We were blessed to be a part of the most beautiful and touching wedding this Father's Day. As Father's day approached it was hard not to focus on the loss and the absence of a father. I have an amazing dad, he has always been there for me and our family and he continues to be there whenever we need him. He is such a servant hearted man and I love him so much. My children also have the most wonderful father in the world and I know that they are truly blessed to have him in their lives. It isn't that we didn't have lots to be thankful for, it was just hard to focus on the blessings instead of the sorrow. Tara's wedding was a perfect distraction. It was such a joyous moment and an exciting experience. I couldn't wait to see her walk down the aisle and watch them exchange their vows. I knew that this wedding was a symbol of joy and hope. After watching Tara on her journey the last few years (you can read about it here) I was aware that her wedding was definitely an answer to the prayers of so many people in her life. Watching her boys walk her down the aisle made me teary eyed, and it was so sweet to see the joy in her eyes. I truly felt blessed to be a part of her wedding day. Their vows were very touching, I especially loved Kevin's promise that she would be prayed for every day, I can't think of a better thing to have a husband promise his wife! When Tara's boys gave Kevin his first father's day gift at the end of the ceremony it was an incredibly emotional and happy moment, such a blessing to know that those boys will again have the love and direction of a father, living with them, interacting with them, and guiding them to become Godly men. It was a small intimate wedding, that so perfectly celebrated this couple.
There was a moment during the ceremony that completely turned the day around for me, a moment where I began to realize that the wedding was meant to be more then just a distraction, more then just a bright spot on a dreary day for us. When the minister was speaking to Tara and Kevin he said something like this "you have both gone through hard times, times of sorrow, times of anger, but we are standing here today because God is faithful." I started to think about this statement "God is faithful," and as I thought about it, I started to cry, I kept thinking, is he really? (obviously the answer is yes) but "do I actually believe this?" Do I live like I am trusting that God will be faithful, and if I am what do I expect of God in order for me to believe he is faithful? I was looking at Kevin and Tara, and thinking, well he was faithful to them, but how is he going to prove himself faithful to me? What is it that he can do out of our situation to bring the kind of Joy to our family that Kevin and Tara are experiencing today? What does it mean to be able to look and declare "God is faithful!" I thought on it for awhile and our day went on, we enjoyed the reception and visiting with friends, but when we left Michael and I began to talk about the wedding. He started talking about what a cool thing it was to have been a part of it, what a blessing it was, and how much it meant to him. As we shared our feelings and emotions about the day God began to work on my heart, I was able to see his hand in our lives, to see how this wedding, that was about Tara and Kevin, was also God proving himself faithful to us.
Shortly after Don passed away Tara and I and a couple girl friends went out one night, we talked about life, sorrow, hardship, trusting God, and all kinds of other issues. When I came home I remember telling Michael that Tara was feeling so broken hearted, and that she was really struggling with the fact that she hadn't found someone to share life with. I remember Michael just feeling for her so deeply, and he said, I am going to pray for her. It wasn't a statement made lightly or quickly forgotten, and it wasn't a prayer that was just made without thought. It was the first earnest prayer that Michael made after Don passed away. It was his first real crying out to God for someone else kind of prayer. He had found it hard to talk to God after everything that happened, he was angry, as was I, but for some reason Tara was tugging on his heart strings enough for him to cry out to God. He began to pray, and pray daily, and to pray with belief. When we were talking about the wedding yesterday, Michael told me how shortly after he started praying for Tara he remembers talking with her on the phone she had called to encourage us in our sadness, and he remembers telling her that she was going to find someone, and that it wouldn't be long. He said that he just remembers feeling total confidence in that statement, he just had the assurance that it was true. Within about two weeks of Michael beginning to pray his friend told him about this guy, and how he thought that this guy would be perfect for Tara. (The rest of the story about how this friend introduced Kevin and Tara can be found HERE). It was so cool how as we talked about the wedding God reminded us of these moments, of how desperately I wanted these prayers to be answered back in September, both for Tara, and for Michael because I felt he needed to see a miracle, to see his prayers answered in a big way.
