When a work project brought Emily to the Iron Range, she was counting down the days until she could be home again and not have to look at another mine. God had something else in mind for her in the form of Troy Bruun walking into her storage room office, walking out, and then turning back around and giving her his number. Troy was surprised when Emily texted later that week and invited him on a night hike with headlamps. The two quickly discovered they had lots in common and an unexpected friendship developed between the two with hikes and CrossFit workouts whenever Emily was back in town.

One evening when working out at Troy’s garage together, Emily decided to take over the music and the song “Hard Fought Hallelujah" came on, opening up their first real conversation about faith. Although Emily hadn’t grown up in the church, Troy’s openness and steady faith allowed the two to connect on a meaningful spiritual level. An unexpected day off Easter weekend gave the two the perfect opportunity to spend a day in Duluth—walking along the lake, grabbing dinner, and driving around—where their connection grew beyond the Iron Range. Emily finally found the nerve to ask Troy if she could attend church with him where she heard the gospel clearly for the first time that Sunday. Encouraged by Gus and the church community, Emily continued attending church each week with Troy and his family which only brought the two closer together while strengthening their shared faith.

Their adventures together soon took them to Colorado, where they realized that they had finally found their counterpart to keep up with their constant movement and desire to be outdoors. Just a couple weeks later, with Emily assigned another three month project on the road, the two decided to meet halfway in Marquette for a weekend of biking and backpacking. After getting sassy with Troy about his speed on the mountain bike trails, karma landed Emily in the hospital. This opened up the perfect opportunity for Troy to finally meet Emily’s dad and sister for the first time at Marquette General Hospital as Emily was laid up there with fifteen broken bones, including neck fractures and a displaced collarbone.

It was a season that tested them both. As Emily recovered in Michigan from the accident, Troy showed up again and again—meeting Emily’s mom halfway to shuttle Emily back and forth for appointments, praying for her recovery, and finding comfort in God’s faithfulness together. Through patience and prayer, Troy and Emily were able to celebrate Troy’s birthday weekend with their first bike ride together since the accident. The two have enjoyed slowly returning to their adventures and are looking forward to a lifetime of love and adventures together with hopefully a few less broken bones ahead of them.