Early on in our marriage, I began the daily practice of telling David at least one thing he did to capture my heart anew each day. I wish I had written down all my observations, as I would have amassed quite a volume of beautiful memories by now.
You see, there is always more than one thing that endears my husband to me. It’s the countless little things he does that make him so incredible. I know David delights in hearing my observations as much as I enjoy affirming him with the same. As I told him in my wedding vows, I will always be his greatest encourager.
“What I loved about you today,” I told him one evening, “is that you were so excited to write ‘married’ on your dental forms and list me as your emergency contact.”
“I loved it when you held me in the parking lot at Walmart before I got into the car,” I detailed on another occasion. “It didn’t matter who was around or watching us. It was like it was just you and me in the world.”
David’s egret photo taken in Islamorada, FL. David gifted a framed copy of the same to one of his clients for her home.
More than just the romantic part of our relationship, I also comment about things David does that impress me. Whenever we’ve visited his former clients in VA Beach, it amazes me to hear their stories of his great skill in completing projects in their homes. Whether it was witnessing with my own eyes a few of the additions David built on several houses or glimpsing one of his framed wildlife photos on a wall in a former client’s home, I’m incredibly proud of all the skills David possesses.
David told me a while ago how much he appreciated my observations before ever proposing to me. He once said that while he knew his clients respected his abilities, he never heard such affirmations from anyone else. How sad, I thought, but I completely understand. You see, I, too, was absent such positivity and praise in any of my past relationships. It’s impossible to quantify the true worth of encouragement.
David an I sitting atop the peak of his roof in the middle of our re-shingling job.
Nor can we ever say “I love you” enough to those we cherish. One of my dear friends told me her boyfriend recently verbalized his opposition to uttering those three precious words too often. What on earth would ever possess someone to say such a thing, I thought. You can never say ‘I love you’ too much. I later told her she needed to tell him he needs to figure out what love is if he truly feels that way.
Our Heavenly Father first demonstrated His love for us by sending His Son into the world to die for our sins. John 15: 13 reminds us, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down in one’s life for one’s friends.” How much more should we demonstrate our love for our spouses or those we claim to care about than by telling them how much we value their presence in our lives? Saying “I love you” is one thing. Each of us should show our loved ones their merit by helping, supporting, listening to, and encouraging them every day.
David smiles as he nears the final peak and the end of our roof work.
David and I are committed to exhibiting love to one another at every opportunity for the rest of our lives. We’ve spent far too long apart and have been too beaten up by the world not to cherish the treasure we’ve found in one another. While some of our friends are skeptical about our lingering love affair – giving us “another week” or “until our first fight” (for the record, we’ve had more than one and hated every moment of them, by the way) – we know that God has given us a unique form of love that will never die or grow cold. We are tied together with Christ at our center. As much as we love Christ, we also love one another.
Ephesians 5: 28-29 gives this direction to men: “…Husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church.”
After discovering how much I love using a nail gun, I learned that shingling may be labor intensive but it’s also super fun.
While many people are uncomfortable with the Biblical direction to wives that precedes Paul’s guidance to husbands, we must take the time to understand it. Ephesians 5: 22 says, “Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord.”
Submission here does not mean subservience. As Focus on the Family explains Paul’s passage, “When a husband submits to the Lord, leading his wife with a servant’s heart and nurturing her God-given talents, she can confidently submit to him — lean on him and trust his covering. That will always be relevant…The relationship isn’t of master to servant; it’s of lover and beloved.”
David and I share a moment of joy while reclining on his former home’s newly shingled roof.
I couldn’t have defined that statement any better. As Solomon’s wife exclaimed in the Song of Songs (chapter 6:3), “I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine.”
And so, I will continue to tell David what I love about him daily, affirming my beloved and assuring him of my continual affection. Whether it was the evening when we were both sang together on his roof while re-shingling it when our song – “Perfectly Loved” – played on our streaming service – or whether it’s how much I love seeing the joy on his face when I run to hug and kiss him whenever he walks into a room, every moment we have together is precious and should be celebrated.
How much more love would there be in the world if we all followed this simple practice of affirming one another?
Never doubt the power of love. It can move mountains. It can obliterate walls. And it can bring you your soulmate – and keep him or her filled with joy and contentment – all through the simple use of words and actions that remind your loved one of their worth. We are to follow Christ’s example, after all, aren’t we?
Jesus loved us first. May we always be ready and willing to share His love and ours with the world – especially to those we share our lives with.
David and Sara-isms – The David and Sara Saga, Part 3
One of the things I appreciate most about my relationship with David is that we both speak the same love language. Dr. Gary Chapman may have written books on the subject, but David and I will never need to read them. The ten-mile-long trail of text messages and emails we sent to one another long before we declared our love was constantly filled with words of affirmation – one of Dr. Chapman’s five love languages – as are all our daily conversations. David and I provide positivity and encouragement to one another as easily as we breathe air.
David and I rejoiced at our first Easter Sunday together.
As silly as it may sound, even beyond our constant encouragements, as mutual writers, we developed our own phrases and way of speaking soon after we declared our love. We derived so much pleasure from our sayings that David suggested we write a few to share with our wedding guests.
And so, the famous “David and Sara-isms” document was born.
At every banquet table, the following explanations were shared:
David and Sara-isms
Do you speak David and Sara’s Love Language? Let’s find out! Here’s a small sampling of what you might hear them saying to each other:
“Is this for real?” – Translation? This phrase is used constantly when David and Sara think about everything God has done to bring them together.
“A thousand million, billion, KA-zillion times ‘YES!’” – Translation? This is how Sara answered David when he proposed to her. Use this phrase when you want people to understand that you really mean what you’re saying. We’re not sure these are real numbers, but you can pretend they are and impress whoever you’re talking to.
“It’s HUGGLE time!” – Translation? David uses this phrase when he wants to hug and snuggle with Sara. Huggling is definitely a happy pastime, so give it a try!
“DOUBLE awesome!” – Translation? When David first told Sara that she’s awesome, she replied that he’s awesome, too. David asked Sara, “If you’re awesome and I’m awesome, what are we together?” Sara replied, “We are DOUBLE awesome!” The phrase stuck! You can also use it to explain that something is beyond amazing. It’s “DOUBLE awesome!”
“Awesome times INFINITY!” – Translation? When something is beyond awesome, it’s “Awesome times INFINITY,” and nothing can top that!
“Together forever, wherever!” Translation? David and Sara are inseparable. Make sure you use this phrase carefully, as it indicates a perpetual state of togetherness.
“I love you! I love you! I love you!” – Translation? This expression describes a triune bond of love that starts with Christ at the center. David and Sara seldom issue a single “I love you.” It’s more commonly heard in a chorus of three declarations of love. “A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.” (Ecclesiastes 4:12).
As we cleaned up the reception hall after our wedding, I was surprised to see that none of the David and Sara-ism documents we created were left behind. We later learned that all were taken by our wedding guests as keepsakes of our event. In fact, one of David’s brothers told us that he keeps the document on top of his bureau, where he can read and enjoy it daily. Apparently, we’re not the only ones who value our choice to use words of positivity and love to communicate.
What a joy to have someone to attend special events with! David and I recently shared a light lunch at a friend’s garden party.
Why is affirmation so rare, I wonder? I often hear from my work teammates that my uplifting words are different from what they hear from others. “Everything is always a steady push to get things done,” one of my colleagues commented. “But you always take the time to be uplifting and encouraging. I greatly enjoy interacting with you.”
Another person once told me he couldn’t understand how I could always be so happy. As I’ve told countless others since, “It’s not me. It’s God you see in me.”
How can we make a difference if we, as Christians, are no different than the world around us? If we constantly moan, whine, and complain, what incentive is there for anyone to want what we have? We’ve been given the gift of eternal life and love from our Heavenly Father. How can we not share His love gift with others? By demonstrating Christ’s love to the world, we are being His hands and feet through everything we touch, wherever we go, with whoever we encounter.
