Purpose in Every Season

It’s hard to believe that John and I have been married for over eight months now. Nobody really tells you how much personal growth happens within that first year of marriage. When I look back at our wedding photos, sometimes I don’t even recognize the girl in those pictures. I’ve changed and grown so much since then. God has used these months to teach me not just about us as a couple, but also about myself, pushing me to grow and process things I hadn’t really faced before marriage.

Being vulnerable is one of the hardest things. It’s scary to fully trust someone and let them know the real you—your heart, your hopes—and wonder if they’ll still love you. But that’s what marriage is: a beautiful picture of God’s love for us. In marriage, you see each other’s flaws the more you’re together, and you realize neither of you is perfect. Yet, even in those moments, you choose to love each other unconditionally, offering grace and forgiveness when you mess up. It’s a reflection of how Christ loves us. He died for us, knowing we’re sinners and that we would continue to fall short, but still, He offers grace and calls us to follow Him.

I don’t think I’ll ever fully understand God’s love, but I’m starting to see it in a whole new way through marriage. There’s such beauty in it. Marriage is a gift from God, and when Christ is at the center of your heart and your marriage, it reflects how God intended it to be—a picture of Christ and the church.

As Scripture says, love is patient, kind, selfless, and not self-seeking. Marriage challenges you to put the other person first, to love them unconditionally, even knowing they’ll make mistakes—and so will you. Through this, I’ve learned more about God’s love and grace, and what it means to forgive myself when I mess up. It’s okay to not be perfect. That’s where God’s grace comes in, where He builds a testimony for Christ in our lives. We’re forgiven, and we’re called to live with purpose, following Him.