June 24th, 2023

Brittney attended Matthew's cousin Kaelan's graduation party where she met Matthew's grandparents who told her, "You have to meet our grandson."

July 7th, 2023

Matthew and his mom Tonia came up to his cousin's house and Brittney & Matthew met for the first time.

July 29th, 2023

Matthew's parents invited Brittney and her mom to come kayaking with them while they camped at Red Feather lakes and give Matthew and Brittney a chance to get to know each other better.

September 15th, 2023

Matthew asked Brittney for her number.

October 22nd, 2023

Matthew asked Brittney to be his girlfriend and she said yes.

February 17th, 2024

Matthew took Brittney to an ice castle where he proposed and she said yes!

(Written by Brittney Bearly)

She opened the book and I listened as I gazed at the beautiful illustrations. “Long ago in a wonderful castle on a mountain of splendor, a beautiful princess was born. Her parents were the king and queen of the mountain and all the green valley below… On the day she came into the world, the royal couple gave their daughter a very special gift from God - her first kiss. While the princess was growing up, the king and queen kept this precious gift safe in their care. When the princess was finally grown, the king and queen called her to their side. ‘We have something very special to give you,’ said the queen. Up, up, up the royal family went to a secret room in a tower of the castle. On an elegant table in the center of the room was the same gift given to the princess long ago - the kiss.”

My mother’s sweet voice made the story come alive, and as she flipped the page, I stared. It was an illustration of the princess and her gift from God. The kiss was so pure, so beautiful, so perfect, it was something special to be protected; and the image was sealed into my childhood memories forever.

My mother continued reading, “'God gave this gift to you on the day you were born,’ said the queen, ‘because He loves you so dearly.’ ‘And now,' continued the king, ‘this kiss is yours to keep, or to give away, as you see fit.’ … ‘But use wisdom my daughter,’ warned the king, ‘ and save your kiss for the man you will marry. Never part with it for the sake of a stranger.’

The wise little princess took her father’s words to heart and kept the kiss safe in the castle tower…

Over the next several pages of the book, many various princes came to court the princess and ask for her hand in marriage. Some were strong, some were rich, some were romantic, but she wisely saw that none of them would treasure her kiss, or see it as special, or value it in the way it deserved to be honored, so she politely declined them all.

Doubt began to set in and fears that she would never find a man so special that she would be able to give him her kiss.

"Confiding in her mother, the queen gave her wise advise, ‘God will bring a husband to you. But, if He does not, the kiss will be yours to treasure forever.’ The princess took comfort in that thought, for she knew that God could be trusted, and she cherished the kiss with all that she was.”

A few pages later, a young man came to see the princess, “The man looked into the princess’ eyes, ‘I have worked in your father’s fields for may years. I prayed and watched and waited for one who could be my wife, yet found no one. Then one day I saw you walking on the palace lawn. Your beauty was marvelous, and your purity sparkled like diamonds… I have little to offer you Princess, not like the others who have endless riches, can travel the earth, or are exceedingly strong, ... but I do have one very special gift I can give to you.'"

"'This is my first kiss Princess,’ said the man. ‘God gave this gift to me on the day I was born. My parents kept it for me until I became a man. I have saved it all my life for you. Would you be my wife?’ … Was there any doubt that he was the one the princess had been waiting for? … “Yes!” She cried. ‘Oh yes with all my heart!’

On the day of their wedding, the princess and her husband were dressed in magnificent clothes and stood before the altar in the royal church, where all the lords and ladies of the kingdom had gathered for the celebration. There, with the sun streaming through the windows, they exchanged their kisses, and God and all the kingdom sang for happiness…”

The words of the story echoed in my thoughts, and soon after that, my mother started inviting other mothers, their daughters, and my close friends over to Bible discussions about purity, and about honoring God in relationships. I remember seeing the regret in the eyes of those mothers who shared how they desperately wished they had saved their first kiss for their husbands, rather than giving it away to boys whom they thought they loved when they were growing up. I could sense the pain and guilt in their words and held onto the wisdom of everything they told me.

I resolved firmly in my heart as a young girl right then and there, that I was going to save my first kiss for my husband on my wedding day. I would honor God and stay pure, and nothing anyone ever said could make me change my mind.

