A Love Story

I told you that you would be hearing from me quite a bit this week! Just so much to tell about! I'm going to share the love story of Nate and Sarah because I just think it's so beautiful and wonderful how God works! Plus, everyone loves a good love story!! I'll try to keep it concise but it was 7 years in the making and I've been thinking about this post since they started dating :)

Background knowledge:

 

(At a wedding 6 years ago)

Sarah: I met Sarah when I was 16 because we worked at the same summer camp. We were acquaintances but didn't really get to know each other until our freshman year of college at Northwestern College. At one time, we made a list of all the things we had in common and it was CRAZY how much we were alike. We became roommates our senior year and there was never a dull moment in our room! Since then, we've kept in touch and have seen each other through joys and struggles throughout the last 5 years even though we lived miles apart.

 

(This picture just cracks me up!) 

Nate: Nate is Aaron's older brother and the person who I was constantly trying to set up. The poor guy...I literally tried to set him up with all my single friends!

So, their story actually started 7 years ago when Sarah and I were roommates. I was about to visit Aaron (my fiance at the time) in Willmar and as I was packing my bags, I asked Sarah what she was doing for the weekend. Having no plans and always up for an adventure, I invited her along to Aaron's parents' house if it wasn't too weird for her to hang out with an engaged couple and his parents all weekend :) That weekend, Aaron's dad said to her, "You know, I have another son who's single. He lives in China right now." and proceeded to tell her about Nate. We all laughed it off, thought it would never happen and that was that.

That summer, Aaron and I got married. The only girlfriend of mine that Nate remembers is "a beautiful redhead in a green and blue dress". It was Sarah :)

The next summer ('07), our youth group stopped in Minneapolis on our way back from the Boundary Waters. Nate was a sponsor and I wanted to see Sarah so she stopped by the church we were staying at. We stayed up til all hours of the night playing Apples to Apples together and I think it was the first time they actually met each other.

Okay, background knowledge aside....

here's when God really started working things out for them:

Christmas '08~
   Nate and Sarah were both single and over Christmas I had a thought, "Would they ever work?" Mentioning the thought to both of them, they considered it, thought about the distance between them (Nate in Ames studying at Iowa State University and Sarah in Minneapolis teaching) and didn't do anything about it.

However, two months later, Sarah decided to join the Navigators Edge Corp program. She told me how excited she was to get her placement and was ready to go anywhere: California, New Mexico, East Coast, Florida! The possibilities were endless. I jokingly told her she should move to Iowa so she could be closer to me. A few weeks later, she called me back with her placement. She was placed at none other than..... 

Iowa State University

The exact university that Nate was going back to school at. I remember thinking "Lord, do you have plans for Nate and Sarah together!!?!" I had my hopes up high as they entered into the year, met each other, and just became acquaintances. No sparks flew even though they saw each other at different events. I let the idea go and continued to search for a man for Sarah and a woman for Nate.

Last year around this time, I remember praying specifically for Nate and Sarah that God would bring "the one" into both their lives. In my prayer journal, I actually wrote, "Maybe you'll just put them together, God. Kill two birds with one stone" since I was praying for both of them.

What is so amazing in their story is that the timing was everything.  God's timing is perfect and their story is a testament to that. This summer, they ran into each other at a Fish Fry at Sarah's church. Talking the evening away, the thought of each other finally crossed their minds. The next day, I had a phone call from Sarah wondering if that would EVER work. The day after, we had a phone call from Nate about something else but when Aaron asked about Sarah, he was quick to talk about seeing her.

After a month of conversing via facebook and asking us questions about the other, Nate hinted that we should visit Ames and it would be fun to see Sarah. I, the matchmaker, RAN with that idea and we were in Ames that weekend and seeing Sarah every second that we could amidst her busy schedule. After seeing them together, I knew they were perfect for each other. How no one ever saw it before is beyond me but again, it was a timing thing I'm sure! They started dating a week later and the rest is history :)

 And, one of my dearest friends in the whole world is going to be my sister-in-law. I seriously STILL can't believe it and will probably need to pinch myself once in a while to make sure it's real. God's timing and will is so perfect and wonderful. What a beautiful love story that God wrote :)

 Showing how much change a year can bring! Last year to the date....Sarah didn't have a clue that we would be celebrating her engagement a year later!!

 This year! Oh happy day!! I love these girls!!