A Gracefull Place

I thought perhaps you might like to know HOW Dallas and I met!

 

 

It’s quite an interesting story!  

 

 

When I was a "junior" in college (which was really my second year), I went to Strasbourg, France for a "Junior Year Study Abroad" program with the college I was in.  It was an amazing year of spiritual learning and life changing decisions made as God really got hold of my life (I had become a Christian at 16-almost-17, but no one had mentored me, so I was "just saved" and not growing much!).   I had actually planned to marry someone else (perils of dating!).

 

 

My grandfather passed away at Thanksgiving when I was overseas, and an uncle thought maybe I’d like to come home for Christmas, since I couldn’t come home for the funeral.  He blessed me by paying for my ticket home and back to France (which was NOT CHEAP at Christmas-time!!!).  That turned out to be very Providential!!!

 

 

While I was at home, I realized that the young man I thought I was going to marry was not God’s will for me.  Now, at the time, I just thought, "Not God’s will at this time."  Little did I know what God had in store for me!!!!

 

 

We went to see some cousins during my visit home, and they asked about me getting married.  I told them that I really felt the Lord did not want me to marry that person at that time.  Immediately, my cousin, A., says, "I have someone you should meet!" 

 

 

My thought was, "Good night!  I just made this decision (and hadn’t told the young man yet!), and you want me to meet someone?!"  To say I wasn’t very interested would be an understatement!!!

 

 

I tried to be polite, though, and said, "Well, what’s his name?"

 

 

She replied, "Dallas!"

 

 

I thought, "What kind of a name is DALLAS for a guy?!"  

 

 

She told me all about him, the usual, good looking, has his own house, has a motorcycle, etc.  

 

 

Then my mom totally shocked me!

 

 

She asked, "Is he a Godly man?"

 

 

Now you have to understand….Mom didn’t go around talking like that back then!!!!  

 

 

A. replied, "Oh, yes!"

 

 

I said, "Well, I could meet him sometime, but I’m not going out with anyone just yet!"    Out of fairness to my soon-to-be-ex-boyfriend, I didn’t want to "go out" with anyone until it was officially over, and I thought this would give me a good excuse out of a "blind date"!!!

 

 

I thought that was the end of it. 

 

 

Oh, no!

 

 

A. calls me the last week I’m home and wants me to go ice skating with them and several friends from their church, including this guy named after a city!!!!

 

 

But I’ve got THAT covered!  "Oh, I’m sorry, but that’s the night before I fly back to France, and we’re having a kind of going-away get together.   I’ll be sharing my pictures, and it gives me a chance to say good-bye.   You’re invited and you can bring him if you want."

 

 

A.:  "Well, he’s pretty shy.  I don’t think he would come."

 

 

Awwww!  Too bad!   

 

 

 

So, to my GREAT AMAZEMENT, Friday night comes and WOULD YOU BELIEVE IT?!!!! This guy comes with them!!!!    (Are you falling off your chair laughing yet?!)

 

 

I think I might have talked to him a total of ten  minutes the whole night (I was going around sharing my pictures, talking to others, answering questions, making sure they got some refreshements, etc.). 

 

 

He WAS a nice guy, but I thought that was probably the end of that!

 

 

After I went back to Strasbourg, God put me through the most intensive training program of trusting Him in all things that I had been through up to that point!  (That’s a whole ‘nuther post!  )

 

 

Little did I know, He was preparing me for the BIGGEST thing in my life since my salvation!

 

 

Dallas had been impressed with how I took care of everyone at the party, and he spent a lot of time watching me and how I handled everything!  (Take note, young ladies!  You might never know when someone is watching you–seeing your servant’s heart, your attitude….good reason to not indulge fleshly pity parties!)

 

 

When I came home in May, I was quite surprised to get a call from him!  I figured he had found someone by now!

 

 

This post is already getting quite long—so I will finish "The Rest of the Story" tomorrow!  

 

 

 

This entry was posted on Thursday, March 4th, 2010 at 7:44 am and is filed under Family. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.