The more we talked about the wedding the more God opened my eyes, all of a sudden I could see, God is faithful, and not just to Tara and Kevin, but he was proving himself faithful to us. Of all the dates Kevin and Tara could randomly pick (they didn't realize they had picked father's day when the date was first settled) it was the same day that was going to be such a struggle and a heartache for us. Going into the day I wasn't sure if the wedding was going to ease the pain or be enough of a distraction to make it any easier, but it was. Michael talked about how his heart had ached for Tara when she was having to be a single parent, and how he had come to think of Tara kind of like a sister. To see her get married, to see her broken heart restored, to see prayers answered was healing, it made the day a little easier. It kind of felt like the rainbow over the arc after the flood, there is still the mess left behind, we are still dealing with the ramifications of our "flood" but it was like God was promising us it would be okay, and declaring "I AM FAITHFUL." I believe that Tara and Kevin were meant for each other, I believe that had we not determined to pray, God would have brought these two together, but I also believe that had Michael not listened to that stirring in his heart, had he not been obedient to God whispering to him to pray, Michael and I would have missed out on seeing God's faithfulness. We would have shared in the joy of Tara and Kevin getting married, but we would have missed the deep personal blessing the event brought us. As we were saying our goodbyes and Tara was thanking us for coming, I heard Michael say to Tara, "it made my father's day a little easier, it made it special." This past couple weeks has been really tough, spring has been hard, learning new things on the farm, planting the corn, then watching floods destroy it, dealing with Bev's flooded basement, watching the river continue to rise, trying to get crops off, it has been stressful and emotional, but this wedding, being in the middle of it all, has given us hope. I can actually feel some of the heaviness lift as I truly believe there is HOPE for joy in our future, that God will be faithful and bring us through our season of sorrow. This is the first time that I can say I believe this not just in a knowledge kind of way, not just because I am clinging to the promises of the bible but because I am feeling God working. It might seem hard now, it might be hard to understand how God can work this for good, but I know can honestly say I have HOPE.
Tara being walked down the aisle by her two boys, such a heart touching moment!
This was such a beautiful wedding, I loved every moment!
It was easy to catch a photo of this kiss, no quick smooch for these two!
Kevin made the most touching set of vows to Tara and her boys at the end of the ceremony, it was really beautiful. I am so thrilled that Tara has found such a Godly man to raise her kids with, love it!
Kevin's first father's day gift, pretty sure there weren't too many dry eyes in the house at this moment!
Such an exciting day, it was so cool to see how the boys were such a part of this wedding, it definitely showed how it was about them becoming a family, not just two people getting married.
Another huge blessing for us was that our cousin and aunt and uncle who live in Kelowna were willing to babysit our four very busy children all day so we could attend the wedding, and then still invited us to stay for dinner! It was another bright spot for us. We had fun and were able to visit and watch the kids play. We felt very blessed to have had them babysit our kids, they made us feel like they loved babysitting our kids and that it was fun for them. It was such a nice way to spend the afternoon. The kids loved doing crafts and playing with barbies and dinosaurs while we were at the wedding, and when we got back they got to go swimming and horse back riding. To the kids it was the perfect day, they had so much fun and keep asking when they get to go back. I was really touched by how generous they were to us, and how when we were leaving and thanking them for having us, and apologizing for the mess we left, they thanked us for bringing the kids, and for coming for dinner. It really is a blessing to feel welcomed into someones home, and to be made to feel like they loved having you, rather then like you were an inconvenience. A HUGE thank you to you guys!
On a day where there were many painful expectations, and there were many moments that were painful, but God definitly blessed us. Our kids fell asleep by the time we left Kelowna so we even got to make a stop for a quick cuddle with our sweet little twin nephews on the way home. We got home late and we were tired, it was an emotionally full day, but we came home counting our blessings and giving thanks to the Lord for all that he had shown us, what a blessing it was to be part of a wedding, connect with family, and snuggle two little miracles, how could I ever have doubted God's faithfulness. I am declaring that I believe with my whole being that God is faithful!
The pool was too cold for us adults but the kids all braved it!
Playing with some pretty cool dinosaurs. Mason was pumped, we don't have anything this cool!
Getting ready to ride the horse, the kids loved it! They might just start begging a little harder for that horse!
Emme and Uncle Chris
Bella had a blast too!
Cheyanne even got to trot a little, it was exciting for her!
besides the pink and purple Dora helmet he rode like such a little cowboy :)
The horse even tripped while he was riding and he didn't slide a bit, just held on tight, and kept going!
