I asked my three-year old son, Wyatt, what I should write the call to worship about. He replied without hesitation, "You should write about everything because I just love my family so much."

Context makes that statement so profound. We've just finished a long, hard school holiday. Our six-year old son, Benjamin, struggled at the edge of autistic burnout. There were few peaceful moments and many meltdowns. Little Wyatt adores his brothers and has a special connection to Benjamin. We've watched Wyatt's love for Benjamin grow exponentially in the last months, even while Benjamin lashed out against him and dominated the attention of the household.

Ten years ago, we crossed paths via similar missions and a shared culture. I thought you were a short-termer, getting the adventuring out of your system. You thought I was the weird missionary type, raising a child as my own.

Nine years, seven months ago, we had a conversation I’ve coined “the business meeting”. From separate couches, we discussed fears, futures, and made a decision to choose each other from that point forward. There were no romantic feelings between us, and the energy in the room was electrically awkward. But we’d start a relationship and see what God did.

Nine years, six and half months ago...

Parenting has a way of humbling you. It's amazing how quickly I started doing the things I said I'd never do as a parent. You know what helped me be ok with that? The bigger picture.