Friday, May 25, 2012

Psalm 1


Disclaimer and warning!!!!!! For those of you who don't like sappy, romantic, 'awwww' producing comments this post is NOT for you.


 "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.
The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.
Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish".    Psalm 1

So let's go back to the summer of 2006, I was 14 years old. The Stearns family had returned from Mexico a little over a year prior. My dad had been earnestly searching for the Lord's will as to where we were supposed to settle. He had just decided that we were to move to the state of Missouri where he felt lead to pastor a church. In July I was at a youth retreat with my best friend, both of us  mourning the upcoming move. One morning during my quiet time the Lord brought Psalm 1 to my attention. As I carefully read through I remember the Lord telling me, "This is a model for your future husband". He showed me different qualities that I was to look for. One of the major ones was that he would neither, walk, stand, or sit with the ungodly. As this Psalm describes, one thing leads to another. He(my man) was to desire holiness, not to conform to the world.From verse 2 the Lord impressed upon my heart that he needed to be firmly planted with his roots in the Word. That way good times or bad together we would bear fruit. 
I remember looking up and thinking,"God, I'm only 14. Am I supposed to start looking now?!?!?!" The answer was obviously a resounding, "no". But I was to tuck it away in my heart and pray that he, whoever he was, would grow into a psalm 1 man. 

Fast forward to 2011, now I am 19 and once again living in Mexico. Over the years I didn't think much about this word from the Lord. I just figured that when the right one came along the Lord would reaffirm through Psalm 1.

Well............... Someone caught my eye. He caught my eye and for a long time I didn't catch his. I will admit that hurt my pride a bit ;) Perhaps that's what impressed me about him the most...............
I was drawn by his drive, determination, and focus to get what he wanted, by his dedication. He began to gain my respect as I discovered his knowledge and reverence of the word of God. This may sound a bit arrogant but here goes it anyway, I didn't really expect to find somebody close to my age that knew as much about the word as I did. And a step further, I didn't expect someone with that much knowledge to be diligently applying the word to their lives, seeking God's will in every aspect of their lives. 
Over the years ( not that I've had many to go over, hehehe) I felt that most guys fit into one o two categories. (1) Driven by passion, being crazy in love with Jesus and having an adventurous spirit.
(2) Or held by principle, in which they were bound by a sense of legalism and intellectualism in which they had no freedom.
 But here's the thing, I wanted BOTH. I wanted a guy who was responsible, who wanted to work to provide for his family, and who was not afraid of commitment. But on the other hand, I was also looking for someone who wouldn't put a 'box' around God. A man who would follow and obey wherever, whenever, and however the Lord led......... Pretty much a christian superman, right?!?! Perhaps minus the tights and red boots?????? 

So, as I was saying, I kept finding that this guy had all those qualities. Problem is, he doesn't like me.... So I was home for three months last summer. I was hoping it would be a make it or break it time......Well, it was :) :)
Shortly after my return from summer break I had a visit from this wonderful young man. We talked about a zillion things,most have to do with issues in our generation of Christians and churchgoers. He started telling me about this inductive bible study they had just started at his church. Guess where they started it off???????? Any guesses??????



Psalm 1............... Yep, Psalm 1. I got to hear all the things the Lord was teaching him and impressing on his heart through psalm 1. Things like not even walking with, much less standing, or sitting with the wicked and unbelieving. Why? Because it's a progression, one leads to the next. Getting a sense of Deja Vu yet??? Ya........... I'm sure my jaw was on the table for the majority of the conversation. I sure know that the majority of it I was having an ongoing conversation with the Lord in my head.
Me: "Lord, NO WAY, no way, is this for real?".
God:"(chuckles) Yep".
It went on like that for quite a while. 
Hearts, thoughts, convictions, and priorities were laid on the table. The Lord blessed it, blessed us both tremendously. 
So that night it was decided that we needed to ask my parents permission to move forward with our relationship. My parents required that we both come to Missouri in order to do that. That was in August, the 6th of April we finally crossed the border and headed for MO. Six months of limbo, six months of wondering if we'd get approval. Six months of officially being not official, if you can say that. Anyway, it was a pretty incredible six months. The Lord showed us things, taught us, convicted, encouraged, beat the junk out of me.... The list goes on and on. 

To wait: (a verb)to remain inactive or in a state of repose, as until something expected happens (often followed by for, till,  or until )
1.(of things) to be available or in readiness
2.to remain neglected for a time: 
3.to postpone or delay something or to be postponed or delayed
4.to look forward to eagerly

The most impacting thing about this definition is that the first thing it states is that 'to wait' is a VERB. Verbs mean action. Waiting is an action, a decision, it takes determination and self control. 

Isaiah 30:18
And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him.

It was worth the wait, it was totally worth the wait. The Lord has blessed us both tremendously through the wait. He has given us so many opportunities to be examples through the wait.
So with all that said, may I proudly introduce my favorite geek in the whole wide world, Hectór Romero.

                         
To those of you that have been praying, thank you SOOOOO much :)

I ask all of you to continue to pray. Our desire is glorify God through everything we say and do. We want God's will and timing above everything else.

3 comments:

  1. Outstanding!!! Praise the Lord.!

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  2. Blessings to you from the Lord Jesus Christ!
    You have found a good good man.
    May God lead you both in your relationship.
    I'm happy for you.

    Your friend and sister in Christ,
    Laura

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  3. Dear Chels,
    That deffinision of 'to wait' was good. I needed it. I've been struggeling with waiting on the Lord.
    Thank you, and congradulations. May God bless you all the days of your life.
    Yours,
    Emily

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