Relationships StimulatingIntimacy

Tim & Sarah Gombis

e arebestbuddies. We became friendsafterwe got toknow eachotherduringTHEO 201 inthefall of 1991• We went outalottotheTexasInnand hung outallthetime,butwe neverreallyrevealed that we were nutsabouteachotheruntilMarch ofthe followingyear. By Julyof'92, we were~ehgaged. We were married on May 22of 1993. No onecaneverprepareyou for marriage.It's something thathastobe experienced

Beforewe were married,we knew allthecutephrasesand things thatareread inmarriagebooks;butyou can'tactuallylearnthem until you'reinthesituation.

Thosebooksdidn'ttellusthatwe wouldn't alwayshearan orchestraplayinginthebackground when we were togetherorthat We would stillbe thesame selfishpeoplewe alwayswere

Thisleadstothebiggestlessonwe'velearnedsincewe'vebeen married — itdoesn'tmatterhow many marriagebooksonereadsor how much knowledge ofwhat role oneis supposed toplayinacertain situation. None ofthesethingscanchangetheheartand renew the mind

We've learned thekey tolifeand marriageis intimacywithChrist. Thischanges theheartfrom selfishnesstoadesiretoministertoothers' needs and givesfreedom tothinkon therightthings

Our marriageis greatfun,and we're growing closerbecauseofGod'sgoodnesstous. Itgets a little difficultwith schedulesand differentactivities tofind timeforeachother,butsinceourmarriageissucha priorityand itssuccessis soimportanttoGod, we know thatwe mustfindtimetobetogether

We've found thatwhen we walk withGod, He freesusfrom ourselvesand we canhave suchablast together We canletlooseand reallybeourselves withoutcaringifwe lookstupid. Sometimes,Sarah willplaychordson herguitarwhileImake up songs like"SteveisaNerd and LooksLikeBigBird."

Marriageisgreatin thatitis asecurerelationshipwhere we can shareourdeepesthurts,joysand thecrazythingswe thinkabout during theday. We've discovered thatmarriageisn'tastuffyinstitution butmore likeaplayground where we canbebestfriendsand play Rook and wrestleand tackleandtickleeachotheruntil we'resick.

Marriageissuch anincrediblyrichrelationshipwhen it'sbuilton Christand on theWord, and that's what we areattempting todo Our advicetoany coupleswho want to getmarried is simply toseekGod's facewith allyou'vegotand seektobean agentofChrist's lovetoeach other. Only inChristand inan intimaterelationshipwith Him is there any hope forjoyand for abeautifuland incredible relationship

/e aregiven y weekends, we still findthe bed forchurch on Sunday gto life than simply living ettinginto trouble.

God with it.

We put forththeextraefforttobe therightperson. To do the rightthing. To spend timewith God asoftenaswe can, even when it's 2a.m.and we've been up sinceeightand we haven'teven paused totakeabreath all day.

We make time to listen to the words of great men of God. We leaveSpiritualEmphasis Week and Super Conference meetingsand leaveenriched.

But it's the little things we do daily that make us off the wall. We exhibitChristinour lives when we smileattheRA who's writingusup oraswe writeanotetotheowner ofthecar we justsmashed intheparking lot orwhen we returnatray someone hasleft lyingon atableinthe cafeteria.

Remaining spiritually off the wall is not about rules and regulations. It hasnothing todo with alist ofdos and don'ts.It's about going againsttheflow when theflow is going the wrong way and standing strong when you know you'reright ontarget.