Christians should always be affirming – loving one another wholeheartedly. It’s not only an excellent way to keep our spouses happy, but it also makes the world a more beautiful and joyful place for everyone to exist in.
Every moment David and I share is a huge blessing.
Why not adopt David’s and my love language and incorporate encouragement into your daily existence? Don’t just tell someone they did a good job. Uplift those around you by letting them know they are double awesome, or even awesome times infinity, if you really want to knock their socks off.
And when you want to uplift your spouse or friends, don’t hesitate to triple your affection for even greater significance. After all, who wouldn’t want to hear the trilogy “I love you! I love you! I love you!”?
With just a little practice, you, too, can add David and Sara-speak into your everyday conversations. Just add love to everything you do, and you’ll always be appreciated.
“And now these three remain:faith, hope and love.But the greatest of these is love.” (1 Corinthians 13:13)
“The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; for He founded it on the seas and established it on the waters.” (Psalm 24:1-2)
“The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.”
So read the church sign David and I passed on the Friday before Earth Day, 2023. I was saddened to see this declaration which seemed to be pointing directly to climate change ideology. It’s Earth Day, I reasoned. That church appears to validate the belief that we all must help ‘Mother Earth’ by saving our planet. What does that sign have to do with God?
Since Earth Day was established in 1970, planet activism has become a pseudo-religion. Former CBS Evening News Anchorman Walter Cronkite first explained the remembrance in a special April 1970 news broadcast by defining it as “a day set aside for a nationwide outpouring of mankind seeking its own survival. Earth Day,” Cronkite continued, is “a day dedicated to enlisting all the citizens of a bountiful country in a common cause of saving life from the deadly by-products of that bounty.”
Climate activists will do anything to elevate their cause. Recent examples of such include protestors vandalizing priceless pieces of art to bring an audience to their message. In October 2022, two Just Stop Oil activists threw mashed potatoes on Claude Monet’s “Les Meules” painting in a German museum before super-gluing themselves to the floor. In explanation of their act, the protestors stated, “If it takes a painting – with #MashedPotatoes or #TomatoSoup thrown at it – to make society remember that the fossil fuel course is killing us all: Then we’ll give you #MashedPotatoes on a painting!”
In a similar October incident, two other protestors threwtomato soup on a Van Gough painting in a London gallery before gluing their hands to the wall. Similar incidents saw protestors gluethemselves to Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper” and other works by Botticelli and Picasso.
In addition to defacing artwork, scaling buildings, blocking traffic, and vandalizing pipelines, activists are often willing to sacrifice their bodies to elevate their ideals. One such unfortunate incident was coordinated by Boulder, CO resident Wynn Bruce, who set himself on fire outside the U.S. Supreme Court building on Earth Day, 2022. Bruce later died from his sustained injuries.
Zen Buddhist priest Kritee Kanko – a friend of Bruce’s – later acknowledged that Bruce had been planning the protest for “at least one year.” In an interview with the New York Times, Kanko told the paper that “people are being driven to extreme amounts of climate grief and despair.”
As an outdoor enthusiast, I fully appreciate the importance of doing our part to protect the environment – but not at the expense of forgetting the one who created it all. Genesis 1:1 reminds us, “In the beginning God created heaven and earth.”
Conversely, I also believe what our Heavenly Father foretells us in the book of Revelation. Chapter 21:1 declares, “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.” God created everything and is in control of all things. “For every animal of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills.” (Psalm 50:10)
And so I disagree with the church sign I mentioned earlier in this post. The greatest threat to our planet is not in believing someone else will save it. The greatest threat to humankind is not acknowledging that Jesus Christ is the only one who can save both our planet and our eternal souls. In fact, He already did so when He died on the cross for our sins. While preserving the earth may sound like a noble cause, as Christians, we should be more concerned about where our fellow earthly citizens will spend eternity.
Christ’s blood covered all our sins and bridged the chasm between heaven and earth. My mission in life is not to save the planet but to share God’s love with the planet’s dwellers. I was created to serve our Creator – not any other created being – including planet Earth. Just as worshipping an idol manufactured by man is senseless, so is idolizing any other entity other than the God who created it. There is no such thing as “Mother Earth.” There is only Father God, and He has a future home for us in Heaven – far beyond anything we can envision on this terrestrial globe.
Revelation 21: 3-4 reminds us to look forward to our heavenly home where God will dwell alongside us. “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
Our Creator loves us so much that He gave His Son, Jesus Christ, to die on a cross so that His perfect sacrifice would cover our sins and allow us to spend eternity with Him in heaven. More important than saving the planet is saving ourselves and others from eternal separation from God. We can never be perfect enough, do enough, or perform enough acts of sacrifice to save ourselves from the penalty of sin.
Romans 3:23 reminds us that “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” To save my soul, I had to acknowledge that I am a sinner in need of a Savior. Jesus Christ paid the penalty for my sin by dying on a cross for me. Belief in Him is the only way I can ever be accepted into heaven. As John 3:16 tells us, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.”
My Heavenly Father cares about me and loves me. The fairy-tale entity of Mother Earth is no different than Mother Goose. Her existence, like the latter’s, is only a manufactured creation.
If climate activists are willing to super-glue themselves to walls to draw attention to their cause, how much more so should I, as a child of the one true God who has saved my soul for all eternity, be willing to use my whole life to promote the gospel? “I desire to do your will, my God; your law is within my heart.” (Psalm 40:8)
May I always be willing to pay any price and sacrifice anything I have for Christ. After all, I was created to worship and serve my Creator – all the days of my earthly life and beyond.
How did we get here? – The David and Sara Saga, Part 2
“I will exalt you, Lord,for you lifted me out of the depths and did not let my enemies gloat over me.” (Psalm 30: 1)
“How did we get here?” David’s brother, Jeffrey, asked at the start of his toast to his brother and me during our wedding reception. “How did we get to where they’re married?”
Unlike traditional toasts that provide anecdotes while congratulating the lucky couple, Jeffrey built his speech around whether God knows or cares about us when we’re hurting. His words struck a chord with not just David and me but everyone privileged to hear the “backstory,” as he called it.
David and I stand in front of one of the shore-stranded and stacked shrimp boats in Ft. Myers, FL – post-Hurricane Ian in January, 2023.
If you read my blog, you already know how David and I met and how unexpectedly beautiful our God-given love story is. Neither of us was looking for love when we traveled to Florida to help Samaritan’s Purse with disaster relief in Ft. Myers, post-Hurricane Ian. Anyone attending our wedding knew the same.
Instead, Jeffrey elaborated more on who God is and how much He used the love of our Creator to unite us.
“Yeah, you might say that they met on a hurricane project – a clean-up project in Ft. Myers on October 12th,” Jeffrey continued. “But I want to know where they were before that. I can tell you, there was a lot of pain. There were hearts that were shattered – broken relationships, dreams obliterated, enduring years of disappointments, wondering where God was in the pain of it all. They were begging for help.”
“I wonder if God did know the agony of their souls,” Jeffrey questioned. “Does God really get us? Does God really know what’s going on in those times?”
For the next five minutes, Jeffrey shared scripture with the spellbound room as he turned to passage after passage of reminders that God understands our heartaches.
My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? O, my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest. (Psalm 22: 1-2)
Save me, O God, for the waters have come up to my neck. I sink in the miry depths, where there is no foothold. I have come into the deep waters; the floods engulf me. I am worn out calling for help; my throat is parched. My eyes fail, looking for my God. (Psalm 69:1-3)
Lord, you are the God who saves me; day and night, I cry out to you. May my prayer come before you; turn your ear to my cry. I am overwhelmed with troubles, and my life draws near to death. I am counted among those who go down to the pit; I am like one without strength. I am set apart with the dead, like the slain who lie in the grave, whom you remember no more, who are cut off from your care. (Psalm 88: 1-5)
“I think God does get it,” Jeffrey affirmed. “At least two thousand years ago…people were hurting but hanging on. God does know that we suffer. He [gives] us these words to give us comfort, to know we are not alone.”
