At 10:30 AM on November 28, 1987 in the Margarite B. Parker Chapel of Trinity University, the former Jennifer Elizabeth Stabell and I were married. Put another way, twenty-four years ago I married my best friend.

Through it all, we’ve been blessed with two amazing kids – Ruben and Elena – have experienced the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. We’ve lived in multiple apartments and two houses in four cities and two states. We’ve seen the passing of our grandparents and Jen’s mom, served on the staff of three churches, attended seminary and made a ton of friends along the way. Life has been full of great relationships and memories to last a lifetime.

I happen to serve as a pastor for a church that holds three values in high esteem: authentic love, radical acceptance and insane generosity. Jen has been a stellar example of each of those through our journey together. I am sad to say that I have not been the best at reciprocating those ideals, but I hope I’m getting better at it.

As we enter the year moving toward our silver anniversary, I have to wonder what the future will bring. Given the wealth of experiences we have had, I cannot help but believe that the decades ahead will be just as much a ride as the last ones have been.

One thing I will say without reservation is that there is not another person I can imagine that I would rather be on this journey with.

I love you, Jen!