Celseys Shower Devotion
I am thrilled and honored to be here tonight, but I must tell you that I have never spoken to a group of ladies like this. I am the female family member that most would think more quiet and reserved, but given the opportunity to share with Celsey at this exciting time, I felt this was a great opportunity to get this “speaking stuff” out of me and into God’s hands, and to fill you ladies in on a few things about Celsey.
I am so excited for you and Jess, Cels. I want to tell you a bit about Jess, and our relationship. I remember the day that Jess was born. March 16, 1987, just 6 days after my Birthday. I remember specifically my 11th Birthday Party. We had it on a Sunday afternoon, and I remember Aunt Candy being particularly uncomfortable as Jess was 4 weeks and 2 days overdue. She was I would venture to say.... miserable. The day came, and I was sitting in Mrs. Miller’s 5th grade classroom when I saw my Mom walk up to the door, I joined her in the hallway, and she told me that I had a new cousin. His name was Jess James Patrick Huber. I remember Mom telling me specifically “Aunt Candy does not want you to call him Jesse, his name is Jess”. That was the day I fell in love with your fella Cels. Jess was my first boy cousin on my Dad’s side of the family. Our whole family was thrilled and excited, much like Jonah is when he hears that another boy has been born. Dad was particularly proud. Jess was just days old when Uncle Mike came visiting with a tiny little hat that said Lil’ Sprout on it. He had, I am sure, picked it up at one of his Wal-Mart stores. He also gave Jess a little John Deere tractor and wagon. Our families have always been close, and well supported by each other. We have regular family parties and the Hubers were always at our school functions, as well as supporting us in Church activities. I will never forget the pride we had when Jess took the field in his first football game. The joy that my kids have gotten out of watching him play, the excitement that surrounded our section of the bleachers as we all screamed Jess on as he tackled his opponents. Dad pacing the NLHS track during football games, watching his nephew. Those were special moments and we are so happy that you will now be a part of the connection that we have had with Jess.
Many of you only know Celsey as Jess’ fiancee. If you don’t mind, Cels, I will give them a bit of background on you. Celsey Dawn Rees was born the 4th child of 8 to Grant and Nancy Rees on December 24, 1988. Many of you may not be aware that I met Celsey in the summer of 2005. She was hired as East Iowa Bible Camp kitchen staff the first summer that Ben and I were at EIBC. I knew right away that I loved her.... so many things about Celsey reminded me of myself 12 years before during my first summer serving on EIBC’s kitchen staff. She was excited about serving, very energetic, and a bit accident prone. I will never forget the day that Ben came home and told me that Celsey had dropped an entire gallon of ketchup in the walk in cooler. That glass jar of goodness splintered in a thousand pieces, and Celsey looked as if she had been all cut up. Bless Mary’s heart! Mary was our head cook, and put nothing past Cels after that point. But even Mary could tell you that she saw a lot of growth in Celsey, during a rough time in her life, and it turned out that she was one of our hardest workers. We had what seemed like an instant connection, and at that point I thought to myself.... she would be awesome to have in my family. No kidding! Through the next few years Celsey and I became closer and I enjoyed the times that we would see her. While it was no secret that I had wished that Celsey would be in our family, I had no part in Jess and Celsey dating. They figured it al out on their own, which is the way it should be. Celsey worked alongside Ben this past summer as Head Cook. She did a tremendous job, and Ben was just so proud of you, I was too. To see you and how you have matured over the years has been a joy to both of us. Ben, Jonah, Lydia, Fiona, Ruby May, Lillian and I all love you so, we could not be happier with who Jess has chosen as his Bride. He has chosen a perfect match for him, and you will be a perfect compliment to Jess. I will be thrilled to hear about your new life as a wife, and applaud your desire for a Christ centered marriage. We are excited to see how God will work in your lives and ministry at Camp Elim.
Tonight I want to speak to you, Celsey, about what God has intended marriage to be. To clearly define your role as wife, and to give you some clear direction on how to fulfill your role as Wife. You are fortunate to have a Mother that has continually poured into her husband, to you and your siblings, and who is also willing to follow the Lords direction for her marriage and her life. She has been an excellent example for you and I know that she will continue to be.
Genesis 2:18
Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him”
So, according to this passage what is the woman’s responsibility? Helper. The term helper or helpmate is something that may be difficult for some to take in this day and age. The term “suitable helper” (as it is also translated) may sound harsh to some. The term helper may be seen as “assistant” “gofer” or as Ben would say “grunt” Someone who does the dirty work or someone who has no authority. Celsey and I both know what the term ”Kitchen Helper” is. For those of you who have never been to camp, Kitchen Helper is the one who does most of the leg work. Now since Celsey was the Head Cook this last summer, she may have forgotten, but the Kitchen Helper jumps whenever they are told. They clean, scrub floor mats, do dishes, the kitchen help generally does the mundane jobs that the head cook does not have time for. (I loved every minute of it by the way, I think that celsey did too)
I think that most who hear this job description, would not be interested. That is the worlds opinion of “helper”. Gods definition is different though.
