Sign up for our free newsletter:

 2 of 2

During those days in Wisconsin, I began to learn—although I could not have told you so at the time—that what little competence I had as a husband mattered far less than my willingness to acknowledge and talk about my incompetence. That my being loved was far less a matter of common sense and far more a gift of grace than I could have then imagined. I didn't know how much I had to learn, or that the learning of it would be such sweetly painful joy.

I did learn a little about what not to do. So for our 25th anniversary, I am not taking my wife back to Wisconsin.

I'm taking her fly-fishing.

In Montana.

I'm not making this up.

I know how to make a woman happy.

John Ortberg, bestselling author of numerous books including When the Game Is Over, It All Goes Back in the Box (Zondervan), is a pastor in northern California. He and his wife, Nancy, have been married 25 years.

Copyright © 2008 by the author or Christianity Today International/Marriage Partnership magazine. Click here for reprint information on Marriage Partnership.

first page |  2 of 2

				Try 3 Issues of Christianity Today Free! Name Street Address City/State/Zip E-mail Address Subscribe to Christianity Today and get 3 free trial issues. No credit card required. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery. Offer valid in U.S. only. If you decide you want to keep Christianity Today coming, honor your invoice for just $19.95 and receive nine more issues, a full year in all. If not, simply write "cancel" across the invoice and return it. The three trial issues are yours to keep, regardless.

RSS Feed   RSS Help