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One thing I never imagined when I began writing my book was that one of the chapters would be written by someone else. I especially didn’t imagine that my wife, Raquel, would be the person who would write that chapter.
[You can get a copy of Confessions of a Happily Married Man at your favorite book retailer.]
I’ve always been the writer — the one out in public — she doesn’t even do anything with her Facebook page (the last time she posted anything on it was in March of 2017 — and I was the one who actually shared it!).
While she has let me use our marriage many times in examples that I share in my articles, that was always my thing. But as we ran the idea for the book past friends and acquaintances, it became apparent that she had to speak to the reader as well. I mean, it’s not just my marriage.
As you may know, the book tells the story of our marriage and the way we went from normal growing pains to having to survive a three-year period filled with crisis. Along the way, we paid attention to what God was teaching us, and I share some of those lessons with the readers.
Here’s an excerpt from her chapter, in which she addresses the reaction some people have had when they learned about the book …
“As Joshua was writing this book, a few people seemed alarmed. ‘You’re letting him tell all of this?’ they asked. My answer: Absolutely! I feel that an authentic book like this is a gift. We often don’t see real marriage on social media, which portrays a highly varnished version of matrimony. In this book, Joshua has shown that while our marriage is not perfect, and we are not perfect, God has held us together in the midst of all we do and loves us continually.
“Joshua and our marriage have been exposed in this book. You might ask, ‘What about discretion and privacy? Why share your personal business?’ My answer: None of us can hide. If you’re honest, you can see the things Joshua talks about in people around you, and the truth is that people can see it in you too. The Bible is filled with raw stories of people, chosen by God, who were flawed and sinful. And yet God lovingly exposed their sin and glorified Himself through them. This is the gospel and the work of the Kingdom of God in our lives.
I couldn’t have said it better myself. What a gift to have a wife who’s willing to let me share our story so that other couples can see God in the story of their marriages.
Check out my book, “Confessions of a Happily Married Man,” which tells the story of how God has worked in the ordinary (and extraordinary) of my marriage — and how you can see the ways He’s working in yours too. And if you’d like to receive a weekly, spam-free email about finding God in the ordinary of life, you can sign up here.