Psalm 33:20 says
Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield.
Psalm 121:1-2
I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; from where shall my help come?
My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
God is the maker of Heaven and Earth... MY HELP! If God is called helper, than you should commit it a privilege to be a helper to Jess.
Another excellent verse that drove it home for me was
1 Corinthians 11:9
For indeed the man was not created for the woman’s sake, but the woman for the man’s sake.
God created woman out of the need of Man. WOW! That is not to say that woman is secondary or created as an afterthought. NO. God had a specific purpose for woman. Her support or help to her Husband is essential to his success. God saw it as a great need for man, and fulfilled that need by making us. WOW!
WE WERE CREATED SPECIFICALLY FOR THEM! You were created for Jess, I was created for Ben. God knew that our husbands needed someone custom made to help them be and do what he can’t be and do by himself. WOW! Such a humbling thought. (on a side note, Celsey and I have talked about how she has wished that she could have met my Dad, as he was an influence in Jess’ life, well, I added a few WOWS there on purpose Cels, if you pick ever pick up Uncle Mike’s bible, you will find many notations of WOW! in some of the greatest, sometimes unexpected places. It is a precious memory of him, that I will share with you!) Enough crying~ Sorry!
How can we be effective helpers? We understand that God created us with a special purpose, how do we fulfill that purpose?
Titus 2:4-5 gives us a clear picture of a wife. Paul is speaking to the older women here of their duties to the younger women.
Titus 2:4-5
so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored.
There are some specific areas here that are important,
1. To love your husband. Well of course! We all know that we are supposed to love our husbands. Celsey, you probably have so much love for Jess right now. It is clear that you and he are meant for each other, and during this last summer I was able to see your obvious devotion to him. To love your husband is a responsibility that is rooted back in Genesis 2. To love him is to be his helper. It is also encouragement, admiration, focus, attention and acceptance. These are some of the ways to truly express love to your husband. I find much joy in my marriage to Ben in these areas. He likes to hear me appreciate him. In Proverbs 15:23 A man has joy in an apt answer. And how delightful is a timely word! Proverbs 3:27 Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due... I enjoy being his biggest fan. People may incessantly and forever tease me about calling Ben “Ripped” on several occasions. (OK honestly.... all... the... time) But to me he is certainly the most “ripped” guy out there, and I am not ashamed to tell you all that! I pour myself into loving Ben by encouraging, admiring, focusing, attending, and accepting Ben daily. It is a divine responsibility that God has given me. Do I love the funny quirks? OK, I do. But do I love when he giggles during an argument, OK, that one burns a bit, but thinking about it now, I do!
He is one of my greatest joy’s. I count it an absolute privilege to be his biggest fan. I do not want to hinder him, as that would result in his relationship with Christ to be hindered. Proverbs 12:4 says “An excellent wife is the crown of her husband, but she who shames him is like rottenness in his bones.” I really want to be his help, not his hindrance.
To love their children
Well, this may be a topic for a different shower, but I still find it important to say that you, Celsey, have had the benefit of having a Mother who loves her children. It is plainly obvious to me that this is the case. I hope that you don’t mind Nancy, me sharing a story about you, During your 2nd summer at camp there were some particular things that were difficult that year. Many things that were out of our control, and things that were just plain rough. Your Mom had brought one of your younger sisters to camp, and after she had gotten (I believe it was Jacey) settled in, she stopped by our house. She thanked me and Ben for being there for you and Jenna during a tough time. As she spoke I noticed tears in her eyes as she was genuinely concerned about your hearts in that hard year. She loves you, and she finds you important enough to pour into.
I want to leave you with some food for thought. In Proverbs 31 there is a passage describing a worthy woman. We are probably all acquainted with it. Over the years this particular passage has seemed unattainable to me. How can I compete with that perfect picture of a woman? I look at this passage and see all of the things that I am not, she is a picture of strength and dignity, what I did not realize is that while her numerous achievements are impressive, the fact is that they are all a direct result of her reverence for God. He is the reason that she is a worthy woman. In verse 30 is says: “Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord shall be praised.” Don’t weigh yourself down with things that you think you are not, revel in the things that God created you for. Verses 10-12 say, “An excellent wife who can find? For her worth is far above jewels, the heart of her Husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain. She does him good and not evil all the day of her life.” Show Jess that he can trust you in all things, Love him intensely, bear each others burdens, be his #1 fan, keep communication open, seek advice. You are a worthy woman Celsey, as Proverbs says, because you are being guided by a God that you revere.
We are so happy for you and Jess, and are excited to see how God blesses your marriage. You are a gift to Jess, and his family, as well as to me. I love you, and will continually pray for you.
Pray for us as we prepare for Ben's sister's wedding this next weekend. It should prove to be a busy weekend, with lots of family, and such. Will post pictures next week!
Sarah
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