Three: Why I Believe

This week I’ve been sharing key times in my adult life where there’s no way luck or coincidence played a part. My faith is more than showing up to church on Sunday. I have a living, breathing friendship with Jesus.

And there was a day when I felt He was all I had.

And I’d be okay.

Marriage is hard, hard work. I was sharing today with a group of young ladies that as an engaged couple, we went to a marriage conference. They had a segment for the engaged, and we were so, so glad we went. We learned that every day a couple has a choice: isolation or oneness.

There are days you choose straight up isolation.

There are seasons where that can happen as well.

And that was our case. It was an uphill time where finances were tight, encouragement was low, health issues were high, and oneness was foreign. I threw myself into prayer, sometimes so empty all I could utter was “Jesus.” I tried Bible studies when I had strength. I grew in my faith and reached a place where I knew if everything crashed around me, I’d have Jesus.

And He’d be enough.

I knew the reality of no finances and a lot of struggles. But the peace that surrounded me, I KNEW I’d be okay even though I had no idea what the future held. From the very beginning of our relationship I was insecure that one day he would look at me and say we were done. He denied it more than Peter promised he’d never deny Christ and then did, three times.

One night, it happened. The burn out we had both been living on reached the zenith and in a moment of anger he said it. Done. This was over. Done.

I didn’t break. I felt protected as if an army surrounded me. I didn’t know how or when or even how the next hour was going to play out. But I knew.

As the night wore on and tempers eased, the peace continued. He wanted to shrug the incident off as an over reaction. I made a promise I’d never lie about a fragile place we might find ourselves in. I said if I was at “the line,” I’d call it. I did. What we were going through was much more than a night where the worst fear came to pass. It was a season that was escalating into a lifestyle I wasn’t going to allow my kids to experience. I grew up broken and it wasn’t going to go that way intentionally for me with them. If I had to be destitute but everyone was emotionally safe, I had to call that line.

The praise is that we are celebrating our 24th anniversary this month. That night, as painful as it was, God allowed and Jesus provided. He was my perfect peace. I believe because I knew it could end very different and life would be very hard. I am no one special. If you are at a low place, I PROMISE you, call on the name of Jesus and He will show Himself to be invested. On it. Not because He’s Santa or a genie, but because He is the Son of God. He is Savior. He is King of Kings and the Prince of Peace.

Because I’ve had times when Jesus was all I had—and He was enough.

I don’t have all the answers, but if you need to ask me anything or pray, feel free to reach out at juliearduini@juliearduini.com or on social media @JulieArduini.