life he felt I deserved. The time apart had given us both the time to think about our lives, each other and realize just how much we really do love each other. Now every day is Valentine’s Day for us filled with genuine, heartfelt I love yous, I miss yous, I can't wait to see you agains and you mean the world to mes. When Steve was home on R and R in April of 2010 he made the comment, "The one thing I'm the most grateful for from this experience is the fact that you and I are tighter than we've ever been and I wouldn't trade that for anything."
I look back over the fifteen months that Steve has been gone and realize there are so many things to be grateful for. How wonderful it is to see evidence of God working in our lives, even through those experiences that seem the most difficult and most painful. It's from those situations we find the greatest blessings of all.
I know Steve loves me. I knew he did when he left to go to Afghanistan. To make the decision to go into a war zone in order to provide for his family takes an enormous amount of courage, self-sacrifice and love on a man's part. Especially when facing the fact that these sacrifices could include the ultimate sacrifice of losing his life. It reminds me of John 15:13 “No one has greater love than to lay down his own life for his friends." Amplified Version I can't begin to express how much I admire, respect, appreciate and love him for making the sacrifices he makes for us every day. I pray for God to watch over him, protect him and bring him home safely.
Jesus came into the world knowing that He would have to make the ultimate sacrifice for us. The amazing thing is the fact that He would have made that same sacrifice if it were only for you or for me. There's no greater love than that. Who do you love? Take the time to tell them today how much they mean to you because today is a gift and tomorrow is never promised. Happy Valentine’s Day!
