Brenna and AJ's Story

 A Guest Post from Brenna:

As a little girl, I had always dreamed of being married at the age of 18. I was going to graduate from high school and get married right away. Little did I know, but God had different plans than mine - completely different plans! I had no idea what He had in store for me, and looking back, I can see how His hand was moving in my life, even though I did not see it at the time. 

I guess my story begins when I was 15-years-old. A young man approached my dad and asked if he could get to know me. Because he lived so far away, we began writing letters. We wrote letters for several years and got to know each other. At the time, I thought that he might be the one that God had for me to marry. Don't you just love it when God's thoughts are different than what you had planned? ;) It reminds me of a Jeremiah 29:11, "For I know the thoughts I think toward you, saith the LORD..."

This young man and I wrote letters for awhile, and eventually, he moved down to my church to start training in the ministry. In the several months that he was down here, I got to know him and his character even better. God showed both of us that it was not His will for us to continue in a relationship and get married. I was completely heartbroken. I had just spent several years of my life talking with this guy, and now I knew that he wasn't who God had for me. I truly felt like I had wasted those years. But.....God used that time in my life to draw me closer to Him. I remember sitting on my bed (crying for the hundreth time), when I looked up and saw my Bible sitting on my dresser. I grabbed it and just started reading wherever it opened to. It just happened to open to Psalm 73, which quickly became my favorite Psalm. I poured my heart out to God and He began to heal my heart and put all the pieces back together. 

About a year later, I was still patiently (ok...maybe not so patiently) waiting for God to bring my Mr. Right along. Then, a couple people started talking to me about this guy at a sister church not far away from us. We soon started following each other on social media, and even started texting a bit. He called my dad and asked for permission to get to know me even more, so we started talking on the phone and texting a lot. We talked for about 2 months, until some things came up and I knew that he was not an option for me. Again, I was heartbroken. I remember just crying on my dad's shoulder and thinking, "Why is this happening again? I'm tired of getting my heart broken." Just when I thought that my heart would not heal, God showed grace and put all the pieces back together again. Isn't God just so good? 

After this second heartbreak, I started putting my focus on the ministries that I was serving in and finishing my college degree. I had no idea what God had planned next, but I wanted to be serving Him faithfully when He brought the right man into my life. Have you ever heard people say that if you keep your eyes on the Lord and serve Him completely, then one day He will tell you to look over and there will be the right guy/girl that he has for you? Well....let me tell you...that is so true! But wait, I am getting a little ahead of myself ;) 

In June of 2020, we invited a church family over for dinner and fellowship. We had so much fun talking and laughing. During dinner, one of the men asked me what my plan was once I graduated. I simply said, "I'm not exactly sure yet. I'm just going to see what God has for me." Little did I know, but that simple statement caught the attention of that man's son. From that moment on, this young man started to pray about me. 

In July, on a Sunday afternoon, I sat down with one of our teen girls to listen to a message by S.M. Davis on God's Design for Courtship. This preacher started talking about how God designed a courtship/relationship to go and the steps that need to be taken. He talked about how a young man should know whether the young lady is the one that God has for him, before he even gets to know her! He went on to say that the young man should get the father's permission before the girl even knows that he is interested in her. 

As I listened to this sermon, I honestly was shaking my head on the inside. After the message, I went straight to my parents and said, "The message was good and all, but it's just not realistic." It was so "old school", who even does that anymore? But....then I stopped and considered my life so far. In the other two relationships that I had been in, I had "gotten to know the guy" first and then realized later that he wasn't the one that God had for me. And both times, my heart got broken. I was so tired of doing things my own way. I never wanted my heart to be broken like that again. So...I made this scary statement to my parents, "It would take a lot of faith to make a decision like that. But, I am tired of doing it in my own way, so I am making the committment to not get to know a guy unless I am 100% sure that he is the one that God wants me to marry." This means, that if a guy wants to get to know me, I would have to pray about it and know for sure whether this was the one that God would have me to marry. Making this decision was not easy....at all! But, I knew that I wanted to do it God's way. I knew that if I wanted to do God's will for my life, I would have to trust that He would lead me and guide me to the right one. 

Do you remember that young man that started praying about me after I made a simple statement at the dinner table? Well, less than a week after I made that commitment, he came to my dad privately and asked for permission to get to know me. I was completely shocked when my dad told me! Although this guy went to the same church as me, we had never actually had a coversation or even hardly talked to one another. I had literally no idea that he was even interested in me! When I found out that this man came to Dad, I remembered my decision to not get to know a guy until I was completely sure that he was the one that God wanted me to marry. So, I told my dad that I needed to pray about this. 

Dad and I decided that we would both seek an answer from the Lord, and when we felt like we had our answer, we would come together and share them with each other. (I just want to add a side note right here....I do not believe in arranged marriages, but, I do believe in parent-approved marriages. I knew that I wanted my parents to approve of the relationship, and if they didn't, then it wasn't the Lord's will. They have veto-power in my life; if they say "No", then I know that it is a "No" from the Lord as well.)

 Both my dad and I prayed for several weeks. I prayed and fasted and sought God's will. I contacted a couple of Godly ladies and sought their counsel and wisdom. For three weeks, I prayed and asked God's wisdom for what decision I should make. 

On a Wednesday night, I remember sitting in the service listening to the preacher preach, when I distinctly knew my answer. I don't know if it was something that the preacher talked about in his sermon, but I knew at that moment that AJ was the one that the Lord had for me to marry. 

The next day, I told my dad that God had given me an answer. Dad told me that God had given him an answer as well. My dad called AJ and told him what my answer was and he was so excited. 

AJ and I talked on the phone that night for over an hour! After our first phone call, I remember being so happy and thinking about how easy it was to talk to him. We started talking on the phone every night - sometimes for an hour, sometimes more. It did not take long for me to realize that I loved him. He was sweet, hardworking, considerate, kind,  caring, loyal, and most of all, Godly. Every night when we talk, He leads us in devotions and we talk about how God is working in our lives. We both agree that one of our favorite things is getting on our knees and praying together. I love to hear him pray! He makes me smile and laugh and he treats me like a queen. 

On June 26 of this year, he took me on a picnic with my parents and his parents as our chaperones. We went to a park that has the biggest oak tree in Florida. He asked me to go on a walk with him and then he started talking about the roots of that big tree. He turned to me and said that he wants the roots of our marriage to be built in Christ so that we can grow strong together, just like that big tree. Tears started to build in my eyes as he got down on one knee and asked me to be his wife. Of course....I said, "Yes" :) 

I absolutely love our love story! In the eyes of the world, it might not be a "perfect" story...but for me, it is just perfect because I know it is the Lord's will. For all those who are reading this, I want you to know that being in the center of God's will is the happiest place to be. For the young ladies out there who are searching for their Mr. Right, don't be scared to make a decision to not get to know a guy until you are completely sure that He is the one that God has for you. It will save you a lot of heartbreak. God can work all of it out, just have faith. And be patient.

 Isaiah 64:4, "For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the ye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him."