Often I would lay in my bed, eyes gleaming in the dark and dream of finding love and getting married someday. Who would be the one? Did I know him yet? How would I know? Would he save his first kiss for me too? A vein of worry laced through my heart. What if he didn’t? How much does it matter to me?

I frowned as the thought that my future man might not save his first kiss for me or his purity, and might give it to another, or many others crossed my mind. The thought was exceedingly painful. I desperately wished my future husband would have made the same promise. Please Jesus… I whispered. That is a desire of my heart. Please help him to save his kiss too…

Little did I know that my future man was growing up far far away, but he was also being raised by an amazing mamma who taught him to fear the Lord…

THE BEGINNING

(Around 18 years later… )

My dad and I were on a daddy-daughter date, something we had been doing together periodically since I was a little girl. I was graduated from college now, but was still overjoyed we had kept the tradition going. It was so fun to spend some time with my dad, go out to eat together, get ice cream, walk around fun places like Old Town, and get to talk about life.

We had just finished dinner at Stuft Burger and were walking around Old Town square talking about guys and my future. I had been stuck in this continuous cycle where on one hand, any guy I was interested in at church never seemed to give me the time of day, and often would seem to avoid me, and was very obviously not interested back; while on the other hand, I had several guys at various times try to talk to me, get my number, and certainly seemed interested in me, but for various reasons I was not interested in them. Some were not serious in their relationship with Jesus, others were nice guys, but were just not compatible with me in their personality, or habits, or life style, or interests, and I could just tell that we would not make a good match in the long run.

I had begun to wonder if I would ever find the right one and get married. My younger brother was already engaged and at times I felt very alone. Michael and I had been very close as kids, growing up together, playing together, reading together, being home-schooled together. We did everything together, I was so proud to have him as my brother. He was so wise, fun, creative, and logical. I would confide in him, I would share my thoughts, hopes, ideas, and victories with him, and suddenly, he met the love of his life and began dating.

I struggled with the change. It felt so sudden, and almost instantly he was gone. No more sibling hang-out time, no more reading stories together, going on bike rides, making snacks, no more hanging out together. Now he was going on dates and planning his future. I wasn’t ready for the change and struggled with feelings of complete shock, sadness, anger, fears, loneliness, frustration, and loss. Part of me felt like he had died and inside I was grieving the loss of our childhood, that those joyful years had come to an end. I wasn’t ready for us to grow up. But life does not pause or slow down for such things and I had to turn to God to comfort me, and help me to adapt and find my full joy in Him.

On top of this, Satan often whispered lies into my mind, “You’ll end up alone. Every guy you’ve ever been interested in never likes you back. You’ll never get married. There is no one who is compatible to your crazy personality.”

Angrily I would respond back, “No, be silent Satan! I am chosen by God, He has a plan and a purpose for My life. I will praise Him, even in the waiting He is always worthy and His timing for everything is always perfect! Even if I end up alone I am not alone for Jesus will never leave me or forsake me. Even if I never get to get married still I will always use my life to glorify my God and further His kingdom in whatever way He calls me to do!”

But at times, in the dark before I fell asleep I would wonder, "Why? Is there anyone out there who is compatible with my personality? Will I get to be a help-meet for a Godly man someday? Why the wait?” But I had to trust the Lord. He knew what He was doing. He was growing my trust in Him and making me more like Christ. So I stayed busy doing the work of his Kingdom in every way I could.

The thoughts faded from my mind as my dad paused on our way to get ice cream together and said, “I was thinking, God has put it on my heart that we need to start praying for your future husband. We need to start praying for God to bring him to you. Every day. How about after you get home from work each day? Come down to my office and let’s pray together.” My heart instantly loved the idea and for the next several months my dad and I, along with my mom occasionally, would all join hands and each of us would in turn pray aloud for my future husband. We prayed for his walk with the Lord, we prayed for our future relationship, we prayed for God to guard his heart, his mind, and his eyes, to lead him and guide him, that the Lord would bring us together in His timing, and for every detail about us that we could think of, all of it was covered in prayer, day after day after day.

HOW IT ALL STARTED:

I walked up the front steps to the house with my Mother behind me, a graduation card in hand and was greeted at the door by other guests who were leaving. It was June 24th, of 2023 and we had been invited to a graduation party for one of the youth girls who attended my church. Both my mom and I had been volunteering in the youth group as youth leaders since 2016, and now Kaelan was graduating from high school.

