The Road to Starbucks

A couple of years ago I made a decision that had an immense impact on my life. I had been in a relationship off and on for more than half a decade and was frustrated and disappointed that I was still unmarried. I began to blame myself and went down a self-loathing spiral. At some point (during an "off" period in the relationship) I figured out that I may be single for a while, and if I was going to be by myself, I should become the kind of person I wanted to spend time with. I went back to school and started working on becoming stronger spiritually, mentally, and physically. I can still remember discussing this mental shift with a friend while at a church Super Bowl party. Little did I realize that the man who would take away my single status was across the room. 

As I began to improve myself, my confidence began to grow, and with that I realized that I didn't have to settle for having my heart get dragged around. It was this confidence that gave me the strength to move on from a poor relationship that I was addicted to. Last October I started dating Andy, the young man from the party. In all honesty, I thought the relationship wouldn't last long and that it was just going to be a fun way to pass some time. Little did I know the love that would grow between us with every obstacle and every victory we encountered together. He has become my very best friend. 

I wrote a few months ago about the Get REAL girls retreat and about how I had spoken on surrendering my idols and dreams of marriage and a big wedding to God and placed it all in His hands. Last night I thought that I was going to Starbucks for a planning meeting for next year's Get REAL retreat. In actuality, my fellow retreat planners (whom I affectionately refer to as POG) were all a part of an elaborate plan by Andy to take me back to the place where we first held hands and ask me to be his wife. He had planned for over a month, getting my father's permission to ask, and keeping constant communication with POG to plan it all. Of course, I said YES!

I wrote all this for the sake of my young friends who find themselves in the spot I was in a few years ago. I believe my meeting Andy was nothing short of Divine Providence. Once I relinquished control of my love life, God brought me the one he made just for me. I had a death grip on my future and it wasn't until I released my clinched fists that He could show me to the man who will hold my hand forever. So while you're waiting on that, work on yourself. Make yourself the kind of person you would want to spend time with. Don't worry about the future. I know it may be frustrating now, but trust me, He will work ALL things together for your good.