Our Love story is God-ordained and a full circle moment. I have been going to Nikao since 2015 and I had never met Megan until Nikao’s 4th birthday. She kept trying to get in pictures with ya boy because she thought I was cute LOL and she thought I was trying to flirt with her by touching her hair but really she just had a piece of lint in it, jk, I was flirting a little bit. Fast forward to August 2019, I was interested in going to the zoo and wanted to ask Instagram if anyone wanted to join me. Megan was the only person to respond and said ,” I like the zoo.” It was such a simple message but sparked up more conversation. One day I asked Megan if she wanted to try this new restaurant called Open Rice Kitchen in Ballantyne and that we could go on my lunch break, little did I know Megan drove about 35-40 minutes from her house to meet me and we had a great and playful conversation. I knew that there was something different about her and I knew that she was someone that I would be interested in.

Things really changed and I knew that I had to be intentional with her when she decided to go on a fast from me. I thought it was very noble and I realized how much I missed her during that time and that’s when I knew how much I really liked her. I let it be known and we started to get to know each other more and more.

November 17, 2019 changed my life, I was serving as a gatekeeper at Nikao and I remember looking up at her during worship while she played. The next moment I cannot forget because I remember hearing God tell me,” That is going to be your wife.” It was such a distant voice and moment in time that I knew it came from God. As we started to get to know each other more, I wanted to show Megan around my hometown of Greensboro, NC. On February 8th, we went to the Greensboro Science Center, a tour around my favorite places and ended up at my favorite restaurant, Southern Roots, where I would ask Megan to be my girlfriend.

Fast forward throughout a year of fun events and spending a lot of valuable time together (Thanks COVID) I continued to be very intentional with her that I wanted to spend my future with her. She went through the whole process of me buying and decorating my house, we spent endless Monday’s walking with her and Kovu and continued to worship God together and grow our bond even tighter.

All throughout this time, I knew I wanted to make the proposal special. She continued to tell me how I never took her to the zoo, little did she know I had it all planned for her. At the start of our one year anniversary, I planned a week of events to cater to her called Love Week, clever right? This week was full of a massage, facial, manicure, pedicure and home cooked meals, with a surprise at the end.

On February 6th 2021, with the help of her best friends, we organized and decorated my house for the proposal of her dreams. I first surprised her with her trip to the zoo (finally) and blind folded her and took her to my house where some of our family and friends were there for me to ask for her hand in marriage.

It was a such a beautiful moment and I wouldn’t trade it for the world. We are continuing to write our love story but with God, I believe we are off to a great start.

Kickin’ it back to the 9th grade here. That’s where my side of the story begins. In English class, we were reading a novel in which one of the main characters’ last name was Love. I was instantly drawn to the idea of having the name Love. I was a big journal-er at the time so I went home and wrote in my diary, “God, let me marry a man whose last name is Love so I can be Dr. Megan Love.” And then after that day, I forgot all about it. Seriously. It was like that desire was shut closed with that journal that day.

Fast forward a decade and some change later, I am serving at our church and notice Chris. He’s so tall, he literally stood out above the rest (more on that later…) and I not only noticed his stature, but his smile, how friendly he was with the other guests and how handsome he was. A few days later while scrolling on Facebook, I see this same handsome smiling face in my “suggested friends” and the name underneath the profile photo? “Christopher Love.” My mouth fell open to the ground and I was teleported back to my childhood bedroom, legs crossed, laying on my floor journaling “Megan Love” in all the best cursive with lots of hearts. I couldn’t believe it! There was actually someone whose REAL last name was Love?! No way! I thought God was giving me the biggest green light and surely this was my moment to get my teenage dream, so I did what any faith-filled person would do when God opens a door…..

Me: "Add friend."

Him: "Deny friend."

Friend request denied. And before you ask, YUP! I unashamedly went back to see if he accepted because what’s taking so long to add the woman of your dreams!?

Although my feelings were a little hurt, I decided that if it was meant to be, God would open the door in His divine and perfect timing. And that was it. I let it be and let it go.

For YEARS since that Facebook request gone bad, Chris and I have served at the same church. Sunday after Sunday. Service after service. I honestly stopped paying attention to him since we had never really held a conversation. Fast forward to our church’s 4th birthday celebration, when my best friend/Maid of Honor Line and I were taking photos to celebrate and who comes jumping in our pictures laughing and joking with us?! He even tried to run his fingers through my hair! I was seriously wondering why he was talking to me LOL, after denying my friend request years before. #PettyBetty

We ended up following each other on Instagram after the birthday celebration. We would message from time to time, mostly about random things. We began speaking to each other more when we were serving at church and joking around/laughing in between services. Then, late summer 2019, Chris posted on his IG story “Anyone want to go to the zoo with me?” I responded that I liked the zoo, and well……….one year and a month later, here we are.

What I love most about Chris is how intentional he has been about our relationship from the start. It didn’t take me long to recognize what a special gift he would become in my life. He is one of my greatest blessings. I have never been loved the way Chris Love loves me. He leads us without hesitation, is so selfless, protective, connected, intentional, hilariously funny, giving, wise beyond his years and has the most amazing heart.

If you’ve ever been in his presence for more than .01 seconds, you’ll feel his infectious joy. He has a way of bringing out the very best in others and he never fails to push the best out of me and remind me to see myself just the way God sees me.

We have had so many special moments in the year that we have been dating, too many to name, but the most special to me by far, is my proposal. Chris went above and beyond to ensure that I felt loved and got to experience the proposal of my dreams. With our close friends and family by our side, I said “Yes” to a forever with MY PERSON.

And the icing on the cake? I asked God for one man with the last name Love, and He sent me two! I said “yes” to becoming a dog-mama to the best, most handsome-est, most good-est baby boy ever. My Kovu Love. Talk about a double portion of love!

As a teenager, I was just drawn to the name Love, but I had no idea the type of love that God was preparing my heart for. I cannot wait to spend the rest of my life with my adventure partner, prayer partner, best teammate, and my very best friend on the planet. With God leading us, I know the best is yet to come!