How time flies!

I dropped the graduation card in the card basket inside the front room and made my way to the kitchen where the counter and table were filled with snacks. I filled a plate and sat down at the table as Fanchon, the mom of the house, introduced me to her parents, Wayne, her dad who was sitting to my left, and her mom Sherry who sat across from me. “Everyone calls her Honey though,” Fanchon said with a smile, “because the oldest grandchild, Jonathan, couldn’t say “grandma” and instead called her “Honey” because that's what she would call him, and it stuck!” Laughing, we chatted for a bit before the conversation turned to church, God, and the Bible. My eyes lit up. I loved talking about the Bible! It was something I was very excited about and soon Papa Wayne and I were deeply involved in a fascinating discussion about the wonders of God’s word. Honey commented a few times, but mostly watched and listened before starting a side conversation with my mom about me asking her what I liked to do. They chatted for a while and when the conversations paused, Honey turned to me and said, “Wow, you need to meet my grandson! You are just like him! You both would get along great!”

I laughed, not quite sure how to respond to that. “Yeah?” I asked amused.

“Yeah! You both are so similar! He likes to make things with his 3D printers, and you mom was telling me you like to make things and paint. Do you like to ski?”

“Um, yeah, I’ve been skiing some, but more recently I've tried snowboarding instead.” I responded.

“Wow, see, Matthew loves to ski. What about air-soft? Have you ever played air-soft?” She asked.

“Well my brother has,” I started, thinking of all the times when we were kids where my brother was invited to go play air-soft by his friends and I had to stay at home because the guys didn’t think a girl would want to play. Later when we got older, we made blow-guns out of PVC pipe and shot each other with Nerf darts, and there was one time when one of the guys at church invited Michael and I to his birthday party where a big group of us went out and played paint-ball.

“I don’t think I’ve ever played air-soft, but I’ve played paint-ball! It was fun!” I responded.

“Yes, you have to meet my grandson!” Honey said again.

Ok, sure, whatever. I thought, pretty sure that nothing would come of it and that she wasn't actually serious.

At this point it was getting late and the sun had already set long before, so we had to leave. I didn’t think much more about it until my mom said that Fanchon had told her that her sister Tonia (Matthew’s mom) was really talented at writing and my mom was working on illustrating a children’s book at the time, and Fanchon suggested they connect and see if they could make a book together.

“Cool!” I responded, happy for my mom. I had no idea at the time where that connection would later take me.

MEANWHILE AT MATTHEW'S HOUSE:

“Matthew, we’ve found the perfect girl for you!” Matthew’s grandparents exclaimed to him excitedly. “She loves the Lord, and she skis, or snowboards, and plays air-soft! You have to meet her!”

Matthew was unconvinced. In the past he had always joked that girls were a liability, and he had been focused on school, getting through college, and starting a career as an aircraft mechanic. He hadn’t had time for a girlfriend.

"Will you pray about it?” Honey asked him.

“Sure.” He responded casually.

“No, seriously.” Honey said, wanting him to understand how important this was.

"Sure." He said again.

"Do you promise me you'll pray about it?"

Matthew paused. Though reluctant, he knew Honey was an excellent judge of character. She had a gift of discernment, and if this was something she was serious about, then he should probably take it seriously as well. Honey had never been wrong when she judged a person’s character.

“Yes.” He said sincerely. From that point on, Matthew would spend some time praying about this girl who he had never met, who his grandparents had told him about.

A few weeks later, my phone binged. Glancing at the screen, I saw I had a text from Fanchon. Opening it, it read,

“Hey little gal! Happy Thursday! Are you and your brother going to the bon-fire tomorrow night? Just asking because my nephew may be here and I think he has a lot in common with Michael. My nephew is needing good Christian fellowship.”

My church's young adults group was doing a combined event with the youth group and had planned a giant bonfire, where youth and young adults could come, play games, make s’mores and worship the Lord around the fire. It was happening the following day.

I responded that yes, we were going to the bonfire.

She sent me another text saying,

“My sister is coming up with my nephew and is inviting your family to my house at 6:00pm for desserts.”

