Marrying young and other acts of Idiocy.

Joe and I will celebrate six months of martial bliss in four, short days and it is loco crazy how quickly time travels, but is equally crazy how often people weigh in their opinions about our decision to marry young. Recently someone asked me..."how did you know?" Know that you are being strange? Know there is green remnants of tapas in my teeth? Obviously, I wasn't following this inquisitive friend's stream of consciousness, but he soon ironed out the details for me. "No, no. How did you know he was the one? How did you know you should get married?" This conversation unraveled into a quick debriefing of the two prevailing "schools of thoughts" about marriage. Apparently, some people think that people should marry young because then you change and grow together and others believe you should wait until you are fully mature (...oh, wait. I thought I was. Awkward.), settled in your career, and ready before you marry. Plenty of other strangers are quick to give me their two-cents. I love hearing it. The Gasp. "You are married? Oh, but you are so young. Poor thing." Another fine gentlemen recently informed me I chose the marriage pathway because I was Southern (obviously, a synonym for idiotic. Don't even get me started, y'all). He quickly informed me that though I felt I was happy I would have never made such a mistake (he used somewhat nicer lingo) if I didn't grow up in the South.

Hear ye. Hear ye.

Let me now assure all of you that I am proud and confident of our decision to marry young. I don't believe it means I have third leg or a hankering to marry my first cousin. In our unique case, marrying young was an act of obedience to God. We dated and it was where the Lord led us, although, this isn't the case for everyone; we knew it was right for us. The Apostle Paul wasn't too keen on marriage he says in 1 Corinthians, "But those who marry will face many troubles in this life, and I want to spare you this." You right Paul, you right. But Psalms tells us that wives [and presumably husbands] are more valuable than rubies, so why would you ignore the goodness of what Christ has led you to because you are anticipating...a diamond, a shinier new career. There is always a bigger and better version of the reality you are in. As my pastor always says don't let good things become God things. The inability to settle down for some is a reflection of the fear they may be experiencing. I have many friends who murmur halfheartedly that they will have time to serve God once they are married. Do not allow the "what if's" of life distract you from the right-now-nuggets-of-goodness that are all around you (this applies to so much more than marriage). 

I think marriage is a valued commodity in a culture that gives it little legitimacy. We tune in to watch televised weddings that cost hundreds of thousands of dollars (nothing but love, Sean and Catherine!), and send tweets at rocket-power speed when couples divorce. We mock marriage and we joke about it. As Paul states in his letters, marriage isn't for everyone, but those who decide to enter into marriage are entering into a sacred union that now includes you, your spouse, and Christ. I am confident that the person I am today will change and transform into a refined version over time, but I am more than confident that Christ knows the strands of hair on my head and equally knows the intricacies of mine and my husband's marriage and will continue to grow us for his glory. I consider what I have learned about compromise, financial struggle, serving one another, and joy in the short six months we have been married and I know there is so much more to come. I am thankful that we can use being young as an excuse for the next five years when we fall flat on our faces over and over again. I yelp of joy thinking of how much greater Christ's love for us is than any love we can give to one another. 

There it is. I am married. I am 23 years old. I am not dumb. 

Just to soothe the pain of the aforementioned naysayers rudeness condoning the goodness that lies below the Mason-Dixon line, here are five reasons I love the South: 

1. Diet Sundrop. errwhere. and whatever additive in it that makes it addictive (but really don't tell me about all its health effects. I am sipping on one now and I am as fat and happy as a cat).
2. BBQ: Eastern, Western, Vinegar, Ketchup...while I hold a favorite in this feud it is all so good it does not matter. 
3. Wrap-a-round porches and the smell of fresh cut grass. I am aware this must exist in the North, but this is the cornerstone of Southern goodness, y'all.
4. Sweet Tea-- which is just awful for your health, but so darn good for your soul. 
5. Random people greeting you (because I try to do this in other places and it is frowned upon).