Becoming A Wife: A Great Adventure

Alright, so it's no secret that I am new to my new job title, "Wife". Every day I am learning something new. I always thought that I was you know, at least moderately prepared for this lifestyle. I thought, How much can there really be to learn? I know Christian... No, I REALLY know him... Life isn't gonna change that much. Umm... In the words of my incredible husband, "BOGUS!"
"Change" seems to be the word of our life right now. I loved to cook and bake before we were married, but it's funny how the things that you used to do occasionally just for the joy of it, how they can sometimes lose their zest when you must do it for three meals a day. Also, I had no idea just how incredibly expensive life is! Granted, for all of you super duper "extreme coupon"-er types, you must give me a little credit. I am the one who can't even bring myself to "splurge" on a $1.50 pair of socks.
So, there are changes, and some are more pleasant than others, but I get to start and end every day with the greatest guy ever! That is what makes even the challenging situations all worth it. Still, through it all, I have felt the Lord teaching me a lot of things. I am such a social butterfly, that moving to a new place and having no friends and actually needing to put forth the effort to really get to know people is scary, humbling, and oftentimes lonely. It's something that I have never truly had to do before. I was encouraged though, the other day when a good girlfriend of mine gave me a call. Her and her husband are in an almost identical situation... They are two friends of ours from the ship: He's a Canadian, and she's from Roseburg, OR. Well, they got married early in September this last year, and spent their honeymoon driving to a camp about an hour out of Edmonton, not knowing anyone, her not having a job, and nothing to do but learn how to be a great wife. She has a few months on me as far as learning goes, and when she gave me a call, I really felt the Lord poking at my heart and my attitude. Unfortunately, my attitude hasn't always been super. Shocker: I'm not so great at "submitting" as I thought I would be, and in fact, I absolutely stink at it most of the time! Not OK. When I confessed my woes of wanting to be home and have all of my friends around me again, Kaylee (my friend in Canada) gently but directly said to me, "You know, Linda... I felt the same way, but finally I realized that God didn't bring me here to make friends. My first goal is to know Kyle, and to focus on his needs, and to learn to be the best wife that I can be. Even if it makes getting to know people outside our home take longer. Jesus made Kyle my first priority aside from Himself." So, that right there might be something that those of you wives that have been married for a while are smacking yourselves in the head about, and saying, "Duh, Linda!" It's OK... Just writing this is making me want to do it, too. The other thing that she encouraged me with was in pointing out that yeah, this time is hard and we miss home tremendously. But the Lord is blessing us so much by this experience, because while we are far from home, we are still not too far to visit. Since both of our families are planning on being in full-time missions work in the next several years (Kyle and Kaylee in Japan, and us in Paraguay), the Lord is being gracious with us (as He always is) in allowing our first transitions as wives to be in places that are not too far, and not too different from home. This is a learning period, and an easing into a life that will soon take us far away, to completely different cultures, languages and new people. Instead of pouting about how difficult it is, I must praise the Lord for all of His goodness! It is never fading, never changing... He is our constant, our Provider, our Perfect Peace.
The rest of my conversation with Kaylee was still full of convicting thoughts, and I am so thankful for them. While this might seem random, the key and most important part of holding up my part in this marriage is staying constant in the Word. I must grow closer to Jesus, because He is what brings me closer to my husband. While Christian and I are learning (very quickly) that marriage isn't just a bunch of flowers and Enya, and that arguing and trying to learn how each other operates isn't easy, my walk with Jesus is the cornerstone to our marriage, and He is what syncs us. And finding out that time of day when both of us can come together and read a passage together and pray makes all of the difference in the world!
I am so thankful for this time of our life. Lord willing, He will continue to grow us and fill us with a satisfaction that only He can provide.
"And so train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled." -Titus 2:4-5