I remember the first time I saw her. It was in 2017, when she came to my home-country Ecuador for a one year missions trip with the organization Operation Mobilization.

A friend had told me that we would be welcoming a couple of missionaries our Saturday night church's youth group. As I entered the church building, it was very clear who they were (foreigners/gringos are easy to spot in Latin America!) I can still hear her voice in a shy volume stating her name in Spanish: "Annika, de Alemania." So, I then took the opportunity to practice my German and engage in some small talk before the youth meeting began.

That was the start of a very nice friendship. During her year-long stay, we met regularly to play boardgames, go out to eat, and just do life together with a great group of friends we were blessed to have back then. However, her days in Ecuador came to an end and she returned to Germany.

In 2019 I joined Logos Hope (a missions ship) and right before I flew to Brazil to join the ship, Annika visited Ecuador. We only saw each other once, at my farewell.

Three years went by until we met again on the island of Malta (a dream island, if you ask me). Between 2019 and 2022 we occasionally texted on WhatsApp or stayed "updated" through Instagram. And it was during one of those updates that we realized there was an actual chance to see each other again because Logos Hope was going to visit Europe for a couple of months.

While we were chatting, we found out that Annika's planned holidays with her friends to Malta coincided exactly with the ship's arrival to this beautiful place. As we discussed what things we could do together, I really felt like asking her out on a date. But I wasn't sure if she was dating someone at that time.

I just texted: "Are you dating anyone?". Nervously waiting for an answer as I could see she was typing...multiple scenarios played out in my mind. Luckily, she said she wasn't. As far as I understood, that sufficed to be brave and ask her out on a date. That very first date took place on a Wednesday, 20th of July 2022.

The date went better than I imagined. We clicked and I fell for her quickly. Our conversation would go on and on; I was lost in her eyes and her smile. I just wanted to get to know her better. However, we were faced wirh a little challenge... I had 10 more months to go on board the ship. And long-distance relationships are known for being tricky...

Thankfully I was able to visit her in Germany and meet her parents in Switzerland. After that, God really opened doors and allowed Annika to visit me in Albania and Jordan, making those 10 months apart more enjoyable as we managed to meet every 3-4 months.

After leaving the ship in June 2023, Annika visited Ecuador to meet my parents in July, and in September we flew to the States for her to meet my siblings, nephews and nieces. It was during our time in Florida that I proposed, and she said yes!

A&S

Wedding Day