Ok… I thought. This feels like a set-up!

Of course my brother was busy that afternoon and couldn’t come to their house for desserts, so in the end, only my mom and I were able to make it. I accepted mainly because I didn’t want to be rude.

THE FIRST TIME WE MET:

I walked down the hallway and came around the corner into the kitchen and saw Matthew for the first time. He was tall, with dark hair, broad shoulders, and dark eyes. I was attracted to his height, except - oh, he has a beard. The attraction faded slightly. I’ve never been a fan of longer beards. I think it’s because it feels like they hide the shape of a guy’s face, like he’s wearing a scarf, or a mask. His beard wasn’t that long, just enough to hid the true shape of his face.

Matthew’s first thought was, “Wow, she has pretty eyes. She’s cute, but, well…’’ let’s just say it wasn’t exactly love at first sight.

There was an awkward tension in the air. We exchanged polite greetings and each other's names and shook hands, and then busied ourselves with eating some desserts, talking with the other adults, and keeping our distance.

When it came time to leave for the bonfire, Matthew, his cousin Kaelan and I were all going to take one car to the event while our moms chatted together at the house. Fanchon insisted that I sit in the front seat with Matthew and put Kaelan in the back.

The drive was full of an awkward tension in the car as I gave Matthew directions to the church for the bonfire event. As soon as we parked I let Kaelan introduce him to some of the guys and quickly left to find my own group of friends in a far corner of the parking lot. The last thing I wanted was someone to be like, ‘oooh, so who’s the guy you were riding with in the car? Are you dating? What’s he like?’

Everything was a set up and at this point I did not appreciate it. It felt awkward, and forced. I wanted to observe Matthew from a distance. How did he react with the other guys? How strong was his relationship with God? How does he treat others? Is he athletic? Does he have a heart for worship?

I glanced over to see him in a conversation with my brother and a few other guys talking about StarWars and 3D Printing. He was showing them pictures on his phone of things he had made. Ok so he’s creative. That’s cool. Glad he’s making friends with the other guys.

I joined a dozen other youth as we played Frisbee, got the bonfire going, and then all stood around it and sang songs of praise to God. When everything died down to coals we roasted marshmallows over the glowing embers and watched the sky grow dark and gleam with stars. At the end of the event, Matthew left with Kaelan and I left with my brother. I didn’t know how I felt about him at this point. I didn’t dislike him, but I wasn’t very interested either. I knew almost nothing about him.

THE SECOND TIME WE MET:

My brother and dad were out of town for the weekend at a Royal Ranger camp, and my mom had informed me the week before that she had talked with Matthew’s mom Tonia and they were going to be camping up at Red Feather Lakes. Their family had invited my mom and I to drive up to their campsite and to go kayaking with them for the afternoon.

Ok so another setup. I can see right through this! I thought. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go, but I had nothing else going on, so I found myself in the car with my paddle board in the back seat driving up to Red Feather with my mom.

We made it to the campsite and were greeted by what looked to be an adorable little Husky puppy with bright blue eyes running alongside the car.

"Awwww!” I couldn’t help the exclamation at the site of the dog. We got out of the car and were greeted by Matthew’s parents, Tonia and Randy, his adopted younger brother Luke, and Matthew himself. Upon further examination of their dog, I realized she was not a Husky puppy, but a full-grown Pomsky (half husky, half Pomeranian) so she looked like a husky but was permanently small. Matthew called her Misty, but his parents called her Jubilee.

Once at the shore of the lake, the sun beat down in the most pleasant way as I unzipped my paddle board from its bag and attached the hose to the air pump to begin to blow it up. After making progress for only a short time, Matthew came over and asked if he could do the rest for me.

How kind of him to offer! I thanked him and we switched places. I couldn’t help noticing his strong arms as he pumped 13 pounds of air per square inch into the board and then disconnected the hose and closed the cap to keep it sealed. I was impressed with what a gentleman he was. Once in the water, I got distracted by a crawdad under a rock a few feet below the surface. Matthew’s parents, brother, and my mom in their kayaks were paddling away, but Matthew stayed with me, waiting in his red kayak watching me only a few feet away until I left the crawdad alone and we paddled to catch up to the others.