I couldn’t agree more. Despite everything I’ve been through, my love for God never changed. His Holy Word kept me focused on my Savior and less on myself. In fact, my eternal love for my Heavenly Father sustained me during moments that could have broken me otherwise. The times when I felt utterly rejected by the world, I always knew that God was with me and loved me. That thought continually gave me hope.
By worldly standards, I was the perpetual outcast – shunned, spurned, and shamed in past relationships.
And yet, I never lost sight of my Father’s love. God’s grace pulled me up from the depths of despair more times than I could ever mention. I was committed to loving and serving my Savior – no matter the cost.
“What got them to this place right there?” Jeffrey continued. “Their love of God. They didn’t know each other, but they loved God. And that was the key component that they required in anyone else.”
David and I were privileged to serve with Samaritan’s Purse in Ft. Myers on Monday, December 12, 2022 – the day after he proposed to me.
Jeffrey went on to explain David’s ultimate decision around a year ago not to date anyone unless they loved God. That decision only came after another broken, worldly relationship pulverized his heart. Despite his best intentions in helping others, David learned the hard way that his pursuit of love with anyone who didn’t understand Christ would inevitably end in heartache.
“When he first told me about Sara, I knew she had passed the test,” Jeffrey explained to the sound of chuckles. “It was their love of God that got them there, despite all the lonely trials…Despite the effects of loneliness, they still heard God cry out that He needed people. God said, ‘Hmm. Tragedy in Florida. Whom shall I send?’ And David in Virginia Beach and Sara in Georgia, like Isaiah, said ‘Here am I, Lord. Send me.’ That’s how we got here. Their love of God became their love for each other.”
As David and I ponder the amazing grace that brought us together, we are continually in awe of the love we share and our God-aligned, astounding compatibilities. How many people in the world fully understand God’s love? And how many of us have surrendered our plans to our Heavenly Father’s? Of all the relationships currently standing, how many are built on God’s love, first and foremost?
As Jeffrey said, David and I loved God and placed Him first in our lives. Despite my fears and David’s missteps, we knew we were called to serve our Savior. We would never have met if we hadn’t entirely surrendered to God’s will over our own. If either David or I had once said, “I can’t do it. It’s too hard. It’s too much. I’m too busy,” or even “Maybe next time,” our paths would never have crossed.
How often, I wonder, do we miss the blessings that God has in store for us because we aren’t willing to relinquish our will to God’s? There may come a day when we all stand before our Heavenly Father in heaven and learn what our lives could have been if we’d only listened to God and done what He asked us to do instead of following our own plans for our lives.
I hope and pray that I will always obey my Savior’s calling. I want to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” (Matthew 25:23). I’ve made many mistakes in my life that I’ve had to live with. I don’t want to regret another moment when I could have done more for God but chose not to.
After all, it’s only when I fully surrendered to my Heavenly Father’s sustaining grace that I received the biggest blessing of my life – finding my soulmate in David.
Whatever my Heavenly Father has yet to ask of me, whatever else He needs me to do, may I always be ready and eager to do so. After all, I’m a living testament to God’s outstanding provision. My life with David – finding true love with him is so much more than I ever could have asked for or imagined.
And I wouldn’t be here if I hadn’t yielded to my Savior. I have true joy beyond imagination because I said the simple but meaningful words: My life is yours, God. Guide me. Use me. Send me.
May those words always be on my lips and yours, beloved.
“You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing your praises and not be silent. Lord my God, I will praise you forever.” (Psalm 30: 11-12)
“God is the only one who has ever perfectly loved me – until now.” So began the wedding vows I wrote to my soulmate, David, and read before all those who attended our wedding on Sunday, March 12th.
“All I’ve ever wanted was to be perfectly loved,” I continued, “I used to puzzle over why something that should be so simple was so unobtainable. I didn’t want superficial love. I wanted perfect love – a love like God’s – with skin on it. I dreamed of the kind of love that would see into my soul and love every part of me – inside and out. Despite my flaws and insecurities, the perfect love I envisioned that someday someonewould have for me would be blind to anything but my spirit.”
All dressed and ready for the ceremony in my exquisite, gifted wedding dress(courtesy of Diana Villier).
For decades, everything I experienced told me that the kind of love my heart longed for was impossible to achieve – in fact, my first husband told me outright that the love I wanted was unachievable. That statement alone paralyzed me in painful relationships for longer than it ever should have. There’s no such thing as perfect love, I thought. It’s only the stuff of fairy tales and Hollywood.
But then I met David.
David’s road to winning my love was paved with landmines, boulders, and quicksand. While he never saw these barriers, there was no limit to the protections I’d built to safeguard my heart. I hadn’t just built a wall around it; I surrounded my most vital organ with barbed electric wire. I didn’t want to let anyone in. I was happy to give love to others. I just couldn’t allow myself to believe that what God had programmed me to extend could ever be returned.
And then came David.
What began as a friendship based on our mutual love of God and service slowly developed into something so much more than I ever could have imagined.
Video montage courtesy of Michael Erb.
David is different than anyone I’ve ever known my entire life. He’s the first person to honestly say – and mean – that he never gets tired of hearing me talk. I realize that’s almost impossible to imagine for those who know me personally. And yet it’s true. As a fellow writer, David understands the value of words. We never struggle for something to say to each other – and we always strive to say it with love.
As I told David in my vows, the love I’ve hoped for but never dared to believe in was always resting inside him – just waiting for me. “I believe that God created me for you and you for me,” I told him, “I am the rib that God took from your body and fashioned into the woman that will always remain by your side. God created us for each other.”
Cell phone capture of our wedding ceremony, beginning with our vows. Video courtesy of Mark Higgason.
1 John 4:18 tells us that “Perfect love casts out fear.” That’s the kind of love David and I have for one another – a perfect love without fear.
I know fear. I lived it most of my adult life. Every relationship I had before David’s was surrounded by terror. Besides being afraid of physical violence in my first marriage, my second husband instilled psychological boundaries that held me captive for over ten years.
I could never be perfect enough for a perfectionist controller. If I wasn’t working, cleaning, improving, or flagellating to his standards, I was worse than a failure – I was reprehensible and didn’t deserve to eat or sleep in my own house. I wasn’t allowed outside friendships – even with my family members.
Any relationship I tried to develop outside of his was considered a betrayal – and there was always a price to be paid. I was screamed at, reprimanded, and shoved out of the house to find my own shelter overnight – no matter the weather, whether I had eaten, or even if I was dressed for the elements. I learned to accept that my existence was unimportant. I didn’t deserve kindness, let alone love.
David and I prepare to enter the reception hall after our marriage ceremony. Photo courtesy of Diana Villier.
And still, my heart dreamed of it. God gave me love. Without the love of my Savior, I could have easily succumbed to the belief that I didn’t deserve to live. But with God, I always knew I was valued. I believed no one on earth could ever love me like God did until my heavenly Father sent me David.
David knew the value of being invisible himself. His mother died when he was 15, and his father didn’t know how to show love. For decades, he struggled to find his own self-worth – something he had never learned at home. David also didn’t know what real love was – even though he looked for it everywhere.
When David and I met on a Samaritan’s Purse bus in FL, he said he immediately knew I was different from anyone he’d ever known. “Is she the one, God” he later told me he questioned when I offered to share my lunch with him on our first meeting. From the beginning, David felt God telling him to take it slowly with me – that he should be patient and show love.
And show love he did. The day David drove eight hours to surprise me with the gift of his presence after one of my kitties died, my walls were demolished in one fell swoop. As David wrote to me that morning, “What I’m sending you, my love, is my heart. It’s my dedication, devotion, and determination to show you how much I love you and want to be with you!”
Joyfully ready to walk down the aisle. Photo courtesy of Diana Villier.
After dancing around in shock when David – instead of a long overdue delivery driver – showed up on my doorstep at 9:20 that evening, I knew this man was different. No one had ever given me such a precious gift before. No one had ever made me feel as valuable as David did. My electrified barbed wire was obliterated. I was utterly and completely in love with David’s beautiful heart.
