our story

I had prayed that God would not bring me a man until we could serve Him better together than we could individually. I also prayed that God would not let me know anything more than what I needed to know at the time I needed to know it. God absolutely answered those prayers for me. Oh, plus 4 ½ years before meeting my Joshua, I prayed that the next person I would date would be the man for me to marry. Then, half a year before meeting my Joshua, God made me realize that I was being too guarded in that and not completely serving Him in the way I was judging people and basically running away from any single men rather than being friendly and sharing God’s love in whatever way I could. So I challenged myself and resolved my judgmental attitude toward the single male population. I had so much fun being single and social that I wrote in my journal not long before Joshua and I started dating that I hoped my husband-to-be would not come along soon because I was enjoying life way too much as it was and I didn’t want that stage to end. I met my Joshua last November at a 24/7 (Westside Family Church young adult) bonfire. I talked with him briefly and remembered thinking that he seemed very nice and fun and someone who I would like to get to know better and spend more time with. I especially remember that he brought chili and pumpkin bread for everyone—now that’s a man I could love! So we got to spend a little more time getting to know each other a little bit at other Westside activities. In January we worked on Mikaela and Clint’s house together and got to spend a lot more time talking while tiling their kitchen and bathroom. He says he remembers that I kept asking everyone if they needed any drinks or food. After more time together going to the wedding in Lincoln and then preparing the Valentine’s Day dinner party, we both knew we were interested in more. Clint had suggested to Joshua that he ask me on a date, but Joshua wanted to be sure that that’s what God was asking him to do before he asked me. After the amazing Valentine’s dinner party at my house, he did ask me on a date for that weekend, and I said yes without hesitation. What a great relationship we’ve been able to enjoy so far! God has blessed every moment and aspect of this relationship so beyond anything I could have ever imagined. My Joshua is so absolutely perfect for me. There is no way that anyone but God could have made this team that I get to be on. God did fulfill my request of only knowing what He wanted me to know, when He wanted me to know it. So God let both of us know throughout the beginning of the relationship that everything was great between us and that we needed to continue on the path He was asking us to be on. There was not a moment when I went from not knowing to knowing that God wanted us to be married, but it was just more and more clear to us until we were both positive (probably around April), and then we waited on God’s timing for our perfect proposal and start to our engagement in July (well, I trusted God and Joshua to figure out the timing of all that, and Joshua’s actually the one who got the answer from God on the proposal. I did not want to know; I just prayed that God would be clear with Joshua on that). On the evening of Sunday, July 23rd, Joshua asked me to meet him in the worship center at Westside, where he had put up pictures of candles (since fire makes me a little nervous). He said nice things about loving me, asked me to marry him, and I said yes. It was great! He also showed me the beautiful rings he had designed and had made and told me that he had paid for a well to be built for a village in India as an engagement gift. God then made clear to us the details of our wedding, and everything has gone so totally smoothly and easily—another really great blessing only God could put together. We get to be marred in 28 more days, on October 14th, 2006. I am so looking forward to it. God has really blessed both the things we’ve decided to hold off on (not kissing until we’re married, not talking about wedding plans until after our engagement time was started, listening to God in the start of our dating…) and also the things we’ve followed through on when God asked us to trust him (beginning our relationship, getting engaged after dating for “only” five months, having “only” a three-month engagement, communicating everything that we can work through when it comes up). It’s all so fantastic. I have never, even for second, questioned that this relationship is exactly what God is asking us to be in. I have not for a moment doubted that Joshua is perfect for me. And God has blessed our trusting him in incredible ways. It is impossible to explain how amazing it feels to be exactly where God is wanting you to be and to have that place be with my husband-to-be—a place that feels more like Heaven than anything else that I could imagine on this Earth. At the same time, though, it only feels so perfect because God has put us here, not because we like being with each other or anything else. Both of us are so thankful that we did not meet each other a moment before we did (despite all the times I had thought I wanted that earlier). God’s plan is unimaginably perfect. I feel so blessed to be able to love my Joshua as a service to my Lord.