“I AM NOT HAPPY!” That is how my text to Les began.

I had rearranged my entire schedule, driven back from another state, stayed by the phone expecting a call from the man who was delivering the very storage units that I had told Les from day one I did not want! (I am smiling about it now)

When Les and our contractor determined we would need some type of storage to hold supplies as we makeover the house they determined a steel container would be the best thing. I had already told Les that the one thing I did not want was a big box in my front yard that looked like it fell off of a rail car.

I did not want the neighbors to immediately think we were “That Family” who doesn’t care about their property or the property of their neighbors. Les and our contractor proceeded to convince me of all of the benefits of the very storage containers I said I did not want. They sold me by saying we could convert them (yes 2 of them) into a barn with a roof and a place for the horses to run into. So, I caved knowing at least they would be to the back of the property and out of sight.

You can imagine my horror when I drove out to the house to hang out and wait on the delivery since I had not been called. As I drove up to the drive, the delivery man was preparing to exit my drive having delivered the two storage containers.

He had dropped them right in front of the house beside the drive! I stopped my car in the middle of the road preventing his exit and turned on the flashers. I stomped right up to the delivery man’s door and said “This Will Not Work!” I was pointing to the horrid boxes bearing the name of a foreign company. My next statement was “Why didn’t you call? I have been waiting all day.”

Immediately the driver realized he was not dealing with a rational woman and he did his best to find some answers. He said “I did call your contractor and he said to leave them here and he would move them to the back in a few days.”

I eyed the containers weighing a ton each and decided it was too late to fix the problem and I could not lift them. I was hotter than the summer heat! I moved my car allowing the driver to leave and fired off the pictures and my “note” to my sweet husband.

He responded with “I will call you.” After a conversation and his allowing me to rant he got in touch with the contractor who got in touch with the right people and before the sun set the containers were moved to the back.

You may wonder why I share this story. It is because I want you to know that Les and I are far from perfect people who face real struggles just like you. We love each other beyond words, but we don’t always agree. We have learned over the years to respect each other and to give and take when necessary, remembering to always try to honor the Lord and do what is best for our relationship and our family.

Sometimes that means one of us yields our desires so that the best can happen. Marriage can be hard, but the end result is that we want our marriage to represent Christ and the church.

That means:

*love is evident,

*pride is lost,

*humility reigns,

*and our first thought is for others not ourselves.

The further we go with this house I pray that our attitudes toward each other and toward the Lord’s priority in our lives is evident. That is why we chose the theme, “Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain that build it.” Psalm 127:1

We covet your prayers, and we encourage you to invite others to share in this with us as we all build this house together with God as our lead contractor. I also encourage you to think about the truths we just shared and if they are not evident in your relationships pray about making them priority.

May the house and our relationships be built for His glory be used to make His name great for years to come.