Sound the Retreat

"True friends stab you in the front." - Oscar Wilde

My wife and I just returned from a short vacation, where we left our two little ones at home. Our intent was less recreation, than a rediscovery of our ten years of marriage and a focus on how we should approach the next chapter.


At the ruins in Tulum, Mexico.

We spent some time reading Tedd Tripp’s book, Shepherding a Child’s Heart, which brought on some great discussion not only on how we approach raising our children, but on how we approach each other. The discussions were honest, and sometimes painful, but truly worthwhile.

Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses. (Proverbs 27:6 NIV)

It is true that the words of a close friend can cut deep, but with a focus on love, the wounds heal stronger (it helps that she kisses the wounds as well.) I learned much about myself, and the sin that I have allowed to creep in. How fortunate we are to have such a loving God to combine us as one in Christ. In the fourteen years that I have known her, we have grown so much.