Something you need to know

There’s no way that I could ever express in words how much my husband means to me but I’m going to try. And even though this blog will not even come close to explaining how great Andrew [or to everyone else, “Drew”] is, I want you all to get a small glimpse of this amazing, talented, and loving man. He would never tell you any of this because he’s so humble so I had to do this in secret…sshhhh!

He is seriously one of the strongest people I’ve ever met. This may not come to much surprise to you. This year I’ve seen him do some pretty ridiculous stuff. Like in January when, for the entire 2 weeks we hiked through New Zealand, he carried more weight than anyone else on his back. He carried the most food, the most supplies, he carried a tent for he and I plus a tent for the 3 other girls. And he did it all without holding our group back and without ever complaining.

 

 

That’s just the beginning. On top of the heavy lifting and manual labor he has done over and over this year, there’s something completely selfless that he does at the end of every month: Every 30 days or so when we pack up our bags to move to another country Andrew carries both his bag and mine on his shoulders. Mind you these are giant bags that hold everything we own and mine is probably weighing in around 50 pounds by now. So in addition to his carry-on backpack he lugs our 2 bags around in airports, bus stations, trains, or sometimes it even means he just has to carry it long distances down a sidewalk. But he does it every time without even being asked. And in between being my personal strong man he is always the first to help load our whole squad’s bags on or off a bus/van. Plus he’s infamous for helping the other ladies on our squad carry their bags too. And again he never asks for praise or points our all the work he does on travel days.

Yes he has physical strength, but don’t let his daunting exterior fool you. Andrew has one of the softest hearts of anyone I know. This year I have seen that man love without holding back. But he’s more reserved and laid back so a lot of people never get to hear how his heart breaks for the people we have been meeting around the world. I’ve seen him become an older brother to Filipino boys and to his favorite Romanian teenager. I’ve seen him be goofy and play with tons and tons of children – kids absolutely love him! And I’ve seen him pray hard for the Lord to intervene on behalf of those in need. His heart is so so beautiful.

          

This year Andrew’s confidence has shot through the roof! He has been more bold and more courageous this year than ever before in his life. Every time I turn around he’s trying new things, conquering fears, and stepping out to lead the way into whatever God has next for him, for us, our team, or even our entire squad. He has absolutely blown me away with his willingness to transform from what’s comfortable into the calling the Lord has on his life. I am honored to be his wife and to follow such a COURAGEOUS leader. He’s not the type to always be yelling out his two cents so when he speaks you know, you just know, it’s from the Lord. He is wise beyond his years and he has a deep desire to live a life beyond reproach that brings ultimate glory to God.

In addition to all this, Andrew is out-of-this-world talented. Again you might never know many of his talents because he is so humble about them. He is a creative musician, a great writer, and intelligent student of the Word, an intriguing speaker, athletic, artsy, funny, the list could go on and on…

But of all of these things, the quality about Andrew that impacts me the most is simply how he loves me. He loves me without question or hesitation and he loves me just the way I am. If there were a Nobel Prize for patience he would unanimously win it every year. For those of you who don’t know me, sometimes I can be a lot to handle…but Andrew patiently perseveres in loving me through all my craziness. When I threw a fit in the Philippines because none of my pants fit he just waited for me to finish then hugged me and told me how beautiful I was. On several occasions he has believed in me when I didn’t believe in myself. He constantly reminds me that I am a fearless woman of God and helps me conquer the things I used to be afraid of. When I cried in Thailand because we had to work separately for the month he held my hand, looked me in the eyes, and told me he knew I was brave enough to do it. When I wanted to give up and go home in Africa because I thought things were too hard he reminded me that I am not a quitter. These are just a few examples.

Encouragement should be his middle name. I feel like I could do anything because he makes me believe in myself that much. There’s nothing he wouldn’t support me on. Ever. He’s my number one fan for sure. But he’s also not afraid to call me out when I’m in the wrong.  He makes me a better person every day. Andrew has qualities upon qualities that I wish I had and hopefully one day I can learn to have.

 

      

 

Andrew I am so so so proud of you! I believe in you and I trust that you are leading us to the greatness that God has in store for us. I love you more than you can imagine!

Muchoness love,

your princess