Being away this week has given us some time to reflect on thirty years of marriage. Our marriage has been a comfortable union of souls. I have always marveled at the deep and abiding sense of “shalom” that has existed in our marriage. I am especially reminded of this as we fall into bed each night. It seems so natural to simply walk through the normal things of life. Our marriage has never been fueled by surges of new exciting things. There are no chivalrous feats or phenomenal heights of ecstasy or romance. It has been very normal. And, we have loved the normal. I don’t sweep Deborah off her feet everyday. I don’t wow her with flowers. We live day to day, raising children, having meals, going to church, receiving guests, and simply being together. I often feel embarrassed when people come to stay in our home because I know that they will quickly find out the truth. They soon realize that if they came expecting to see some amazing, jaw-dropping life, they have come to the wrong place. They come to a quiet place, where we are content to live life day by day. For us, that is what undergirds what has been such comfortable union.