Last October, David and I both surrendered to God and drove hundreds of miles to serve our Heavenly Father by helping others whose lives had been turned upside down by a hurricane. I could never have envisioned that in doing so, in complete surrender to God, He would bring me my soulmate.
But it was there – on a bus that neither of us should have been on – that I met David, my future husband – six months ago today. There he was – without a lunch. And there I was with more than enough to share. How the angels must have rejoiced that day when we set in motion what God had planned for us before we were born.
The blissful newlyweds at our wedding reception. Photo courtesy of Diana Villier.
From our wedding day forward, I promised before God, our family, and friends to always share my lunch and everything else I have with my husband. I pledged to stand beside him no matter how difficult the circumstances may be. I promised to serve God with him while loving him wholeheartedly, encouraging him, helping, taking care of, and spending eternity with him. God created David for me and me for David. Our saga is just beginning.
We vowed that we will be together forever, wherever God leads us. Our love story is timeless. Together, we have found perfect love through Christ. He is the cord that ties us together. As Ecclesiastes 4:12 reminds us, “A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.” With our Heavenly Father as our center, David and I are finally free to be who we were meant to be.
David and I celebrated the pronouncement of our marriage by raising our arms in victory while declaring, “Yay, God!”(With Diana Villier, left, and Rev. Michael Simone, right.) Photo courtesy of Sharon Olson.
Together, we are stronger in service. Together, we are complete in Christ.
I finally know what it means to be perfectly loved – and I couldn’t be more grateful to my Savior for teaching me what that really means – first by Himself and then through a man who loves me like God does – with skin on.
After all, there’s never been a moment when David, I, and you, my beloved reader, were ever not perfectly loved by Christ.
I will thank You, LORD, among all the people. I will sing Your praises among the nations. (Psalm 108:3)
In my last blog – God is in this story – Part 1, The Ring – I talked about how my Heavenly Father preserved my sister’s diamond for decades until I met my soulmate and needed an engagement ring.
A few weeks before David and I even considered rings, I met with my best friend, Didi, to share the good news of my engagement. I knew I had to tell Didi my story in person, so we arranged to meet at her house at the first opportunity.
My best friend, Didi, and me outside her home.
After detailing my story, I intended to ask Didi to be my Maid-of-Honor at the wedding. Before I could do so, she jumped up from her stool and exclaimed, “I have a dress! I have a dress!”
As surprised as I was at her announcement, I wanted Didi to hear my request. “I’m not done with the story yet!” I laughed. “Sit back down and hear the rest of it!”
After hugging and confirming her consent to join my wedding party, Didi jumped up in excitement again. “I have a dress! I have a dress!”
Before I could stop her, my friend ran to her garage and returned with a zipped garment bag with the most beautiful dress I’d ever seen.
“It’s from Bulgaria,” Didi explained. “My father brought it to me. I didn’t know what I’d do with it but thought maybe Sasha (Didi’s daughter) might wear it someday.”
As Didi explained, her father still lives in Bulgaria. He surprised her with the dress years ago. His unexpected transportation of Didi’s former gown may have surprised her when he first presented it, but that could hardly match my shock of seeing a wedding dress come out of my friend’s garage. It even boasted a veil and crinoline.
“It’s gorgeous,” I exclaimed. “I don’t know if it will fit – but it’s amazing! I can’t believe you had this in your garage.”
Didi’s table setting for our visit included her mother’s Bulgarian plates and tea service.
“You don’t have to wear it if you don’t want to,” Didi demurred. “But you can’t even find a dress like this here. It was handmade and hand beaded. If you like it, you can wear it in your wedding!”
“I love it,” I affirmed. “It’s absolutely stunning!”
“Try it on,” Didi pressed. “I think it will fit you.”
Without hesitation, I tried on the perfect offering in shock and amazement at my heavenly Father’s provision.
Miraculously, it fit!
“I can’t believe it!” I kept saying as Didi took pictures of me smiling in the dress – my face filled with joy at the incredulity of it all.
“This is incredible,” I said. “God is so good! I can’t believe you had a wedding dress in your garage – and that it fits!”
“You look beautiful in it,” Didi gushed. “It was meant to be.”
And so, I now have one more God-ordained component to add to my story. My Creator brought two strangers together in hurricane relief work and prompted my soon-to-be spouse to forget his lunch on the very day I had extra food to share.
Two days later, God placed the notion in my head to ask needy homeowners to tear down their kitchen wall – leading me to David, the wall-breaker. Little did I know then that David would eventually tear down my psychological barriers, as well.
That milestone achieved, my Creator brought me back to FL to help in the home where David would ultimately propose.
The next morning, we returned to serve with Samaritan’s Purse, precisely two months to the day when we first met. I had planned our service day together long before David’s proposal was even a thought.
And yet God knew how significant that day would be.
The following week, I remembered my gifted diamond that would inevitably become the symbolic stone of my engagement. My sister had given it to me while she still lived in Fort Myers – the city where David and I were to meet by divine providence decades later.
And then came my dress gift from God – perfectly preserved in my friend Didi’s garage. My Heavenly Father knew I would require it someday, so He compelled an earthy father to bring it from Europe for me. Although no one understood until now why the wedding dress was here, God knew I’d need it. In His omniscience, He provided a gown for me years before Hurricane Ian hit Florida and led me to serve with Samaritan’s Purse, let alone meet David.
And as unlikely as it seems, despite our size differences, Didi’s handmade dress fits me perfectly.
Step by step, God has demonstrated that He is not just in our story. His fingerprints are all over my life. No one could ever convince me otherwise.
And so, I will continue to recount my miracles to anyone I can – the jewelers, my friends, everyone coming to our wedding, the clerk in the county marriage office we met on Valentine’s Day (another story entirely), the pilot that brought David and I back together again on the holiday, my new doctor, all the clerks at Hobby Lobby who helped us find church decorations, my bosses and co-workers – and now all of you. I can’t stop talking about my miracles!
So, you see, God is in this story.
Even more, our Heavenly Father oversees all our stories – even when we don’t see or feel Him. There’s no moment He hasn’t already foreseen. He is right there with us through our trials and triumphs, our challenges and victories.
I feel God’s power over my life in a whole new way. I know that God loves me and has given me my heart’s greatest longing – His unconditional, unwavering, unearthly love, all wrapped up in the earthly body of a man named David.
Let my story strengthen your faith, beloved. Let it remind you that God knows what will happen in our lives, even before birth. If I can find my soulmate in the aftermath of a hurricane, a handmade European wedding dress in a friend’s garage, and a diamond in a long-forgotten box sent by my deceased sister decades earlier – there is nothing our Creator can’t do.
God knows you, beloved. He longs to bless you, give you hope, and a future (Jer. 29:11). Surrender to Him and let Him shower you with blessings as He has me. Our God can do anything. Let my story show you how very true that is. His fingerprints are all over your life – just as they are mine.
[Note: I will post a picture of my beautiful wedding dress here after my wedding on March 12th. Stay tuned!]
Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and He will establish your plans. (Proverbs 16:3)
In just three short weeks from today, I will walk down the aisle to pledge the rest of my life to the man God sent me while serving Him. I have no doubt about making that claim. God’s fingerprints are all over every aspect of our story.
When David and I began looking at rings, I was shocked at the price tags, which exceeded my expectations. We checked a pawn shop first but quickly learned that wedding sets might be hard to find.
“I don’t need a ring,” I told David as we left the store.
“Yes, you do,” David confirmed. “We both do.”
We went to Sam’s Club next and found a beautiful set, only to learn that what you see is what you get in a big box store. If the men’s and women’s rings fit, you can buy them. If they don’t, you’re out of luck. These rings are one-size-fits-all – even though they don’t.
As David and I considered trying the jeweler at our local mall, I realized I had another option.
“I have a diamond,” I told David. “Years ago – maybe decades – my sister sent me a diamond, still in the necklace setting but without the chain. I asked her what I should do with it. She told me to keep it and that I should just save it.”
