We met in the spring of 2021 at a home Bible study. That crowd of people was also the first real friend group we’d had up until that point in our lives, and even as that crowd has evolved and shifted, we remain extremely grateful for the impact each and every one of them has had on our lives.


Although we met at that Bible study, it wasn’t until the autumn of 2021 that we actually started interacting with each other. That is when our friend group got involved in learning to square dance, and later, waltz and two-step. It was fun to learn a new hobby that, unbeknownst to us, would soon become an integral part of our relationship and lives.


The year 2022 was spent getting more involved in our Bible study/dance friend group, and was when Matthew started working on his degree at Corban University. Right around the end of 2022 and the start of 2023 is when we moved from acquaintances to close friends, and started interacting more one-on-one in group settings.


In May of 2023, we competed as partners in the Novice Rounds (two-step and waltz) section of the Pacific Northwest Teen Square Dance Festival -- and won first place! It was such a fun experience with our friends, and we learned a lot about dance in the process. Something humorous kept happening to us during our competition practices, though . . . different people constantly came up to us and commented on how well we danced together. At the time, we merely smiled and accepted the compliments, thinking nothing of them. We were content being friends, and our minds and hearts were elsewhere. But looking back, we see God laying the groundwork for the future and sending us hints!


2024 was a pretty big year. There were a lot of changes to our social circles, and it was a vital time for our individual growth. We became quite distant from each other as the seasons changed, and as the Lord wanted to teach and develop us separately. However, in His timing, God brought us to the realization that we missed each other, and that somewhere along the way, we had become best friends.


After a lot of prayer and with our families blessings, we started dating on January 19, 2025. It didn’t take long for us to start talking about the possibility of getting married. We had originally discussed waiting until the summer of 2026 when Matthew will graduate with his degree from Corban. However, God made it apparent that He had other plans and wanted us to get married sooner. We were hesitant to pursue an August 2025 wedding because it seemed like such a huge step and we did not feel prepared for it. But, we walked forward in faith, and the Lord started opening doors like wed never seen before. By the time we got engaged on April 12, wedding and housing details were already falling into place. It was (and is) very humbling and awe-inspiring to see God creating miracles for us.


So here we are, continuing to move forward one step at a time, hanging on to the Lord’s hand as tightly as we can. We’re definitely not perfect, and our story is not without its hurdles and hardships. But we are so thankful for how far God has brought us! We know God will continue to grow us as we follow His lead into this next stage of life. Great is His faithfulness, and how great His love!