It all started when we met at Samford University on finals week in the University Center for what seemed like a typical UC interaction that was short lived. We went back to our hometowns that summer break and talked here and there throughout that summer. Once we got back to school the following semester is when things started to change. We began hanging out in groups, which transitioned to hanging out one on one, which transitioned into quickly falling in love. In the moment we never realized how much we took for granted all of the dates, the laughs, and the memories of living in the same city that felt like cloud 9. We dated for the rest of Julia’s sophomore year and Ty’s senior year before we decided to break up. This was such a hard time for both of us individually but looking back, it was an extremely purposeful time that the Lord would later use to redeem our relationship. We went almost a year without communicating which felt like the permenant state of our relationship and friendship especially with Ty moving to Nashville and later to Chicago all in the same year. Little did we know, the Lord had been cultivating and preparing our hearts for when we would be ready to cross paths again. We ended up going to a harmless lunch together to finally recap on the last year. At that lunch, all the butterflies, the joy and the pure heart warmth immediately came back. It was as if we didn’t skip a beat. We proceeded to go on a few dates in Birmingham, catching up on life and enjoying each other’s missed presence. We discussed the necessary steps that we would need to take if we were going to do this again and the rest was history. We allowed God’s hand to move in our life first, which then allowed him to move in our love, and our relationship. We dated for a year doing long distance between Chicago and Birmingham but during this time we pursued each other even harder than we did while living in the same city. Trips to see each other were filled with laughter, dancing and joy! Finally, we got engaged and made a commitment to spend the rest of our lives with each other with the Lord at the center of our relationship allowing him to lead and guide us as he has consistently done. We can’t wait to see all that God is going to do through our marriage for his kingdom. He has blessed us abundantly and we hope our story may encourage and bless others!