A Redeeming Love Story

Our first time meeting face-to-face was over a FaceTime call.

We were both nervous. We had texted—a lot. And we had talked on the phone—a lot. Now we were kicking it up to the next level. But wait … we’re jumping ahead …

We lived in different states, many miles apart. Both of us were raising kids, living life, feeling content yet alone. There had been seasons of sorrow, adversity, and heartache. We both had suffered loss and grief in different ways, but somehow the same. We were clinging to the promise that one day our Heavenly Father, who loves us dearly, would redeem, reclaim, and restore the years the locusts had eaten (Joel 2:25), and that our winterized hearts would see the spring. Little did we know, as we prayed day after day, God was working behind the scenes to bring us together.

God Plans a Love Story

In December of 2020, Heather first learned about Art from her dad. She was ready to date again so her dad wanted to introduce her to a man from his church. Her dad knew their stories, considered their personalities, and believed they would enjoy each other’s company. For the next year and half nothing happened. Every time Heather’s dad tried to introduce them, something stood in the way. Heather read Art’s blog (artspeaking.com), and was touched by his story. But time and space—and God—kept them apart.

Art had no idea Heather existed until one day in the summer of 2022 when God decided it was time for the great romance to start. You see, God’s timing is perfect because Heather was planning to move back to Tennessee later in the year, unbeknownst to Art.

One evening, out of the blue, Heather’s dad asked Art, “Where were you the other night? I wanted to introduce you to my daughter.”

Art decided to reach out to Heather over Facebook. It all started with a simple friend request.

Unable to shake the feeling that something significant had happened, deciding not to wait for an introduction (extremely out of character for him), Art introduced himself to Heather over Facebook messenger. Immediately the back-and-forth text conversations took off. A week later they exchanged phone numbers, turning lengthy text messages into long phone conversations—epic conversations averaging more than three hours, with the record being seven hours! The friendship was well under way. Then one day Art asked Heather out on a “date” over FaceTime.

Once a week they would get dressed up and go on a FaceTime date. They weren’t sure they were actually dating, but when they finally met in person, Art and Heather knew something significant had indeed happened. God had placed a man and a woman together. They shared their histories, their struggles, their tears, and their hope. They became best friends. Those two best friends fell in love. And then God joined those best friends in marriage.

God’s Purpose for Love

Heather: Today, in front of God and all these witnesses, I want to let it be known how much I love you and how excited I am to get to be your wife. I promise that I will be your best friend and biggest fan, that I will support you and all your dreams and endeavors, that I will be with you in hard times as well as good times, that I will love you and be true to you and cherish you as my husband for all the years of our lives together.

Art: I promise from this day forward to love you, to have you and hold you, to be faithful to you, in good times and bad times, in joy and in sorrow, as we walk the path God has before us, glorifying Him, for the rest of our lives.

Heather: The day you promised to be my protector and to protect my heart was the day I knew you were heaven sent by God Himself to be the guardian of my soul while here on earth. He put flesh and bone on his love for me, just as I had prayed for.

Art: And I promise to protect you. I promise to protect our love for each other and our love for God, to protect our home, to protect our children, and, more than all else, I promise to hold your heart close and cherish it and protect it.

Heather: You are the desire of my heart. I will be your shield-maiden to stand with you and fight alongside you. Thank you for choosing me and pursuing me.

Art (Together with King Solomon and the Song of Solomon):

Arise my love, my darling;
How beautiful you are.
You have stolen my heart, my bride.
You have stolen my heart with one sparkle of your eyes.

Arise my love, my darling.
See! The winter is past; the rains are over and gone.
Look! The wilderness is no longer barren; the daffodils are springing forth.
Behold! The wait at last has ended; the birds are fluttering in the trees.

Arise my love, my darling;
How delightful is our love.
It burns like a mighty flame, like the fire of a thousand suns.
Many waters cannot quench our love; rushing rivers cannot sweep it away.

Arise my love, my bride.
Place me like a seal over your heart.
You are mine and I am yours.
My beautiful one, come with me.

God’s Picture of His Love

Our story is not just about us. It’s a picture of what God desires for each life. God came to display morning after a long night, to declare spring after winter, to deliver the years the locusts have eaten. God wants to redeem all our stories. Why? Because He loves us. How do we know that? Because God loves us so much, He sent His Son, Jesus, and everyone who calls on His name, who believes in their heart that God raised Him from the dead, will be saved (Romans 10:9,13). And that truly is the greatest love story ever told.

On the ultimate Wedding Day, Jesus is coming back for his bride. It’s going to be a celebration like no other. We invite you to taste and see that the Lord is good, that in all things, He works for the good of those who love Him (Romans 8:28). Our story is God’s story. Today may you grasp how wide, how long, how high, and how deep God’s love is for you (Ephesians 3:18).

Thank you for reading our story—a story of redeeming love. Thank you to Heather for letting me share our story—and a portion of our wedding vows—here on my blog, and for helping me write this blog post. We would love to hear your stories. Please share in the comment section below. And make sure you subscribe to this blog to get updates on new posts.

Wedding photos by ST Photography

Sunrise photo by Jason Thompson on Unsplash