It was immediately clear that the paddle board was incredibly fast compared to the other kayaks. Matthew could keep up, but his family could not. Soon we had passed them and left them all behind. We began chatting as the two of us explored the lake together, finding massive rocks sticking up out of the water, creating stony islands to glide around, marshy reeds in which families of ducks resided, and calm inlets surrounded by trees. I found myself really enjoying our conversations and thought, “I can see myself really enjoying being friends with this guy!”

We paddled back to where his family had stopped on a rock along the shore and decided it was time to head back to the camp for lunch.

At the end of the day, Matthew again impressed me by offering to carry my paddle board down to where there was a hose, and wash all the dirt and sand off of it so I could fold it up and put it away all clean into its bag.

He was such an honoring gentleman!



As mom and I drove back home that night, I still didn’t feel romantically interested, but I had a peace in my heart that I could at least definitely enjoy being his friend. I had greatly enjoyed the afternoon, and really liked Matthew’s family.

I was standing in the foyer when I was surprised to look up and see Matthew walking through the door of the church. Apparently his family was in town and had decided to come to my church with his aunt and cousin. Matthew shook hands with my dad as he came in and they paused to talk for a bit. I was serving on the worship team and had to be on stage so I didn’t go say hi.

Matthew’s family sat with his aunt and cousin for the service and afterwards my mom told me they had invited us to come to lunch with them at The Wellington Grill. I had a meeting after service so I told them I would be late.

When I walked in, the only spot I saw that was open was right across from Matthew.

Another setup. Thanks guys. I thought. This isn’t awkward at all. It’s like you’re forcing us to get to know each other. Although it felt awkward at first, I eventually found myself laughing, joking, and really connecting with Matthew by the end of the meal. He really was a nice guy and I enjoyed talking with him.

After that we didn’t see each other for over a month. I was out of town on trips every single weekend until the second week of September.

My young adults group was starting back up after summer break and their first meeting was going to be a fun potluck dinner and fellowship night. I was surprised to see that Matthew had driven all the way up from Castle Rock to attend.

Why did he drive all that way to be here? That’s a two hour drive!

He did it to see you. The thought gently whispered.

I denied it. “No, he didn’t come for me. Why would he do that? We’ve only met 3 times. He came because he had said he didn’t have many Christian friends near his house and was looking for a young adults group, so he decided to join the one his cousin is going to. That’s why he’s here.”

I blew it off, but deep down, I knew I was wrong.

I don’t want a long distance relationship! I responded to my thoughts, so the answer is no!

I filled my plate with food and sat down at a table next to a new girl I hadn’t met before. We chatted for a few minutes and suddenly I found the table surrounded by 6 other guys including Matthew who had gotten their food and all sat down near me. I found myself getting flustered as two or three of them would ask me questions and try to start conversations with me all at the same time.

What was happening?! I had never been the center of attention with this many guys before in my life!

Matthew was sitting across from me and asked me how my summer trip to the Grand Tetons had been, just as another guy asked me another question at the same time. I briefly answered Matthew with a short statement, “It was good.” And then turned to the other guy and answered his question. When I turned back to Matthew he was in a conversation with my brother and someone else was asking for my attention.

Matthew stayed until most of the other guys had left, and I got up to clear my plate. When I returned, Matthew was gone and the table was empty. Apparently his cousin had come and told him she wanted to go home and he had already left. Part of me felt disappointed. But why? I wondered. I don’t want a long distance relationship. I shouldn’t even care. Yet the feeling of disappointment that he had left remained.

A few days later I was sitting at the dinner table discussing the young adult potluck night with my mom, when my dad walked in.

“Was Matthew there?” He asked.

“Yeah.” I responded.

“He’s sure making an effort to see you” my mom put in, “driving all the way up from Castle Rock!”

“No, he just came because he wants to check out our young adults group and make more Christian friends.” I interrupted, trying to deny the fact that he may have feelings for me. I didn’t want to have feelings for him because I didn’t want to be in a long distance relationship. It was a silly thing to say.

“No, I don’t think so,” my dad responded, looking at me seriously. He held up his phone, “He left me a message the other day asking me to call him back. When I did, he said he wanted to ask my permission for him to ask you for your number and get to know you.”

The room fell dead silent and I was shocked.

