My Tattoo

I never got a tattoo when I was in the Navy. I couldn't think of anything that I wanted to have on my body for the rest of my life. The ideas I did come up with are, in retrospect, really dumb - a happy face on my palm or a tattoo of Eyeore. I can't tell you how happy I am that I didn't get those tattoos.

After we got married I started to think of tattoos that would represent how I felt about Tabitha. I asked my tattooed friend T.J. what he thought of a little stick of dynamite (TNT... Tim 'n Tabitha... get it?). His answer was succinct, "That's stupid." So I went back to drawing (thinking) board.

I am a little superstitious about tattooing Tabitha's name on my body. She would probably dump me as soon as the ink dried. And then I would have a constant reminder of my stupidity. I still wanted something meaningful that didn't say "Tabitha."

And then I had an idea. Ephesians 5:25 states "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her." It's a beautiful verse that sums up how every husband should act toward his wife. Paul set the bar very high. We (husbands) should be striving for this every day.

I got inked. On my finger. Underneath my wedding ring.

Do I succeed at living up to the verse? Not always. Do I trust in God enough to help me live up to it? Sometimes. Do I have a constant reminder of how I should be treating my wife? Yes.