Celebrating 9 years!

June 7, 2002

the night of our wedding rehearsal

July 23, 2011

Pastor and Mrs. Hatfield

grateful for the blessing of 9 years

*some things have changed, others haven't, our hearts will forever be changed and that's God's good gift to us!

I count it a blessing to be able to be celebrating 9 years (June 8) together with my fun loving, God honoring and best friend...Lucas Hatfield. It's been an incredibly good 9 years. Not good in the romantic, all is perfect sense (although there have been some romantic in it too :O)), good in the "we've been through a lot of good, bad and ugly times in the last 9 years, and we're not the same people we were when we started this adventure."

God has been transforming our hearts in the past 9 years (even before that too, but you get the idea). Finishing college, saying goodbye to sweet friends I made at Grafton Elementary, transition with friends, moving 4 times, 4 years of Seminary packed into 3 years, being live-in nannies, saying goodbye to precious relationships in TX, being a youth pastor's family for 5 years, adding 2 beautiful kids to the mix, debilitating depression for Luke, me working for a year 2 days/wk, and many other adventures in between - He's used it all! :O) The beauty of it all is that I wouldn't change a thing. Why?

God says that "He works all things out for the good of those who love the Lord." There's been so many awesome and exciting adventures we've shared, but to be honest it hasn't always felt good. Our times of trial have been when we've had to cling to the promises God has set before us and believe that He was worthy of our trust even if we didn't know the outcome. In the end of each good, bad and ugly life situation or stage, we've been able to look back and say, it is truly well with our souls because He has brought incredible good from it.

What could possibly be good through tough times you ask? Transformed hearts that are drawn closer to Jesus. He is all we need. Right now through certain circumstances, God is teaching us about what it means to draw close to Himself and be fully satisfied in Him alone. Not His blessings, not the good things this life offers but in Christ alone. He has blessed us with good things to enjoy. There's nothing wrong with enjoying God's blessings. I think it will be a life long journey of having the sensitivity of knowing when those blessings are stealing my affections from God. The question is...am I trusting the blessing or good thing to fill a hole in my soul that only God can satisfy? He reminds us that even in the trials of life we don't have to be shaken because His promises haven't changed. It's our perspective, expectations and hope in passing things that determine how we're feeling about such matters. What activity, goal, blessing am I looking to satisfy me other than Jesus?

There are so many things vying for my affections in this life. The culture and Satan wants to draw my mind and heart into meaningless and sometimes meaningful activities and goals (because then our minds are on other things other than Christ). The crazy part is the activities and goals will satisfy for a short time, and we sometimes might even be applauded for them, but as time passes we still are left feeling empty and searching for the hole to be filled. What I day dream about, facebook about, blog or spend the majority of my time on is what my heart treasures. Whoa! (Thanks for that challenge Pastor Tim!). And they can be good, well meaning things. It comes down to if my heart is trusting those good things to satisfy me, instead of God Himself.

I know the first time I heard that it hit me right between the eyes. It's so true. I know for me, my list of things in this life I treasure more than God is longer than I care to admit. I know the truth that things will steal my attention from Jesus, but I'm most shocked how willingly I live as a slave to those things knowing full well that nothing can satisfy me more than Jesus Himself.

So as Luke and I look to the next 9+ years of wedded bliss, we are trusting God to continue to strip away the layers of our self absorbed treasures in this life and draw us to His unconditional, selfless, indescribable, and inspiring love. God says in Jeremiah that "He has great plans for our lives. They are plans to prosper us and not to harm us, to give us hope and a future." I completely agree with Beth Moore and say, "I know when it's all said and done, we will want to stand on that side of glory having much rather fulfilled our calling than serving ourselves all the way to meaninglessness."

We are in the process of accepting that we were not called to an easy life, but to a purposeful life. I'm so thankful I get to be on this wild, fun and sometimes challenging adventure with a man I love and cherish, Lucas Hatfield, who spurs me on to embrace the journey and to be a better me who God has called me to be through the good, the bad and the ugly. I'm learning more and more that I've got nothing and can do nothing apart from the mighty power of the Spirit moving in my heart. We get to storm the gates of Heaven together asking for not our, but His will to be done in our lives so that honor and glory can be brought to His name alone! There is no better life than life in and with Jesus!