Matthew had asked my dad for his permission to ask me for my number and get to know me? Who does that anymore? That’s so… chivalrous! And honoring.

I remembered all the times in the past when guys would get my number off of group chats, or ask one of my friends to have it. One time I even had a guy come up to me at church and start talking to me but he was standing way too close in my personal space, so I backed up, and he stepped forward, so I backed up again, and he continued to come forward until I found myself pressed against the wall. Church was starting and I had to serve in the kids room so I politely ended the conversation saying I had to go and serve. I then slid along the wall to get around the guy, and had made it to the door of the kids room when he caught up to me, grabbed my wrist, spun me around, and held his phone in my face, “Please give me your number!” He exclaimed. I rolled my eyes, but he tightened his grip on my wrist and insisted.

That’s how I had been treated by guys in the past. For Matthew to have first asked my dad his permission before he even asked me for my number, this was unheard of! This was amazing! His honoring act of respect caught my full attention and my heart softened.

He likes me. The thought echoed in my head as my dad continued,

“I was impressed and I gave him my permission. If I were you, I would suggest giving him a chance.”

I nodded wordlessly. My dad is full of wisdom, and whatever he tells me, I always try to listen because he’s always been right.

That night I felt guilty that I hadn’t talked with Matthew very much at the potluck. He had driven all the way up from Castle Rock, and sat at my table and asked about my Teton trip, and I had only told him, “It was good.” And had talked with all the other guys, and then Matthew left. What if I broke his heart? What if he had called and talked to my dad and my dad had given him permission to get my number but then I wouldn’t even talk to him when he saw me? (I wasn't sure exactly when he had called my dad in relation to when I saw him at the potluck.) What if he moves on to someone else?

I had never met someone more respectful who would ask my dad for permission for my number before asking me. So that night I decided to friend him on Facebook. It was a small gesture of friendship, but it was something.

Later Matthew had told me he had friended me on Facebook a few weeks before, but then something in his spirit didn’t feel right about it, so he removed the request. It’s crazy how God works because at the time, I don’t know if I would have been ready to get to know him and it would have come across as if he were stalking me, or was coming at me too fast.

But now I was ready and within the day he had friended me back. It was the start of hope.

GETTING MY NUMBER:

When I walked into the young adults group, I saw that Matthew was there. After the service and small group time was over and people started to leave, Matthew stood near me in the circle of conversation until one by one, the two of us were the only ones left. I began to pack up my stuff and I could sense the atmosphere change to one of awkwardness between the two of us. Matthew looked down at his feet, and then filling his lungs with a deep breath, he went for it, “I was wondering if I could get your number, and maybe if I could call you sometime and we could talk together?”

As one last test that he truly was as respectful and honoring as he had appeared to be with my dad, I asked if he had already gotten it from the young adults group chat, since any other guy who had wanted my number would usually just take it from the group chat and then start messaging me.

He seemed surprised, and his dark eyes looked almost hurt by the suggestion, and I felt bad I had ever assumed he would do such a thing.

“No,” he said quietly, “I wanted to ask you in person.” I was deeply touched and honored, and reached out my hands to accept his phone to add my contact information into it.

He surprised and honored me again by not bombarding me with texts all the time after that. He let me warm up to him slowly, texting him off and on every few days, slowly getting to know him. I still felt guarded in my heart, but the walls were slowly melting away.

Matthew sent me a message one day, saying he was going to be staying with his aunt and uncle in Windsor and wanted to know if I wanted to hang out and go do something together. At this point, I had warmed up to him enough that I was interested in possibly getting to know him better, and we planned to drive up to Estes park to hike Kruger Rock and walk the shops together.

OUR FIRST "UNOFFICIAL" DATE:

That Saturday morning, he picked me up at my house and we drove to Estes. Half way up the canyon, I found myself getting hot enough to take my jacket off. I looked down in surprise to see the heater knob was turned to ‘hot’ and had been heating up the car the whole time.

The night before at young adults group as Matthew and I had talked together afterwards, he told a story about how he went skiing one day and had the AC on in his car, and didn’t notice it until his friend finally asked if they could turn the heat on because he could see his breath in the car because it was so cold. I had responded with a statement saying how much I hated being cold.

