so thankful for him

When Keith and I met in middle school, he was "the man," or I guess I should say, "the boy." We were both in band together and he just always had this confidence about him - he was extremely smart and extremely talented. His confidence continued all throughout junior high and into high school as he continued to achieve everything he set out to accomplish - whether it be one of the top kids in class academically, running for class president, band president, nominations for Homecoming King, Most Likely to Succeed, Band Beau, Drum Captain, etc., etc....you get the picture, he was simply good at everything. And he knew it ;-) He was pretty cocky about all of his skills.

But then something changed. Our junior year. He realized that God was the giver of all good things, including all of his many talents. He began to love God more than himself. Now, we had dated a couple of times before this point. But...it was at this point that I fell in love. hard. and I knew I was going to marry him. We were 16 then. We finished high school and went to Baylor University together.

And, on May 20th, 2000, I got to marry the man of my dreams. He is still just as talented, actually, even more talented. He still has an amazingly high capacity to achieve anything he sets his mind to. But, he doesn't delight or find his worth in these many talents. These verses from Psalms always make me stop and thank God for my husband - because they so accurately describe him...

"But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.
He is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither.
Whatever he does prospers." {Ps. 1.2-3}

I am a better woman because I have a husband who loves God so much. He leads our family so well. He provides for us. He makes us laugh. He points us to God. He prays for me. He encourages and challenges me spiritually and mentally. He is such an amazing father that the kids eagerly anticipate his arrival at the end of the day because they just love to be around him. He leads our home, our church and the staff with such integrity. He is a man of his word. He can be both direct and loving at the same time. No, he's not perfect. But, I would say he's pretty close. And I love him dearly.

Thank you, Keith Patrick Ferguson, for 11 years of bliss. I look forward to spending the rest of my life with you.