My Boy

I am so proud of my Joe. This Sunday he & John Morrison were ordained. The ordination has everything to do with God- His Grace & Call upon their lives. But as his wife & best friend I can't help but think about the amazing man Joe is as well. I had an amazing priveledge of sharing on Sunday about Joe. Its really long, but as a way to honor him, I thought I would post it again so you all could read it. He (along with the other guys) studied so dilligently- and for hours & hours in order to pass the ordination exam. I included some pictures of this Sunday, the reception after church & lunch afterwards.



Pictures of the service on Sunday


(Here is Joe Sunday afternoon looking at an incredible scrapbook his Mom made him. It tells the story of God's calling on his life...from prophetic words his parents recieved at his birth up until now).



And our sweet girl at the reception- playing with the decorations



HONORING JOE- ORDINATION SUNDAY


It is a dream come true to honor publically the man whom I love & respect most in the entire world. Since this is about Joe, I have written it to Joe, and will mostly look at my sweet boy as I read it.

Joe, I still vividly remember the very 1st time I met you- September 5, 2000 at Jimmy Cone in MD. Just through one evening of observing you and our brief conversation that night you left a deep impression on me...this is a man who passionately loves the Lord, genuinely loves people, and lives life to the fullest. Now that I stand here seven years later, having the most amazing privilege of being your wife, I can say all of those first impressions of you are truer than I ever realized.

There is so much I could honor you for, but the time I have been given is short. So I chose to honor you for the three things l love most about you- your passion for God, your love for me and the amazing father you are to Alathea.

The very first thing that attracted me to you the first day that we met is what I most love about you now...your deep, passionate, contagious love for the Lord & his Word. I have never observed a man so closely that loves & honors the Lord as you do. You delight more than anything to meet with the Lord. Your favorite part of the day is studying His Word & your extended prayer times. I love seeing the Joy you posses after spending time in the Word & how you can hardly contain yourself from sharing every new thing you learned that day. Often times you have told me that you'd love to spend the entirity of every day reading and studying scripture. You never get tired of it! I love seeing how the Lord has used those quiet moments you faithfully spend alone with him to birth new ideas for preaching at M28, Rekindle or Sundays. I also admire the way you take Gods Word so seriously and have built your life upon it. The truth of Gods Word is so important to you, that you named our daughter Alathea, which means truth in greek. I so appreciate that you are a man of humilty & convictions- which is the foundation that makes you an incredible husband and father.

Secondly, I want to honor you for the amazing husband you are to me. I am the most blessed woman to be your wife. I am the one who gets to see the “public Joe” genuinely live out what he preaches in his home day in and day out. Words that would describe you as a husband would be tender, faithful, loving, humble, and caring. You take so seriously honoring the Lord in your role as my husband. You excell at leading me biblically, teaching me so much about the Lord & scripture and faithfully caring for my soul. You consitently help me when I am struggling and gently bring truth & correction when needed. You have never allowed work or ministry to take priority over our home, a reflection upon your trust in the Lord and your love for me. I am so, so grateful for that. One of the most meaningful expressions of your care for me has been this past year and a half of walking with me through my Mom's sickness & death. You have been so compassionate and empathetic, yet you never shy away from reminding me of the thruth found in the Lord that has helped me so much during this time. You love me so well- looking for ways to bless & romance me, taking me on special dates every week, reading to me in bed at night, planning memorable trips for just the two of us. Life is always fun with you, you live life to the fullest and always make me laugh. But what blesses me most of all is how in little ways every day you make me feel like there is no one in the world you would rather be with. You are my best friend, Joe, and as cheesy as it sounds, I can honestly say I grow in my love & respect for you every single day.

Lastly, I cannot thank you enough for the father you are to our Alathea. You have far exceeded every expectation I ever had. You have been a loving, committed, faithful father since the moment she was born when I caught you crying your eyes out as you looked at her for the first time, or the first week we brought her home how you joyfully stayed up the entire night holding her as she would only sleep in your arms. Her 1st word was “Da-da” and it is still her first word every morning as she wakes up ready for her “special morning snuggle time” with Daddy, as you serve me by spending time with her so I can run. Your love for her is so clear each morning as she follows you out to your car, climbs up in your lap and with a huge smile gets to “drive” daddy's car around and around the cul-de-sac. And also every night how you carve out special time for just her- either a wagon ride or rough housing in the living room- both topped off with her snuggling in your lap hearing a God-focused bedtime story and praying with you before bed. You have built so many wonderful habits as a father already in just 18 short months! Thank you for the way you are already taking every opportunity to point her little heart to the Lord- though your own personal example, through the stories you read to her and prayers you pray with her, through your faithful, loving discipline and simple daily instructions you give her. One such example would be this week tenderly holding her in your lap and sharing with her how she should be joyful even though she doesn't get to have any candy, since the Lord loves her and has given her more than she deserves. Although her comprehension is limited, I so admire your loving leadership in always pointing her to the Lord. She is a blessed little girl to have you as her Dad!

As I said before, there is so much more I could share about you, my love. But I want to end by thanking you for something so simple, but so meaningful to me. Thank you for the way you faithfully pray every day for Alathea, our baby girl due in February and myself. There is no greater way you could express your love to us. I love you so much!