Inside I was afraid, “oh no, this guy loves it cold, this is not going to work out at all. I’m going to be miserable if I have to be cold all the time.”

I pointed at the temperature knob in his car, “Wait, it’s on hot? But I thought you liked being cold?”

“Well, I don’t mind if I’m hot or cold,” Matthew responded, “and you said yesterday how much you hate being cold so I made sure I turned the heat on for you.”

I was stunned by his selfless caring act of kindness and honor.

Wow! What a guy! He would do that for me? He actually cared about me that much? Looking down at my feet, I also noticed how spotlessly clean his car was. He had apparently vacuumed the floor, the rugs, the seats, and wiped everything down for me, and he had made sure to open the door for me when I first got in the car. I felt so honored.

The hike was super fun, and I greatly enjoyed walking around Estes park together. In fact, I enjoyed my time with him so much that I invited him to come paddle boarding with me at my grandparents house the next day after church. When I introduced him to my grandparents, the first thing my grandpa asked him was, “So Matthew, what do you do?” When Matthew told him about all the airplanes he works on for his job, Papa glanced over at me with a look of, “Wow, I approve of this guy!”

I was thrilled. I loved that Matthew could quickly strike up a conversation with my grandparents and keep it going naturally for a good long while without me having to say anything.

As we put out our paddle boards into the lake behind their house, I found myself enjoying Matthew’s company and conversation immensely, to the point where I felt comfortable enough around him to tease him some. To my delight he teased me back!

Over my lunch break the next day he took me out for coffee since he had the day off, before heading back to Castle Rock. It had been an amazing weekend.

We texted almost every day after that and I confessed my fears of a long distance relationship with him.

“My only concern, is I'm afraid of being in a long-distance relationship," I texted, "If a long distance relationship were to happen between us, then that will end in one of two ways, either it doesn’t work out and ends in breakup, or it works out and leads to marriage. If it leads to marriage, then one or both of us will end up moving, and, well, the thought of leaving Wellington, and my amazing job, and my church and everything I’ve ever known is absolutely terrifying and so unbearably sad that I will start crying if I even think about it. I love this town and my church so much. I couldn’t bear to leave it forever, not unless God called me to and gives me the release to go. But how could I ask you to leave your home, your town, and your job for me? I couldn’t do that to you. And because of this, I’m afraid to get into a long distance relationship because I don’t see how it could work out in the end.” I tearfully typed up the whole message and cried. I didn’t know how this would work out and I was afraid, and the thought of having to leave Wellington broke my heart.

Matthew responded with, “Well, I really appreciate you telling me exactly how you feel about everything. But, this is something that I have already thought of. And, the fact is, I do love my job, and my church, but as far as family goes, my family is already planning to possibly move next spring, so it’s not like it would really be any sort of change in that aspect to move elsewhere, and I know you are very deeply involved in your church, as that is your full-time job too, so I definitely wouldn’t ask you to leave everything.

And, I apologize for bringing this up, as it is pretty early, and obviously a serious topic, but in my opinion it is the man who should be willing to move. The Bible says that a man should leave his father and mother, and cling to his wife, and they should be one flesh. So to put it in perspective, I have already basically decided that one way or another no matter who I end up marrying, or where they live, that I will most likely have to move. And, with that I am blessed, because with my job I can get work about anywhere in the US easily enough… And, as far as the distance goes, it doesn’t really bother me at all. Both of my older brothers dated and married girls from another state, so this seems pretty close to me!”

His response was so reassuring and made me feel safe and hopeful. And I loved that he added the Bible verse!

Wow! Thank you Jesus! I thought as I wiped my tears away. Matthew had not only given me reassurance in my moment of grief and fear, but his words brought comfort and hope to my heart.

ASKING ME TO BE HIS GIRLFRIEND:

Matthew and I spent the morning at church, and then headed over to my grandparents house to go on a bit of a hike through the lakes behind their home. As we set off through their neighborhood, I looked over at Matthew walking beside me and knew in my heart that I really, fully, truly liked him. The walls around my heart were down at last. He had won me over. I liked his personality, his family, his interests, his relationship with God, I knew he was the one I wanted.

