The joys of learning that Leslie was pregnant for the second time came as such a beautiful and profound encouragement in the latter months of 2006.
In the midst of a season of strange attack upon our lives, this joy-filled news was a shot of pure spiritual adrenaline into Barracks 28.
Leslie and I fell in love around a Bible, a piano, and the vision for Ellerslie Discipleship Training. The vision for Ellerslie originated even before the two of us exchanged our vows. It has been a deep part of our lives together — a stirring that never left us throughout all those years leading up to the day we launched it.
When Leslie and I were first married, I planned on entering med school. We were aiming to one day become medical missionaries. That was the plan.
The plan was certainly not to travel the world and speak on love and relationships.
Mike is an introvert, I’m an extrovert. He likes the heat, I like the cold. He’s a night owl, I’m an early bird. He’s logical, I’m creative. He likes things plain and simple, I like them bold and complex. He likes it dark and cozy, I like it bright and breezy. He loves to take risks, I am risk averse. He likes predictability, I like spontaneity. He has three pairs of shoes, I have thirty. He’s thoughtful, I’m impulsive. He can wait, I’m impatient. He likes to joke, I am literal. He likes sweet, I like salty.
Many years ago, Leslie and I were deeply moved by the story of Corrie and Betsie ten Boom in the book The Hiding Place. In one of the darkest places on earth — a German concentration camp called Ravensbrück — they found the beauty of Heaven through the incredible struggle and difficulty they faced there.
I was awakened from slumber by the sound of my alarm. 6:30 AM, already…