I could talk all day about how much fun we had! However, I expected that. The three of us are best friends, and without fail we always have so much fun together. There’s never a dull moment between Haley, Zach and Katy…ever. So, as I write about my experiences in DC for you all to read, it is not all of the food we ate and the places we traveled that made this trip so incredible. It was the ability to live a week of real life with my two best friends and watching the most beautiful couple live life together and love each other so deeply and passionately that it leads me closer to Jesus. Haley is always writing about her experience of marriage from the inside view. While that perspective is so beautiful, insightful, and full of wisdom, I find that you can see the heart of the relationship, and where Haley comes from in her blog, by viewing them from an outside perspective. Through this perspective you see the raw, beautiful, hilarious, difficult and vulnerable side of Haley and Zach’s beautiful love for each other.
I’ve had the privilege of seeing the natural progression of Haley and Zach’s relationship from day one. I’ve seen Zach when he was in love with Haley, I’ve seen the very beginning of their relationship when they first started dating, I’ve seen when Haley fell head over heels, I’ve seen Zach leave for the Air Force, and I’ve watched and experienced their 3 year long distance relationship until they were engaged and finally celebrated at their wedding. Although I know Haley and Zach so well, this week revealed so much more than I could have ever imagined. I got to see Zach and Haley in their everyday element and routine 24/7. I got to experience life with them, and their love has only continually grown deeper, and more passionate.
We all know, either through experience or through Haley’s beautiful well-written words, how much Haley and Zach love each other. Here are some things I noticed about their relationship:
They are best friends.
They pray together each morning and night, as well as every meal.
They pray for others. They prayed over me the entire time I was there.
They encourage one another.
They compliment each other, and on deeper levels than “you’re handsome, and you’re beautiful”.
They affirm one another and remind each other of the gifts God has blessed them with.
They support one another.
They serve one another and they serve others.
They laugh at each other.
They are so hospitable.
They love others. Not only did they love me incredibly well all week they loved random people in DC. It seems insignificant, but every single time we interacted with someone, tour guide or cab driver, Haley and Zach individually took the time to ask how they were doing and take the time to converse and show true joy.
They are lighthearted, but also discuss deep topics and show the intentional conversations of marriage and faith.
This week I saw Haley and Zach in their best moments, but even more importantly I saw them in the tougher moments. I saw Zach and Haley have small arguments, frustrations, and setbacks. Although some of you may be asking, “Why is she going to talk about the tough parts of marriage?”. The reality is, watching them through that was one of the most encouraging things to see. Their love and their story seems like a fairy tale, and it honestly is so close to being one! But what I loved is they were real. They argued, they disagreed, they got frustrated, and they had setbacks. Watching how they handled these things made me love and respect them that much more. Watching this taught me more about Jesus and his constant grace. They take the time to communicate. They take the time to listen to each other. They actively work on watching their tone with each other. And they both humble themselves to the point of apologizing and saying they love each other each time. When they say I love you, it is not without meaning. It is intentional each time. They don’t let things build up and get swept under the rug.
They are constantly working to communicate with one another and show Christ’s love and grace. They work so incredibly hard. And while they may fight passionately, they love so passionately, because they have a love rooted and founded in Jesus. They love him more than they love themselves, which allows them to love each other so well. It’s not perfect, in fact is messy and hard, and that’s the beauty of it. It’s a perfect illustration of our relationship with God. Take every aspect of their relationship that I mentioned, and you can easily correlate it back to our relationship with God. This is why marriage is described in the Bible as an active picture of the Gospel. It all connects back to Him. Seeing all of this in one week in the first 6 months of their marriage, I can only burst with excitement when thinking about the rest of their lives together, and what God has in store for them. God is faithful and he is so good, and his goodness and faithfulness was affirmed in me through Zach and Haley. So I thank you two, not only for welcoming me with love and open arms into your home and letting me invade for an entire week, and being there for one of the most fun weeks, but also for leading me closer to Jesus by simply walking in the truth individually and together and displaying the Gospel of Jesus. I love you both so much.
Love, Katy
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