We walked through meandering dirt trails through tall grass, and across a dam between two lakes surrounded by the golden hues of trees turning their autumn colors in the sunlight, and stopped on the edge of a boat dock extended out into the water. I loved simply being with him, and as we turned around and returned back the way we had come, I wanted to hold his hand, but wasn’t brave enough.

I walked close enough at his side that the backs of our hands brushed each other now and again. He paused at the top of the dam and we looked out over the beautiful view. Matthew seemed like he wanted to say something, but couldn’t find the words. I waited, but at last he just turned and we continued walking back to the house together. Both of us silently wanted to hold the other’s hand, but neither of us had the courage to try, and make the first move.

What if they don’t feel the same way? We each silently wondered.

Is that too bold to just grab their hand? Yeah, probably…

We returned to my house to find all of Matthew’s family over for dinner. It was the first time his family had ever been over for a meal at my family’s house and I loved that it felt like we had family over, rather than just friends. We laughed, ate, and played games until it was time for Matthew’s parents and brother to go.

Matthew stayed a while longer and the two of us watched a movie together. When it ended, we sat on the couch in silence, side by side. Matthew had moved his hand close to mine. I wanted to hold his hand so badly, but still didn't have the courage. I reached over and touched the back of his hand, and then felt embarrassed that it may have been too bold and so I pulled my hand back and set both of them together in my lap, having given up that I would get to hold his hand at all. But he reached over and gently put his hand on mine, gripping my fingers lightly in his. My heart melted and I put my head on his shoulder. Gently, our fingers laced together and he put his arm around me. We stayed like that for a long time, not wanting the magic of the moment to end.

Finally Matthew spoke, “Would it be ok with you if people called us a couple, and if I called you my girlfriend?”

I smiled in happiness. “Yes” I breathed and hugged him.

After a joyful few minutes of letting the moment sink in, he became serious,

“So, this may seem weird, but I just wanted you to know that I am saving my first kiss for my wife on my wedding day.”

Shock and joy flooded through me and I sat back so I could look at him straight in the face.

“Oh my gosh, no way! Me too! I’m also saving my first kiss for my husband on my wedding day!”

We stared at each other with shocked joyful unbelief. “Really?! Wow!!”

Praise you Jesus! My heart sang silently. You have heard the whispered desire of my heart, you have satisfied my soul, You have given me the impossible, all glory be to Your name!

"DELIGHT YOURSELF IN THE LORD, AND HE WILL GIVE YOU THE DESIRES OF YOUR HEART." - PSALM 37:4

After that, Matthew and I have gone on dinner dates, gone shooting together, gone to concerts, plays, and church events, attended a civil war ball, danced, cooked together, gone skiing several times, played air-soft, and much more. Every day we read a chapter of God’s word together and pray over each other. The more time I spend with him, the more I continue to know, This Is The ONE. I’ve seen him when he’s happy, stressed, frustrated, annoyed, joyful, excited, appreciative, tired, hungry, and through every moment we always come through as a strong team together, and help each other grow to become more like Christ. I have been blown away by Matthew’s kindness, creativity, leadership, wisdom, helpfulness, hard work, and his loving, selfless, honoring personality. The more time I spend with his family, the more I love them. And Matthew surprised me by trimming up his beard so I could finally fully see his face. He had already won me over by his amazing personality and his heart in who he truly was, but at last I was won over even more by his handsome smile.

Praise the Lord for this man God has brought into my life!

THE PROPOSAL:

Matthew and I had made plans to go to the ice castle together, and I was expecting a fun evening sliding down ice slides and taking pictures with him. After we had explored the castle, I walked into one of the towers to see a couple trying to take selfies. I asked them if I could take their picture and if they could take ours. They agreed. We exchanged cameras and I stepped back and went to lean into Matthew for the photo - only he wasn’t next to me. Surprised, I turned toward him to see him down on one knee, a turquoise ring box held open in his hands. I was stunned.

“Brittney, will you marry me?” He asked, his dark eyes gleaming.

“Oh my gosh, are you serious?” I asked, backing up a step in shock with my hands to my mouth. “YES!”

I reached forward and put my hands around his. He pulled the ring out and put it on my finger, a perfect fit.

I could not believe it, we were engaged!! He totally surprised me, I had no idea he was going to propose at the ice castle.

Since then, our days have been filled with wedding preparations and plans for our future together.