As we go through the journey of life walking with the Lord, we will learn that He works in mysterious ways sometimes (actually a lot of times in my life that I can testify). I would like to relate just how our precious Lord brought my wonderful wife and me together. Even though I would not normally speak of the personal aspects of my life, but thought in order to show the Grace of our God and how He works in the hearts and lives of those who trust Him and that it might bring honor and glory to His precious Name, this is posted, even though it is somewhat humbling to do so. I have found that true life stories are a blessing to me and brings encouragement to others also.
We were both somewhat up in years and neither of us had been married before. We were both attending church, but not the same church. I had prayed concerning a wife for many years, and seemingly, that was never going to happen. If you remember reading the page titled “Love Story,” there is a story behind that story that is not mentioned on that page. That was written on a cold winter day in January 1995. I was working in my shop that cold day, burdened about the wife that it seemed I would never have, and as I was praying to the Lord about it, He began to speak to me about His bride. In literal tears I began penning down the words you read on that page as they flowed so freely, coming faster than I could write. I began to see afresh and anew what it cost Jesus to receive His bride. That was in January; later on in the year, around the beginning of August, I was at one of my favorite shopping malls (actually a scrapyard with lots of metal and goodies). While I was in the scrapyard, that burden became quite heavy, and I found myself on my knees out among the scrap metal praying. I suppose that those that passed by thought that was unusual to see, and probably rightfully so.
A few days before that day in the scrapyard, I had a request from my cousin to rebuild an engine in a well drilling machine that had broken down. It was one of those situations where his business had suffered several breakdowns and things were not going that well for him. Anyhow, I told him, no problem. If you will just buy the parts, I will rebuild the engine, and all I want in return is a decent used piano. And by the way, the piano was not for me. I have a sister-in-law that can play beautifully but had no piano. I told her it is too much of a waste to be able to play like you do and yet have no piano.
So when I mentioned my request, my cousin said that’s no problem, I know someone who has one in a storage shed they need moved so they don’t have to keep paying a storage fee. The piano was free, you just have to move it. That was neat! The Lord was working in the background again.
So not too many days later, about two weeks after my struggle in prayer in the scrapyard, I finished up the rebuild job on the big engine, and we got it back into the drilling machine. But I told my cousin, I know your operators. I don’t want them to blow up my new engine the first day on the job! He said OK, you can go with them to the job and monitor the engine and help break it in. Sure enough, high on one of the mountains here in Western NC, the machine was set up and starting to drill for water. All was going well with the well and the engine was sounding fine, just drilling away. I noticed a couple of people working on a cabin just up the hill a little above us. It wasn’t long till the fellow came down to where we were, and we began to talk. It happened to be that he and his wife were finishing up some remodeling on the cabin, and the well was for the cabin. Thing is, they were not remodeling the cabin and drilling the well to live there; they were missionaries selling the cabin to get ready to go to Mexico. As we talked and I got acquainted somewhat with them, I invited them to come and visit the church I was attending at the time. So they came and visited, and as they were on the steps of the church getting ready to leave, the Missionary’s wife noticed I was not wearing a wedding ring. She asked me if I was married. I said no, I’ve actually about given up on that. His wife said, “Well, there is a girl in our church that you might want to meet.” My heart stopped beating there for a space of time, as she began telling me about this girl that they had known for some time. Then she went on to say, “We can arrange for you two to meet on Wednesday night if you would like.” Well, this is one of those times you have to be careful what you ask for! God just might be listening. So, taken aback, granted, I agreed I would come to their church. I came and, by the way, we had a very good service too. After the service I met this mysterious pretty girl that God had hidden away for several years waiting on me to trust Him. So after church the missionaries, the pretty girl, and I went down to Shoney’s and fellowshipped together for a while. After that as we came outside and were about ready to head back home, I got up enough courage (faith) to ask this pretty girl for her phone number. Not that I expected she would bother to answer, but to my surprise she did! That was back in the days when I didn’t have unlimited long distance! Whoever said that talk is cheap, never lived in those days. Anyhow, we only met and just drove around the town one time and talked. I had to work a lot in those days and so did she, so we never had much time to go out. But one thing we did have was the telephone. It wasn’t cheap, but we talked and talked and talked. I fell in love with the voice I was hearing. It was just the way it is with Jesus: I love to hear Him talk to me. Anyhow, as the week went on and we talked, on the ninth day from the day we met, I asked her to marry me! Believe it or not, she said yes.
That was on the ninth day, but then the reality began to set in. I began to ask myself, is this really the one, after praying for what seemed like a lifetime? It was like drifting from a high mountain into a low valley of despair. What have I done? Do I really want to go through with this? I questioned. Then on a Sunday evening, I called her and began this discussion. At first she was sort of quiet, then she began quoting Psalm 121. “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber.” I once again was hearing that voice I had heard so many times from the Lord as He spoke sweet peace to my soul, causing the doubts and fears to just vanish away. I knew at that moment she was My Girl, and that forever! I am so thankful I listened to Him that day instead of the doubts and fears that had overcome me in that moment of time. That touch from Him was all I needed. Not many days later we met, and of course I got on my knees and begged her to marry me just in case she thought about changing her mind.
Now, back to the rest of the story. It ended up that my cousin got his engine, my sister-in-law got her piano, our missionary couple got their well and I got the girl. She’s not just any girl, she is My Girl.
