1st Thanksgiving Picture

Okay, so I have a ton of pictures from Thanksgiving...(thank you Abby!!). I will try to be posting new pictures daily until they are all posted. Keep your eyes on the Wilson blog, and you just might learn something new about us...

So everyone knows how I eloped to marry Frank. Right? Okay, good. So does anybody know WHY I did it? Didn't think so. Little known fact: I suggested we invite Frank to church even before I knew his name ~ I think it goes without saying how that turned out. But regardless of everything that has happened since the night of September 3rd of the year 2007; Frank is my husband now. I want you to look at the picture above and give a good, hard look at Frank. Don't think about how he "stole me away." Look at his picture without prejudice or malice of any kind. Frank is a good husband, and he loves me beyond the expectations I ever had of him. He has made my family different forever, and it's time we all accept him for who he is. If you can't love Frank for who he is, (as a lot of you don't know him personally) love him because you love me. I am still the same Deborah I always was, except that I have been made better because God has bestowed His grace upon my life and given me the man I was going to need to keep me going strong. Yes, in some ways I am different. But I am different for the better. Yes, God and Frank still have a lot of work to do; God for the spiritual, and Frank for the earthly aspects. But I could not do without either of these two in my life, and I am thankful for where I am today. I know I am where I am because of the choices I have made. But I want everyone who knows me to understand that Frank and I are husband and wife now, and I will not allow anyone to look down on a wonderful thing.

Second in that picture is my good ole Uncle Sam. We all know he's a project, (sorry Sam) but you know what ~ it takes a lot of humility to be the only one in my family to invite Frank and me to sit at his table. To eat among his daughters for what all we know are now plotting their "escape" through their windows. Sound silly to you? It does to me. Despite every person's mistakes in life, God gives us each our own measure of grace to deal with the mistakes of others. What does this have to do with Uncle Sam? Start by asking yourself this: Who are we to judge others, when we ourselves have a log in our eye? I mean think about it. Are we sinless enough to point out the sins in others? Are we qualified like a panel of judges to decide who did wrong? When was the last time you sinned? And in case anyone is confused by my question, yes I mean lying. I mean things we categorize and consider "little lies." Telling your husband a partial truth. Telling your child that they can't do something and then getting up and doing it yourself. Do you see the double standard I am trying to explain? Sam has allowed the chiefest of sinners (yes, I mean me...and I'm kinda tired of telling everyone that) and has invited us to his home, among his wife and children, no less. Do you think you could do that? Do you have enough humility to do what he has done? He doesn't have us over to remind us that we're bad kids, that we need to start bonding with the rug beside the couch, etc, etc. But I have learned from him that pride needs to be put aside, and we need to be humble.

Samantha. Where do I start? Beyond asking me why I had left home, she accepted me and Frank. (Key word readers, FRANK.) Yeah, remember that guy I married? The one that's my husband? Same one. All I told her was "because I loved him." She didn't need to know the whole story. She didn't need a three hour explanation. And just like that, she nodded and gave me another hug. To have the love of a child. I wish everyone could be as simplistic as she is. She's not naive like other children. She knows right from wrong very well. But you know what, she loves me enough to forgive all rumors she hears and is told, and decided that love and forgiveness were more important to her than keeping a grudge.

Sometimes the people we love make very bad mistakes in life, and we wish we could go back in time and start all over again. But sadly, we are given only one chance. We only have one life. No matter where you are, who you are, or what you have done; you cannot take it back. You cannot do it over. You cannot try again. We are each given one chance in every situation, and God promises to give us an opportunity in each situation to back out of it before it's too late. But many times (as we all can testify) we do not take that way out that God provides us. In every temptation, there is a way of escape. There is a choice we can make to do the right thing before it's too late. Once done, our choice is final. We can't take it back. We can't change our mind at the last minute and hope it will all work out. We cannot erase the past. God promises to forgive us of our sins, but He does not promise there will be no consequences as a result of our choices. My choice was to marry Frank. The way I chose to walk the path that lead to being his wife is not only the one I regret, but the one I will answer for. Frank told me that by sneaking around would be to show I was ashamed of him from the start. But I chose to not try again and appeal to my parents. I want everyone to know that I am not ashamed of my husband, and I would like for all the people I know and have grown to love (yes, everyone from FBT) to see what a wonderful man God has blessed me with. The journey will not be easy. But think of this: has your way of escape been closed because you chose not to do it God's way? Are you too late? Have you ignored your last chance at redemption forever because you refuse to admit your wrong?Think about that while you lay in bed tonight. No matter what it is, open your eyes and take that way of escape ~ you'll ultimately be glad you did.