There’s so much more to this story that needs to be shared. My sister, Jackie, was living in Fort Myers, FL, when she sent me the precious stone. The fact that she lived there is one of the reasons I chose to help Samaritan’s Purse in that location. I could have served in Punta Gorda or Englewood – also affected by the hurricane – but I went to Fort Myers for two reasons. First and foremost, Fort Myers was the hardest hit city in the storm. I wanted to serve where I could do the most good.
I also wanted to go there because that’s where Jackie had previously lived. Married three times, she resided in Fort Myers during her second troubled marriage as she fought for custody of her daughter and the ability to leave the state.
Eventually winning that privilege, Jackie moved to Colorado and married again. A few short years later, Jackie and her daughter were killed by her third husband, who later took his own life.
I hadn’t thought about the diamond Jackie gave me in years. Only at that moment did God choose to remind me that I already had a precious jewel in my possession.
“I’m not sure I can find it,” I told David, “but if I can, maybe we could put it into a ring. It would be incredibly symbolic, since Jackie lived in Fort Myers, and that’s where you and I met.”
“You should look for it,” David agreed. “We should definitely do that.”
Amazingly, despite not thinking about it for years, I found the diamond the first place I looked.
The next day, David and I took the jewel – in its long-forgotten orange velvet box – to the mall. The first store we visited was not for us – but we met Jimmy at the second. Jimmy McSpadden is the assistant manager at Reeds Jewelers. After offering to help us look at rings, I told Jimmy about my diamond. He asked to look at it. When I showed it to him, he told me he’d get someone to check it. A few minutes later, Jimmy confirmed that I had a half-carat diamond that would have cost us $2,500 if we’d bought a similar ring straight out of the case.
“You should put this on a band,” confirmed Jimmy. “It holds great significance to you.”
After explaining how David and I had met while performing disaster relief work in FL for Samaritan’s Purse, I detailed my sister’s story and how she’d gifted the diamond to me.
“She lived in Fort Myers,” I detailed. “It’s partly why I chose to go there. Decades before my sister’s death, she sent me this diamond, although I never knew why. I’ve barely thought about it for years.”
“Let’s find you a band to put it on,” Jimmy said. “That’s quite a story.”
After choosing a band and sizing my finger, we chose a ring for David and requested that it be sized, too. We promised to return for our rings after Christmas – long before David suggested I fly back to FL rather than GA after visiting my family over the holidays. I agreed with David and knew our rings would have to wait.
As noted in my last blog post – Building an ark is never easy but always worth it – it’s safe to say that David and I lived through the fire in January. Our initial plan was for me to help with the rebuild over the long New Year’s Eve weekend. After seeing how much work was left to complete, New Year’s weekend soon turned into a week and, ultimately, a month. There was too much to do, and I was more than happy to help.
And yet, doing so quickly escalated into a more significant challenge than either of us expected.
While other couples may live with their respective families early in their marriages, David and I lived with strangers, working twelve-to-fifteen-hour days while rebuilding a home from the inside out. The only breaks we took were to eat and sleep – continuing our work through the weekends. Nightly supply runs were the only time we stepped away from the house we lived and worked in.
With a shared bathroom, kitchen, and communal space, we encountered daily opportunities to demonstrate patience, kindness, and service not just to each other but also to the homeowners whose house we shared.
Still, as David likes to say, “There was never a cross word between us.”
During that interval, we learned to assist, encourage, pray for, and support one another to the degree that few other couples ever experience. God was with us in that place, and I am so grateful for our time together there. It significantly strengthened our relationship.
David and I share a joyous moment with our new rings.
David and I couldn’t pick up our rings until late January, as a result. When we finally returned to GA, it was our priority to retrieve them – but only if Jimmy was there. “He’s a part of our story, too,” we both agreed. “We can only get the rings from Jimmy.”
David called the jewelry store twice to confirm that Jimmy would be there. When we arrived, Jimmy stepped into the back to retrieve our rings and returned with the jeweler who had sized them both and mounted my diamond.
“This is the couple I told you about,” Jimmy told his teammate. “The ones with the special diamond.”
My special diamond, provided by God, decades ago.
“God brought us together while serving Him,” I explained. “Thank you so much for your help!”
After reiterating our story and sharing photos of the FL rebuild, we reminded everyone of our testimony. “When you surrender to God, He will give you the desires of your heart.”
As we walked away from this momentous occasion, I was reminded how great our God is. Long before David and I met, my heavenly Father gave a diamond to my sister, who then sent it to me. Our Creator knew then that I would meet David – decades later – unexpectedly fall in love and need a unique jewel for my ring. I’m continually amazed at my Father’s provision, orchestrated long before finding my soulmate. David and I would never have met if I hadn’t followed God’s calling.
David and I celebrate our God-given engagement with unique rings.
Instead, we share a love story that grows more profound daily. To think that my Father orchestrated everything years ago still astounds me.
But that’s the God we serve. He knows everything and longs to bless us. If we only surrender to Him, our Creator can and will give us the desires of our hearts. It all begins with a simple act of obedience – and total surrender. I thank God daily for the blessings He’s bestowed upon me.
This story is far from over. Be sure to read part two to see what God provided next!
Noah did everything just as God commanded him. (Noah 6:22)
In my last blog, Surrender, I wrote about how David and I met during our Samaritan’s Purse deployment in Fort Myers, FL, following Hurricane Ian. We ultimately fell in love through our mutual desire for service to God and ultimately became engaged to be married. While David has been working to rebuild Herm and Nancy’s home since November 1st – a project detailed in my Turning Trials into Triumphs post – I assisted with the same throughout January. For twenty-five days, I worked my remote job during the day and sanded, painted, caulked, grouted tile, and helped with anything else needed in the evenings and on weekends. Twelve-to-fifteen-hour days were normal for us, and nothing about this project was simple.
Herm and Nancy’s living room with the kitchen wall still in place before removal. Four feet of drywall, all floors, doors, baseboards, and trim were removed by our Samaritan’s Purse team in October 2022.
After installing new drywall and painting the home, David’s next project was to rebuild the guest bed and bathrooms – complete with custom-built shelves in the guest closet. He did all this so Herm, Nancy, and their dog Gigi could move back into their house while it was being rebuilt from the inside out. After staying with friends for a month and a half, the move back to their space on November 27th was a joyous occasion.
Me and Nancy cooking spaghetti on her new stove in her under-construction kitchen. David made a temporary wooden countertop to give us a place to prep the meal.
We celebrated on December 10th when I drove down to visit and help for the weekend. I was privileged to cook and serve the first non-microwaved meal in the house while visiting. With pots, spices, and serving utensils I brought from home, I prepped a dinner of spaghetti with meat sauce on a makeshift wooden counter that David had crafted for the special occasion.
The kitchen’s concrete floor had to be cut out before new plumbing pipes could be added for the island.
Neighbors Helen and Mo – whose home David is now rebuilding – joined us and brought salad and garlic bread to add to the celebration. We dined using paper plates on a previously water-logged table and washed our dishes in the new laundry sink. A tea towel spread over the new dryer served as our drying area.
The love that permeated that active construction zone was palpable, and my heart soared as I thanked God for His provision and grace during our pre-meal blessing. David proposed to me the following day, and I thought my heart would burst from the joy of that glorious weekend.
Joyful discovery of bi-fold doors in Lowes after weeks of searching for them.
Our time together in January was different, somehow. David had lost his subcontracted help after the holidays, which solidified my stay in FL. Uneven walls made every door challenging to install – if doors could even be found. David and I joked to Herm and Nancy each evening that we were going on our nightly courting run as we drove to Home Depot and Lowes with a new supply list. The items we needed were often sold out or unavailable in any Fort Myers location. With thousands of homeowners trying to rebuild simultaneously, our store searches were often as grueling as securing a new iPhone on release day.
David installing new tiles on the breakfast and laundry room floors.
Sleeping on an air mattress for a month, sharing a bathroom, and respecting the homeowner’s sleeping hours added to the ordeal. While we sometimes ate together, David and I tried not to disturb Herm and Nancy’s daily routines while living in a joint space.
