April is always a great month for me
Well, April is always a great month for me, both mentally and spiritually! Spring is in full swing, the days are finally longer, the student ministry begins prepping for our annual student led worship night, and the busyness of winter peaks and then wanes to a manageable routine. I love this time of year, because despite the copious amounts of pollen that we enjoy in this beautiful state, I feel like I can finally take a breath. Or at least, I can finally exhale the breath I took back in August! Winters are long, busy, and too often exhausting. Once spring hits though, I feel my spirit begin to be renewed! In Isaiah 43:19 God says, “Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?” I most certainly do perceive it and I’m thankful for it!
There’s another reason why April (specifically) holds a special place in my heart though. Ten years ago this month, I proposed to Kaitlyn. A decade ago, WOW! That seems like such a long time. I guess it seems so long because a lot changes in a decade. We got married, got dogs, bought multiple houses, and changed jobs. We experienced joy in our love for one another, happiness in our blessings, sadness in our failure to conceive, and hope in our future. When we were dating, we started having conversations about where we would be in five years, or ten years, or even twenty years. We loved to dream about what God could do through us, and I’m thankful that I was able to witness with her some of what He had planned. Eventually she got sick though, and you know how that chapter of this ongoing story ends. That’s exactly what this story is: ongoing. Just because she isn’t here to see what God does in the next five, ten, or twenty years doesn’t mean that Kaitlyn’s story is over. I’m going to continue to tell her story and stories about her, because people constantly tell me how they’re impacted by her testimony. Kaitlyn is a burning bush that demands our attention. Just like God used the bush in Exodus 3 to get the attention of Moses and call him to lead His people to freedom, I believe that He’s using Kaitlyn to get our attention! He’s calling each of us to something. What work is He calling you to?
I didn’t intend for this introduction to be so long, but it was. I tend to be long winded when it comes to writing. Maybe to the point of rambling but don’t tell me that. You might hurt my feelings, and to be honest, I’m not very good at editing for content either. So here we are, (Shrug) 500 words into this and no sign of where this is going. Well, I’ll tell you where it’s going! I proposed 10 years ago this month, and that blows my mind. The impact of the gravity of it has provoked me to think about that day a lot. Three years ago, I wrote about it and posted it to FB, but at that time, I didn’t have the audience that I have now so there’s a solid chance that you’ve never read it. I’ve left it largely unaltered from what I wrote three years ago so you can read it. As you’ll see, I’m proud of our proposal story so I hope you enjoy it!
Seven years, four homes (five if you count the six months between houses when we lived with the in-laws), two dogs, and one incredible life together! That’s right, today Kaitlyn Yant and I have been married for seven years! I love her with the force of a thousand winds. (That’s romantic right?) I can’t wait to see where God takes us in the next seven years, I love where we are and the season we’re in together right now, and I love to think about our journey here!
We were both pretty young back then, only 19 and 21. And, if memory serves, I was the level headed one when the talk of marriage first entered the conversation. “We’re so young, we have no money, how will we ever survive?!” I repeated on a loop. Don’t get me wrong, I wanted to make her my wife but I’m a realist and broke plus broke equals top ramen and the basic internet package! Ugh, I shiver just thinking about it today! Kaitlyn on the other hand? Well, she was head over heels for me and just couldn’t wait another day to start planning the wedding. (Who could blame her? Am I right?) Anytime I brought up my concerns she would always reply, “Love finds a way! Everybody knows that Tim!”
I decided that if I didn’t want to let her slip through my fingers, then I better put a ring on it. So I started to devise a way to ask her the most important question I could ever ask her… “What’s your favorite pizza topping?” And then I would ask her to marry me!
It was a six phase plan that would take me weeks to prepare. I didn’t know how it would turn out but one thing was clear, if I had any hope of pulling this off it had to be a six phase plan. Phase one, buy a ring. Phase two, fish for clues about her perfect proposal. Phase three, set everything up. Phase four, lunch. Phase five, after lunch dessert. Phase six, execute plan.
The day finally came! It was a Wednesday, and I can confidently say it was a Wednesday because that was part of my plan. I had a ring, phase one, check.
I knew from my fishing that she wanted the people that were closest to us to be there to see it happen, she wanted the event to be a little more classy than sweatpants and a T-Shirt, and she wanted it to be filmed if possible. It’s unclear at this time whether or not the last request is because she knew just how great my prowess for executing six phase plans is and wanted it to be documented for future generations to behold, but if I had to hazard a guess I would say that’s it exactly. In any event, phase two, check.
Now, there’s something you need to know about me. I’m a bit of a sucker when it comes to the dramatics. So when she says “people that are closest to us”, I hear 80 jr. High students. And when she says, “classier than sweatpants and a T-Shirt”, I hear dress and tiara. And finally, when she says “filmed if possible”, I hear dedicated cameraman with mics, not some punk iPhone camera. All that being said, phase three, check.
Phase four and five were accomplished without incident. Check and check.
All that planning leading to that Wednesday, I chose Wednesday because we were both leaders in the jr. high student ministry at our church and she wanted people to be there to see it. Plus we had an event called “Princess of Purity” that the girls would get all gussied up and wear dresses and tiaras for. The event was rapidly approaching and just so happened to need a promo video shot for it. *wink* So, I thought I could kill two birds with one stone. I had the pastor call her and tell her to wear her dress that night and that they would be shooting footage for the video so she wouldn’t be suspicious of a camera floating around. I spoke that night about God’s hand in my life and how I can look back and see His divine guidance leading me to that specific moment in time. I eventually called her up and explained that the night before we talked about how she was going to be embarrassed to be the only one wearing a dress and that I had told her she would be beautiful and that I would bring a glass slipper and ask her to marry me. (Princess themed event, I’m clever) Then, without a warning I said “I didn’t bring a glass slipper, but I did bring a ring.” I knelt down and asked her to marry me! BOOM! Nailed it! Phase six, check… All I got in response was a high pitched, shrieking “Are you serious!?”
She did eventually say yes though. Thankfully, could you imagine?! All that build up just for her to say, “Nah, I don’t think so.” That would have been so awkward! After she finally said yes we went into the hallway where we were met by our friends and family who were waiting to congratulate us! It was one of the best nights of my life and I love to remember it because, let’s be honest, I’m pretty proud of that six phase plan! But the real reason is because of the person that inspired me to accomplish that plan, the person that I wanted to set everything up perfect for so it would be a story she’s proud to tell! Kaitlyn, I love you with the force of a thousand winds! That’s like three tornadoes and a hurricane!
I didn’t get to see what the next seven years looked like. But I did enjoy the time I got to spend with her, and I cherished every second of it! Now God is doing a new thing; it’s springing forth and I perceive it on the horizon! Please be praying for me as I begin to think through what this thing will look like. I don’t have details yet, because I’m not exactly sure what to say about it. But what I can say is that God is stirring some things inside of me that need to come out. They need to be realized in some way, and I’m discovering now what that is. So as I said, please be in prayer and stay tuned, because I do believe that Kaitlyn’s testimony is important. It’s continuing to impact people, and as long as you guys continue to read, like, share, and respond to these post I will continue to write them. I will continue to share my heart and stories of Kaitlyn, and her faith with you.
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