7-Year Anniversary Miracle

“Dear God,
Please forgive me for going into debt again. This time I have no excuse. I know better. Dave Ramsey was all over us. And we did get out of debt, everything but the house and student loan. But then I got the itch to start my own business, a franchise none the less, and went ahead and dove in, borrowing money all the way! I convinced myself that it was OK to borrow money in order to “make money”, knowing full well that Dave would not endorse this plan! So now here I sit knowing that you are talking directly to me through our Pastor, letting me know that it’s gotten out of hand. I hear you! I promise no more borrowing - not even for the business! Starting today! Please forgive me and help me untangle this mess! Thank you! Amen!”

So that was my prayer while sitting in church back in 2005, and I meant it with all my heart. The problem I realized when I awoke the next day was that it was my 7-year wedding anniversary and we were supposed to eat dinner that night at what I would consider the absolute best and probably most expensive restaurant in town. You know the kind of place with crisp white tablecloths where they scrape away your bread crumbs and fold your napkin while you’re away. The kind of place where no matter how hard you try, you cannot possibly get out of there for less than $100, plus where’s the fun in that? Needless to say, we did not have cash for this and would have to put it on the credit card, just one day after I had promised God that I would not be doing that anymore. So you’re probably thinking “What’s the big deal? Just eat somewhere less expensive”. But it was a big deal and here’s why:

This particular restaurant opened within a year of our wedding. It had been getting such rave reviews that we decided to splurge and celebrate our 1st anniversary there. The next day we left on a trip to San Francisco and ate at some fabulous restaurants, but we both agreed that the best meal we’d had all week was the one back home. So we have celebrated our anniversary at that same restaurant ever since. It’s now a tradition and something we look forward to every year!

So flash-forward 6 years and there I was, with my newfound conscience…why couldn’t I have skipped church that week? My husband Jace had even taken it upon himself to handle all the arrangements that year. He made the reservation (without me reminding or prodding) and set up babysitting. How was I going to break it to him that we just couldn’t go this year? I hadn’t exactly consulted him before making this promise. When I floated the idea of cancelling past him he just kind of gave me this “you-better-not-be-serious” look!

Tensions were high, so I was relieved to have lunch plans with my dear friend Tiffeni. (Please don’t judge my hypocritical lunch plans, there’s a big difference between $15 and $150)! So I’m telling Tiffeni all about my dilemma, knowing that she will understand. Ever since we were in college she’s been enlightening me in the ways of the Lord. Thank goodness this was one of those times. She told me that she thought God would understand our need to keep our date. It wasn’t like we just decided on a whim to go there. It was our thing, our ritual, and God appreciates ritual, especially when it concerns marriage. She said that while getting out of debt was no doubt important to God, so was our marriage and we should celebrate it in our usual fashion!

After lunch I felt much better (it didn’t hurt that Tiff took pity on me and bought my lunch on top of all her good advice)! I told Jace about our conversation and my new and improved outlook on the situation. We should just go to dinner, relax, have fun, and not worry about the money. And that’s exactly what we did!

While at the restaurant our server said she noticed that it was our 7th anniversary and that we had been celebrating there every year (apparently Jace had given some pretty good details in the “Special Occasion?” section of the online reservation– more points for him). She said that was pretty cool and since we were probably getting sick of the “standard” complimentary dessert that you get on special occasions, she was going to let us pick ANY dessert from the menu. What a treat! Although the standard was very good, we’d always looked at the other items with a hint of wonder. I felt somewhat comforted by this gesture in that perhaps God was giving us his approval for going ahead with our extravagant celebration.

When our server came back with our dessert we were excited to dig in. But as she set it in front of us she pulled out our bill and said,

“I’m going to go ahead and leave this with you but want to let you know that my manager is so appreciative that you’ve chosen to celebrate with us all these years that tonight your entire meal is on the house”.

What?! Jace and I just stared at each other for a few seconds. This was entirely unheard of…our $145 bill vanished in an instant. I held it together until our server was gone and then I just started to cry! I said to Jace,

“God is sitting right here at this table with us, right now”!

It was true, He was. We could feel Him. It was like He was just giving us a big ol’ warm hug. Like He was letting us know that He was proud of us and our love for one another. He knew that my promise to Him to stop the borrowing was real and one that I intended to keep. It was His anniversary gift to us!

It has not escaped my attention that this was our 7th anniversary. Instead of the so-called “7-year itch”, we experienced a 7-year miracle. The number 7 has great biblical significance and is said to symbolize God’s perfection. And that’s exactly what our 7th anniversary was – Perfection! This was a time when God and I were in direct communication. We are not always so close and I don’t always hear from Him so clearly, but I know that is my fault. Sometimes I forget to put God first and in those times when I don’t feel as close to him I remember this anniversary miracle. It reminds me that when I intentionally seek Him and His will for me, He is always there to respond. This is by far my favorite personal story to tell when trying to convey the depth of God’s love for us. It is not exclusive. He has equal love for each and every one of us. All we have to do to receive it is believe it!

***UPDATE***  This post now has a sequel that I think you will enjoy!  Click here to read it.