Nevertheless, unending together time can be an onerous burden to even those with extreme patience. By the second week of January, eagerness for completion made David and I the type of houseguests that are often best appreciated when they’re leaving.
Nancy celebrates the installation of her new kitchen sink and island after two months of washing dishes in her laundry room.
Me grouting the new kitchen floor tiles.
Consistent prayers for patience marked our days as weariness set in during our daily routine of long hours, hard labor, and nightly supply runs for materials. Repeated setbacks on supply acquisitions – such as discontinued floor transitions – became the norm. Perpetually empty store shelves compounded unexpected challenges like blown breakers, a kitchen sink/faucet combination sans faucet, and a microwave installation with a manufacture-based defect that prevented the appliance from working.
“You’re doing this for God,” I consistently told David. “The devil hates that, so he’s doing everything he can to steal your joy.”
David installing the garbage disposal under the sink on the new kitchen island.
When Herm would get frustrated with the progress, I also reminded him that we were doing this for God in a plea for patience. It quickly became evident that my primary purpose in this project was as much spiritual as it was physical. I regularly asked friends and family to pray for the endeavor. We needed our Creator’s strength in every possible capacity.
And so, God provided grace.
The final open-space kitchen without the wall has new cabinets, appliances, a central island, with a sink, and tile next to the new luxury vinyl plank flooring in the living and dining room.
Despite the obstacles and opposing forces working against us, Herm and Nancy’s rebuild was completed by David on Friday, February 3rd. With only short breaks over the holidays and intervals to drive me home and back again, David completed the total custom rebuild of a home decimated by four feet of salt water in less than 90 days, primarily by himself – a herculean task, to say the least.
Original master bathroom and tub with drywall and vanity removed – looking into the adjoining room.
Many Fort Myers homeowners are forced to sell their homes “as is,” due to inadequate insurance coverage, the lack of skilled contractors, and unavailable supplies. In contrast, Herm and Nancy were gifted a home with increased property value thanks to David’s hard work and dedication to his Creator.
Master bath rebuild in progress. The tub was removed, and a new custom-built storage closet was added.
“You’re just like Noah,” I told him. “Noah built an ark in preparation for a flood. You rebuilt an ark after the floodwaters came through. Noah was surely mocked by everyone that knew him. He was building a ship to prepare for rain – something that had never been experienced on earth before. His neighbors likely laughed at him and did everything they could to discourage him. And yet, he pressed on to complete his God-given assignment.”
David installing a new master bath wall cabinet next to the new vanity and custom-built storage closet.
“You, like Noah, had your disbelievers and many reasons to give up,” I reminded David. “And yet you never did.”
“I never would have,” replied David. “I made a commitment and intended to keep it.”
“And so, you did,” I agreed. “To God be the glory! In spite of everything, you’ve demonstrated God’s love in a way that few others ever could.”
Final master bathroom with new vanity, tile, and toilet. Wall and tub removed and custom-built storage closet added.
This statement was proven true when David presented the final bill for his work to Herm and Nancy – a bill substantially lower than what he could have charged for such an undertaking.
With tears in his eyes, Herm hugged David on that last day, marveling at the incredulity of it all.
New storage closet in the master bathroom where the bathtub used to be.
“You didn’t even know us and yet you did all this for us,” Herm said.
“That’s right,” David replied. “But I still love you.”
No doubt, these precious homeowners will not soon forget such a demonstration of God’s love in action.
Unselfish love is a rare and exceptional gift. I feel privileged to have been part of this journey as I witnessed its beauty unfold.
Herm and I share a smile while working in his home in mid-January.
David’s and my submission to God in early October 2022 led us to help strangers in need during their darkest hours in FL. We came to Herm and Nancy’s home to demonstrate our Creator’s commitment, dedication, and unfathomable love in a tangible way. God’s strength and grace are now embedded in every wall, floor, doorframe, baseboard, and closet in that house. It covers their lives in a way that few people will ever encounter.
Nancy, David, me, and Herm hug with Gigi at our feet while working to rebuild their home.
As I told Nancy when I first met her, God can turn every trial into triumph. What an experience to have witnessed our Savior turn that statement into reality. I am so blessed to have been a part of it!
Building an ark is never easy – but it’s always worth it. Noah built his ark at God’s request, and it rescued his family while allowing the world to restart with a clean slate.
Like Noah, David also built his ark at God’s direction, and it ultimately represents a new beginning for Herm and Nancy – as well as for David and me.
It is a privilege to serve God! We can never outgive our Savior. I can’t wait to see what He’ll do next through David’s and my hands in joint service to our Creator!
Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to HIm be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. (Ephesians 3: 20-21)
On October 12, 2022, Sara Victoria Christiansen and David Robert Olson had a divine appointment to meet on a Hurricane Ian disaster relief bus while serving Christ through Samaritan’s Purse (SP). What began as an act of total surrender has blossomed into a love story to span the ages.
As described in my earlier SP blogs, I began serving in Fort Myers, FL, on Sunday, October 9. When members of the Beyond The Storm (BTS) team sat down for dinner at my table, the wheels of God’s destiny began turning. After joining this group for their post-meal Bible study, I felt an immediate sense of belonging. While I couldn’t join their group immediately, on Wednesday, I felt compelled to do so. After receiving permission to change teams from the central on-site coordinator, I had to secure the same from both my current team leader and BTS. Granted this approval, I moved to their SP box truck – number 7 – for our preliminary pre-work assignments and circle-up prayer time of blessings on our day.
The BTS team is self-sufficient. They arrive at SP disaster relief events as a pre-formed unit out of Seminole, FL. No additional help is needed. My acceptance into this group was purposeful and significant. I was thrilled and excited to become part of their ministry.
During circle-up time, the BTS team leader, Ken, advised the group that they had two new members that day – me and David. David had just arrived in Fort Myers, having driven down from Virginia Beach, VA, to start his SP journey that day. We all cheered when Ken announced that David had 38 years of general contracting experience. He’s exactly what we need today, I thought. What a blessing to have him on our team!
As always that morning, I packed extra food in my lunch bag to share however and whenever God allowed. On my first day, I shared my meal with two homeless men sitting on the street outside our base camp. On day two, homeowner Mary granted me the blessing of dividing my lunch with her. On day three, God had dramatically different plans.
After storing my lunch bag in the BTS refrigerator, I advised David to do the same.
“I don’t have lunch,” David replied.
“Didn’t you make one before breakfast this morning?” I inquired.
“I just got here,” David said.
“That’s okay,” I replied. “I always pack extra, so we’ll share.” Smiling, I moved forward on the bus to sit with the ladies and celebrate the blessing of joining this group.
Later that morning, I found David to split my sandwich and a few snacks with him. We ate separately and returned to work. Not much was said between the two of us that day.
On Thursday, day five of my SP deployment – day two with my BTS team – our group was dispatched to the home of Herm and Nancy, whose story I detailed in my previous post, Turning trials into triumphs.
God allowed me to share more than my lunch with Herm and Nancy that day. I gave them a piece of my heart as we traversed their road to recovery together. I was so pleased to learn that we would return to complete their home’s gut-out on Friday.
My original plans were to depart Fort Myers on Thursday afternoon, but I couldn’t bear the thought of leaving this God-given work just yet. In consideration of the same, I secured special permission to remain until Friday from both on-site and SP headquarters. I was ecstatic about this extra time to serve.
During our post-dinner Bible study – a time that I might not have had if I’d left earlier that day – David shared his testimony with our team. As tears filled his eyes, David explained how God’s love had filled him with warmth during a low point in his life. I was immediately struck by the degree of his adoration of our Savior.
As David explained, he had many God-given talents – including general contracting, acting, and writing. Above and beyond his testimony, I was amazed to hear that David was a writer like me. In fact, David told our group that he was developing a film script he hoped to one day share with the world. His movie would be family-friendly, depicting the journey of a troubled youth struggling to find his place in the world.
Ray, one of my fellow BTS team members, approached me later that evening with David by his side. Handing me a business card, Ray explained, “This card has a link to David’s film site. If you get a chance, you should check it out.”
