My Senior year started out like any other person's, I suppose. We were all excited...making plans... My step dad was getting ready to retire from the Navy so there were alot of changes coming my way.
I started a notebook, a list of sorts of what I wanted in a husband and what I didn't want. I also would cut and paste pictures of wedding dresses and bride's maid dresses along with engagement rings and great places to honeymoon. I never showed the book to anyone....well I am sure my little sister probably saw me working on it a time or two :)
Most of the guys I knew were not what I would have considered husband/father material. So as I made my list I went by alot of the character qualities I saw in my step dad...I wanted a man of integrity, a gentleman, one who honored his parents, was a dedicated Christian, honest, trustworthy....and I also put some physical traits as well...he had to be older, have dark hair, blue eyes and I wanted someone that was taller than I was. What I didn't want....the thing that stands out most in my mind is rebellious, disrespectful and dishonorable. I wish I still had that list...Ashlynn found it when she was 1 and had a hay day tearing up the pages :)
I didn't date anyone that year...I think we were all just too busy planning our lives...but I remember 2 VERY specific times when coming home from school...as I walked in my bedroom with my backpack slung over my shoulder God greatly burdened my heart to pray for my husband's purity. I remember standing in the middle of my room and thinking...'But, I'm not even seeing anyone and you want me to pray for this person?!?! And I remember God telling me, "If this is that important to you then you need to get on your knees and pray RIGHT NOW!!!!' And I did. I knelt beside my bed and prayed...I said, 'Lord, I don't know who he is or where he is, but You do. I pray that you would put a hedge of protection about him and keep him pure for me.' This happened on 2 different occasions during my senior year. I didn't tell anyone..just kept it to myself and then as my Daddy neared his retirement and we made plans to move and I forgot all about it.
We were living on Andrew's AFB in Washington DC during my high school years. I loved the city and all the wonderful sights and sounds. I loved shopping and boy were there places to shop! DC, Maryland and Virginia were just full of malls!!!! I loved being active in the Ensemble' in my youth group, I also helped out alot at my school. My life was so full....then we moved to the coast North Carolina...and boy was that a shock!!!!
We went from attending a church of 2,000 to a church of 200...we lived in a rural community. I remember how hard it was to fall asleep at night due to the lack of noise!! Imagine that!!! But I was used to hearing jets and sirens and traffic...they had been replaced by crickets and tree fogs.... There were not very many girls my age at church..and shopping...HA!!!! The 'mall' was an hour away and pretty pitiful to what I had known before. Life was definitely different! There were only a few single men in church....and I thought, I honestly thought I was going to wither up into an old maid!
To be continued
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