I suppose with publishing of our new website (isn’t my hubby amazing?!) it might be nice for us to articulate why we feel the need to add our life experiences to the internet. Some days even I question why. Just the thought of the whole world potentially knowing our struggles and failures makes me doubt and rethink every thing we post on this site.
Lately I have even felt myself pulling away from Facebook, I rarely use my Twitter account anymore, and Pinterest has all but lost its luster. Aside from watching shows on Hulu or Netflix while I’m working in the kitchen (which, thanks to The Sustainability Snowball, seems like a lot of time lately!), I really don’t utilize Internet much these days.
So why invite the entire world to peer into our lives while we journey to off-the-grid-land?! Perhaps to truly answer this question, we’ll have to take a trip down memory lane…
Almost immediately after Ben and I began dating, our relationship came under attack. It only increased after we got engaged, and not until after we were married and could somewhat retreat by ourselves into newlywed land did we see a reprieve. Our wedding day was one of immense healing. We were surrounded by those who loved us and enjoyed a gorgeous, Christ-centered ceremony and reception put on with great help from our families and friends, all of whom supported us and evidenced that God truly has put us together for such a time as this (Esther 4:14).
As part of our healing and growth, God has shown us that the adversity we previously encountered is confirmation that we were meant to be together. God has continued to affirm our relationship in so many ways, and we have absolutely loved this first year of marriage, growing closer together as God edifies us through our relationship with each other.
About 6 months after we were married, a good friend invited us to be a part of an intimate small group of Jesus-lovers where we were loved on and affirmed that upon continuing to follow hard after Christ, our marriage would be a God-honoring one. We heard from the Lord, also, that God had specific plans for us and our marriage. Through that experience, God placed in our hearts the desire to disciple and minister to others, and to truly give of all we have (2 Corinthians 9:6-7) since we have been blessed so immensely.
We may not even know exactly how or when God will use our lives to bless others. Our goal of owning property and living sustainably will hopefully be one expression of that desire. We want to use all that we have to minister to others and we eagerly await more direction from God.
All of that said, because we know that we have been given an incredible gift of love for each other because He first loved us (1 John 4:19), we no longer want to keep it to ourselves. That is why we are taking a step forward in faith by sharing our lives with you. When Jesus graciously chooses to bless us with a hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11) that we cannot begin to predict or comprehend, we want you to share in that witness! Though it may not make sense to put our lives on display or to share our innermost desires with you, we believe that being open and honest about our lives will bring the upmost glory to God.
“No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:37-39