“I will,” I promised, countering by sharing my blog-site address with Ray and David. I knew I would explore David’s site when I returned home. I was excited to learn if his passion for writing matched my own.
As our group returned to base camp following our work at Herm and Nancy’s, I continued to ponder David’s promise to not only tear down their kitchen wall but also return to restore their home to its pre-flood state. What kind of man would make such a massive commitment as spontaneously as that? I wondered. Is he for real?
After returning to the church where we were based and sharing goodbyes with our BTS team, David stood up to tell our group that he had something to share. Before joining our group that morning, David asked the supply team if he could have one of the official SP Bibles we distributed to homeowners at each job’s completion. While his request was unusual, David was given a Bible without issue. Our team leader, Ken, commented that even he hadn’t been given one, which made David’s gift all the more special.
Standing on our bus and hugging his new Bible, David explained that God took him directly to Psalm 31 that morning as we traveled to Herm and Nancy’s house.
“Turn your ear to me, come quickly to my rescue; be my rock of refuge, a strong fortress to save me. Since you are my rock and my fortress, for the sake of your name lead and guide me.” (V 2-3)
The joy of these words was evident on David’s face as he explained how much this time spent in service meant to him. He asked us to each sign his Bible before departing, as we had with the Bibles given to the homeowners we’d assisted that week. I reached for the Bible quickly, wanting to be the first to sign it for him.
David was not around for me to say goodbye to initially, but we ran into each other later as I was preparing to begin my return journey home. After hugging, David said “Love you” in departure as we all had to our SP teammates. I returned the same response to him.
“I’m coming right past Brunswick on my way home, later this weekend,” David explained. “Maybe I could stop by to say ‘Hello’ when I’m close by.”
“Absolutely,” I said. “That would be great!”
We exchanged numbers, and I pondered the continuation of our friendship as I drove home that afternoon.
A few days later, David texted me to let me know he was nearing Brunswick and to ask for my address. “I hope you’re not allergic to cats,” I responded. “I have three, but I’m not a crazy cat lady. I promise!”
“I love cats,” David replied. “As a matter of fact, my cat is right here with me now.”
With that admission, David shared a picture of his kitty, Bo – short for Mr. Bojangles – sitting on his lap while David was driving.
David and Bo, driving together.
He loves cats? I mused, looking heavenward. And his cat is with him? You’re sending me a cat person who also loves you? Is this man for real?
What ensued thereafter is too grand, too incredible, and too God-given to detail in one blog post. Our story includes massive wall-breaking, bonding, and communication moments that started as a friendship and ended in David and I becoming mutual soulmates.
For now, suffice it to say that on December 9, I returned to help David restore Herm and Nancy’s home in FL. December 10 was a beautiful day filled with Christian music, laughter, and love as David and I worked with Rojas, his subcontractor, and Aaron, David’s nephew.
On December 11, I woke up crying in remembrance of the beauty of our previous day. After hearing me tell him how I never wished such a perfect journey would never end, David shared that he was waiting for me to return to where it all began before asking me a question.
“You don’t have to answer me now,” David began. “But I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I’ve known that for a long time now, but I wanted to get you back here before asking you. Sara Victoria Christiansen, will you marry me?”
As tears spilled down my face, I answered without hesitation. “Yes! Yes! Yes! A thousand, million, billion, cazillion times yes!” I replied as we hugged.
David and me at our SP base camp after his proposal.
And so, what began as a simple act of surrender to God became my heavenly Father’s return to me of the deepest desire of my heart. I had found a man who could love me as God does. It’s all I’ve ever wanted in life. I always knew God loved me, and that thought has sustained me through incredible trials throughout my lifetime.
Until now, I wondered if I would ever find God’s love with skin on it. Could someone love me as my heavenly Father does here on earth? My experiences suggested that such a thing could never exist outside of fairy tales and movie plotlines. No one could love me like God does – until David stepped into my world.
How the angels must have rejoiced on the day David and I met on that bus in Fort Myers. “It’s happening now!” they must have said. “What God planned long ago is taking place today! Finally, their surrender has brought them together!”
The chances of David and I meeting on that bus – two souls from different states who shouldn’t have been on that team that day were brought together for God’s great purpose. I had jumped through hoops to be permitted to move to the BTS team that didn’t need my help. David was new and could have easily been assigned to another group – even the one I’d just left that was now short one team member. I had also originally planned to depart the next day.
But God had bigger plans.
A one-in-a-million-chance encounter on a hurricane relief bus in FL brought two hearts together with a shared lunch, heavy construction work, and a passion for God’s ministry. Neither of us was looking for the other. There was no pretension, and no attempts were made to impress one another. Instead, each of us was focused on performing the hot, messy, physically demanding work God gave us each day.
But there was always love. It was our mutual love of God, love of service, and love of others that brought us together. God gave us the desires of our hearts through separate acts of surrender to our Savior. Together, we are stronger in service. Together, we are complete in Christ.
I can’t wait to share more of our God-given love story here, as it is beautiful beyond description.
For now, I will end with the message that permeates this story. If you fully surrender to God, He can give you the desires of your heart. It may take a lifetime, and the journey may seem endlessly challenging at times.
But God is always there. He longs to bless you as He has me. My Creator has always been present in my life – holding, healing, guiding, and correcting me. Without God, there would be no David, and I can never thank my Heavenly Father enough for this – His greatest gift to me beyond my salvation.
For now and forever, as Jesus, Himself told us, “And the greatest of these is love.” (1 Corinthians 13:13)
Turning trials into triumphs – Samaritan’s Purse Deployment, Part 6
Do the skies themselves send down showers? No, it is you, Lord our God. Therefore, our hope is in You, for You are the one who does all this. (Jeremiah 14:22)
Debris piles of personal belongings line the streets of an Iona neighborhood in Fort Myers, FL.
On day five of my Samaritan’s Purse (SP) Fort Myers deployment, our team was dispatched to perform a gut-out in a flooded golf course community. In addition to the massive debris piles, contractor trucks lined both sides of this residential community, and progress through the streets became a challenge to our team bus. While homes in this neighborhood may have been more expensive, the devastation was just as profuse as what I’d witnessed in trailer parks earlier that week.
Floods are great equalizers. Whether one has a lot or a little, a luxury or mobile home, when all you’ve ever owned is sitting on the curb ruined by water, you’re in nearly the same position as your neighbor. Those with savings may be able to rebuild. Those that do not are forced to wait for Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) assistance to kick in.
Furniture and belongings cover the lawn of Herm and Nancy’s home.
Many mobile homeowners have the added stressor of not knowing if the landowner will even allow them to rebuild. Most don’t “own the dirt.” There is a genuine concern that they will all be kicked out and their dwellings replaced with high-rise condos or luxury homes close to the coast. That fear and sadness were palpable in every house we visited.
The same can be said when our team arrived at Herm and Nancy’s home. While we were consistently greeted by smiles and gratitude wherever we went, there was also pain lingering below the façade.
As I walked to the house, a coconut on a nearby sidewalk caught my attention. A team member was hoping to bring one home, so I stopped to examine it for her. Much to my surprise, a medium-sized tilapia corpse remained in the grass, lying next to the coconut. While tilapia is typically a freshwater fish, we were five miles from the coast and any body of water. Above and beyond the flood damage I witnessed earlier in the week, seeing this carcass so far from its natural environment validated the ferocity of Hurricane Ian’s storm surge.
A dead Tilapia rests in the grass in a residential community after being brought inland by the storm surge.
After passing the piles of water-logged carpet, mattresses, and belongings encompassing 30 feet or more of their front lawn, our team prayed with the homeowners before beginning our work. Once inside, I made a beeline to Nancy, holding her Shih Tzu, Gigi, in her kitchen as the onslaught of workers descended upon her domain.
Carpet, furniture, and appliances extend down and along Herm and Nancy’s front lawn.
“I just wanted to let you know that your home is going to look very different when we’re done with it,” I explained. “We’re going to pull out the doors, doorframes, baseboards, kitchen cabinets, and all the drywall from about four feet down to the floor.