So now you know the story behind the Love Story. The reason I wanted to share this special part of my sweet wife and my true life’s story is to show, you can trust the Lord Jesus with your life. Although he may have you to wait upon Him, maybe for longer than you think is reasonable, He can be trusted to be waited on. Oh, and by the way, it is 29 years later, and we still love each other. I told her after we got married that the day would never come when she would ever have to worry about me hurting her. I said, should I ever come home from work and for whatever reason she blew up in my face, not to worry. I would not say a word to hurt her in any way, I would just simply go up on the hill in the woods and get on my knees and say, “Lord Jesus, Karen doesn’t love me anymore. Will you love me?” You know what, I’ve never had to do that! The Lord put us together, and He is our foundation. A finishing thought on this story: even though we can see the Lord’s hand all along, it really began to fall into place at the “well.” I remember the story in the Bible about a marriage that began at a well.
“Behold, I stand by the well of water; and it shall come to pass, that when the virgin cometh forth to draw water, and I say to her, Give me, I pray thee, a little water of thy pitcher to drink; And she say to me, Both drink thou, and I will also draw for thy camels: let the same be the woman whom the LORD hath appointed out for my master’s son. And before I had done speaking in mine heart, behold, Rebekah came forth with her pitcher on her shoulder; and she went down unto the well, and drew water: and I said unto her, Let me drink, I pray thee. And she made haste, and let down her pitcher from her shoulder, and said, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: so I drank, and she made the camels drink also. And I asked her, and said, Whose daughter art thou? And she said, The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor’s son, whom Milcah bare unto him: and I put the earring upon her face, and the bracelets upon her hands. And I bowed down my head, and worshipped the LORD, and blessed the LORD God of my master Abraham, which had led me in the right way to take my master’s brother’s daughter unto his son.”
Genesis 24:43-48
One more interesting providence in this story: notice as pictured in the photo above, there was a large bolt that was of special material, strong, that would not rust or corrode. A plant in our area that made these parts had closed down, and they sent many of these parts to the scrapyard. I had happened to pick up some of these. Being a machinist by trade, from that material came some things hidden within, that was originally intended to go into a naval vessel and was destined to take its voyage upon the vast sea of time. Instead, they were changed into the form of two rings, going on the hands of a couple starting on their voyage upon the sea of life together. Some might think this to be an unusual source of the rings, but when considering the meeting and wedding of this couple was unusual from the start, maybe they are not so unusual after all. Most jewelers will set the diamond in the ring. In this wedding, the ring was set eternally in the hand of the diamond.
Below is the story behind the Story
There once was a young man, but quiet ancient in some way, that one night while in the garden, was very burdened and sorrowful for He had no bride. As He talked to His Father about His sorrowful heart which was broken, even His Spirit was grieved and full of pain as He asked His Father. Father, will Ye give me a bride? But only to add to His grief and sorrow, His Father replied, Yes My Son, but you must love her with all your heart and all your soul and all your Spirit and you must give all you have for her, even your very life.
And He said to His Father. Yes my Father, all I have, that will I give. And so it came to pass, when the time in the which His heart was broken even unto death, that He gave until there was nothing left to give. Even His own soul gave He and withheld nothing according to as His Father had said.
But this man was not like unto other young men, though like them in some way, very different in another way. Though had He sorrow and grief of Spirit, even unto death, yet had He power to bring Himself even from the sorrow of the grave, also from the depth where He had descended.
Having fulfilled His Father’s will. Early one morning He arose and many more things completed He. Then looked He from the window of His House and saw a young girl in the field, and He said: Father, lo, there she is, my bride that You promised me. His Father said, Son, You don’t want her. Look at her, she is dirty, and her clothes are only filthy rags. Oh but My Father, she’s the one I love with all my heart. Remember my Father? You promised me if I would love her with all my heart and give all I have, which I have done, that you would give her to me. For she’s the one I love. Well my Beloved Son, if you really want her you may have her. You must first win her heart to Thee.
And so having been thankful to his Father for giving her to him, the young man set out to win her heart to himself. He began by sending her His Friend to speak to her of His love for her. Yet His Friend could come only so close to her, she being so dirty and He being so clean, lest He defile Himself. Yet by and by He sent his Friend to her, even with a letter, expressing his love for her, yet with seemingly little response to the visits of His Friend. The young man being so in love with the young girl that he saw in the field, that was so dirty and wore filthy rags and worked and toiled all the day long. Yet after having worked day after day was she only the worse off than when she began and had no rest at all. The more the young man saw her, the more He loved and pitied her, for He could not keep his eyes off her, neither could He keep his heart back from her.
After many days He said to His Father: Father, my heart longeth for the girl that I saw in the field. Though our Friend who is one with us has spoken to her, yet she has not responded to my love. His Father seeing the love of His Son being fixed on the young girl in the field, being the all wise Father says these words to His Son whom He loves, Go Thyself to where she is and show her the tree where Thou gavest all Thy had for her. Even bring the scenes of Thy blood before her, which Thou gavest so freely for her. If it be so that she responds to Thy love and opens her heart to Thee, she then is Thine forever. For then will she be clean like unto Thee and will find rest from her toiling. But if she be not willing to respond to Thee, there is no more that can be done for her, for no one will love her like Thou hast loved her. Go my Son to where she is. You will find her who will respond to Thee, for I your Father hath promised and cannot lie. You will find her and she will find Thee and love will abound between her and Thee. When Thou hast found her, bring her home, even to Thine house which is prepared for her and Thee, that all our friends may rejoice with us.
And so it was and it came to pass, that He came to where she was and are both in love at last. Now so close to going home to make herself ready for the wedding to come. Twain forever shall they be, one in heart and in love.
The Story behind the Story
The above was written on a cold winter day in January 1995 while working in my shop, burdened for I had no bride and looked as if it would never happen. While on my knees in my shop floor, my Lord began to speak to my heart concerning the Bride for His Son. These words began to flow and trying to pen them down though coming faster than I could write. In August of that same year, my Lord answered that prayer and brought to my side the most precious wife I could ever have dreamed for. Our Precious Lord understands the longing in the hearts of His dear children and remembers their prayers.