Boredom and Adventure

The Lewis family really enjoyed Up. Our reasons were different, though. The girls liked the visual feast and layers of humor ("Squirrel!"), but Betsy and I found it to be touching - both sad and heartwarming. It's full of themes of loyalty and redemption, but, most significantly for us, adventure.

A little over 14 years ago, Betsy and I crafted our own marriage vows. In addition to pledging our faithfulness regardless of finances and health, we declared our commitment to stay together through both boredom and adventure.

Betsy's grandmother thought that was just awful. Betsy and I thought it was realistic.

But we crave the adventure - we've had plenty. Mostly good. I pray God grants us even more.

Uncomfortably Numb

Yesterday I got a call from an old friend. Her youngest brother, for reasons unknown to me, committed suicide. I took a long walk, pondered and prayed. Most troubling to me is the lack of emotion I feel. May God grant his peace--beyond my comprehension--to this family.

I confess that the idea of having peace in this time escapes my grasp on a variety of levels--except the faith I have in God's ability to do more than I can imagine. So I keep asking him to do that which he does best - the things that are beyond me.

These past few weeks have seen a convergence of seemingly grave situations in the lives of those around me. Over the past 20 years I have learned this, however: difficult circumstances can bring people to deeper levels of faith. We're instructed by scripture to face trials with joy, because they ultimately lead to godly maturity. So I continue to pray that God will protect my own family from harm - but not necessarily from hardship.

That's a topic for another day.