Before picture of kitchen cabinets that were later removed due to water damage in Herm and Nancy’s home.
“It’s also going to get very loud,” I continued, already having to yell above the banging of hammers as the work began. “Gigi might get scared. I wanted to prepare you so you can think about where you might want to go when that happens.”
“Okay,” replied Nancy, whose eyes had grown enormous.
“I know it’s a lot, but you’re not alone,” I advised. “We’re here to help however we can.”
At this, I hugged Nancy. I could feel her crying beneath my embrace. “God loves you,” I said when we parted. “As do we. This is only temporary. Don’t forget that.”
With that, I moved to the living room to see Herm standing amid all the hustle and bustle of our SP work. I reached out, put my arm around him, and spoke into his ear, hoping he could hear me above the noise. I then provided him with the same description I had just given Nancy. As I looked over at him, all he could say was, “I’ve gotta sit down.”
Samaritan’s Purse workers remove kitchen cabinets, island, and drywall in Herm and Nancy’s kitchen.
“Absolutely,” I said and walked Herm over to his sunroom to find him a place to sit. “It’s going to get even louder as we start to cut the walls out,” I advised. “I just told Nancy that you might want to take Gigi out at some point if it gets any worse.”
“Okay,” came Herm’s reply. I hugged him and smiled, telling him I needed to get to work but would be close if he needed anything.
Clean kitchen after cabinets, appliances, island and drywall were removed.
As the demolition continued throughout the morning, I focused on Nancy to ensure she was okay.
At one point, my work brought me close to where Nancy was being helped by one of SP’s day volunteers. The two were bagging clothing from Nancy’s closet, deciding what could be kept and what needed to go. The water line in her closet stood two feet high, and mold was already starting to grow on the drywall. When my team mate walked away to take a bag to the garage, I swooped in and hugged Nancy, asking her how she was doing.
Tears filled Nancy’s eyes at my permission to lower her guard.
View of Nancy’s gutted kitchen looking straight into her garage after cabinets and drywall were removed.
“I know it’s hard,” I said. “We don’t always understand why God allows these things to happen, but there’s always a purpose. He will never leave or forsake you. He is right here with you today as are we.”
“I don’t know how many times I can keep climbing up again,” Nancy said. “I lost my son and daughter, and now all this.”
Looking into Nancy’s eyes, I told her, “I understand loss. I escaped two abusive marriages, and I know it’s hard to understand why we have to experience hardships. But God uses everything that touches us for His purpose. He doesn’t want any of us to perish. Maybe we have to live through a disaster because our neighbor needed the trauma to bring him closer to God. I’m so sorry you had to experience all of this. Just know there is a purpose, and it won’t be wasted.
Before photo of Herm’s closet with a two-foot water line and mold growth.
“Remember, you’re not alone,” I repeated. “God and I love you! This is only temporary. God has so much more in store for you! His Word tells us to store our treasures in heaven, where none of this will even be a memory. Keep holding on. God will bring you through this.”
By then, Nancy’s help had returned, so I hugged her again and returned to work.
At lunchtime, I found Herm and Nancy in their sunroom and asked them if I could share my meal with them. When Nancy protested, I asked her not to steal my blessing and let me share. She laughingly agreed.
View from Herm’s closet into the living room after the drywall was removed.
Before they could change their minds, I rushed to our team bus to grab my brown bag and return. Splitting my sandwich between Herm and Nancy, I opened my peanut butter crackers and sat down on the floor beside them to eat.
As we divided the rest of my lunch, Nancy told me how Herm had nearly died a few years earlier after suffering multiple heart attacks. Herm showed me the scar on his leg where doctors had removed a vein to repair his heart. “I almost lost him,” said Nancy.
“But you didn’t,” I responded. “God knew you would need Herm today, and he is here. I want you to start thinking about everything differently if you can. You need to flip your stories over. Instead of thinking about what you’ve endured, turn your thoughts over and look at your challenges as victories.
Water-logged drywall was removed from the bedroom walls.
“Life is like a quilt,” I explained. “On the underside, everything looks messy and knotted. We can’t tell what’s going on. But one day, we’ll see the other side of the quilt to view the masterpiece God made out of our lives. You need to flip the coin over and turn your trials into triumphs. You should no longer say, look at what I’ve endured, but look at what God brought me through so I can testify about His sustaining grace!”
As I passed around more food, the tenor of our conversation changed. We all laughed at Gigi’s antics as Nancy asked if I minded if she shared her sandwich half with her beloved pup. “Please do!” I replied. “I’m so happy you have her! Look how God gave her to you at just the right time to help you today. He knew exactly what you needed before you did!”
I returned to work and later helped Herm go through the clothes in his closet. As we uncovered business cards from his former restaurant in PA, I asked him what he’d serve me for dinner if I visited him. Our conversation became lighter as time passed, and pure joy ensued when Herm found a Halloween wig buried deep on one of his shelves. I asked him if he’d put it on. He did, resulting in peals of laughter, an impromptu photo of the two of us, and photos with other team members as he proudly wore the braided wig through the rest of the house for everyone to see and share in the healing power of laughter.
Herm and I share the healing power of laughter as heposes in his Halloween wig while we work in his closet.
Upon inspiration from God, I suggested to Nancy, “Maybe you could tear down the wall in your kitchen. Open floor plans are all the rage. Think of how big and beautiful this space could be.”
“I like it,” Nancy replied. “I’ll talk to Herm about it.”
As we returned on day two to assist Herm and Nancy in their home, I reached out to David, who had joined our Beyond The Storm team on the same day I did. We had learned from our leader that David had 38 years of general contracting experience when he was introduced to our group. I asked him if it might be possible to take down the kitchen wall.
Initial living and dining space before water-damaged drywall was removed.
“We could totally do that,” David said.
“Good,” I replied. “Will you please talk to them about it? It would be great for them to see past what’s happening today and look to the future.”
“I will,” David promised.
As work progressed, I realized I was utterly in love with this couple whose kindness and ready smiles had invaded my soul. Finding Nancy that morning, I asked her if she’d talked to Herm about the wall.
“I did,” Nancy said. “He likes the idea, too.”
“That’s fantastic,” I replied. “I asked David to come talk to you about it as he’s a general contractor.”
Herm, Nancy, and I share smiles and hugs at the end of our two-day service work in their home.
As we finished our work, I asked David to take my picture on my phone with Herm and Nancy, telling them they were more than welcome to adopt me whenever they wanted. We hugged, and the joy I felt in this experience was beyond compare.
“David told us that he’s going to come back to help us rebuild,” Nancy told me.
“And I know someone who’d like to come back to help,” David said, catching my eye.
“Absolutely,” I said, staring hard at David. Did he really mean this? I wondered. Could God have put such a mission on his heart to return to assist these precious souls and help them move forward? What an incredible thing that would be.
After signing their SP Bible, we circled up with Herm and Nancy for one last send-off. As we embraced, promises were made as we shared cell phone numbers. “This isn’t good-bye,” I said. “I will be back. I love you both so much!”
While driving home that afternoon, my heart soared as I thought of all the ways God had filled my soul that past week. I had found community with my fellow SP workers, hope for my pursuit of future chaplaincy training, connection with both the homeowners and our team, closeness to God in serving Him with my whole heart, and joy in complete surrender to my Savior.
My Samaritan’s Purse team and I (far right) stand with Herm and Nancy for a final photo at our work’s conclusion.
All I did was say, “Here I am, Lord. Send me,” and God filled my soul in return. My week with Samaritan’s Purse forever changed my life. As I’d shared with my fellow SP volunteers the night before, “I’m not sure I can ever take a ‘normal’ vacation again.”
There is such joy in surrender and even more to this story yet to be told. I will never be the same again. Life is good, but God is great!
We serve a risen Savior who will always turn our trials into triumphs. We have only to surrender all the pieces of our broken puzzles for our Divine Creator to put us back together again.
“Our hope is in You, for You are the one who does all this.” (Jeremiah 14:22)
Author’s note: For those of my readers who know what happened next, no spoilers, please.
