Welcome

Liana and Ariel officially met in 2018, during Liana's junior year and Ariel's sophomore year of high school. High school is a generally confusing time for most young people, but from their first conversation these two felt a spark. If you were to ask them today, you’d find that they both recognize that spark simply as the catalyst for the interestingly beautiful plan God set out for their lives. Liana and Ariel continued as friends throughout high school and sought guidance from the Lord as they navigated their unusual and, at times, complicated friendship. This progressed until 2020, when coronavirus hit and the school year was cut short. Ariel was left feeling that he lost his chance to be with his almost-high school sweetheart, and with Liana recently graduating their friendship sadly began to fade, as their communication was now limited. Although the months following were filled with the spontaneous "Hey, how have you been?" text, the change proved to be difficult, resulting in them being left unsatisfied and without closure about the true purpose of their friendship. These uncertain and mixed feelings were put on hold, as months later Ariel left to attend a college about 4 hours away from Liana, who was still in Apopka. While reflecting on the outcome of their friendship, both Liana and Ariel were coming to the conclusion that the spark they once felt had almost faded away. This all changed one night in September 2021 when Ariel received a text from Liana - and this was not the standard "Hey, how have you been?" text. Liana's messages made it very apparent to Ariel that there was still hope in their friendship. They began to communicate more consistently and, eventually, began talking to one another on a daily basis with the mindset that they were proceeding little by little. Come January of 2022, they both felt their friendship to be much stronger than ever before. After seeking Godly counsel from his Pastor, Joshua Algarin, and presenting their intentional friendship to the Lord through prayer and petition, Ariel decided to call Liana's father, Pastor Luis Rivera, to ask for his permission to court his daughter. On March 14, 2022, Liana said “yes” to being Ariel’s girlfriend. While the young couple finally felt as if God's plans were falling into place, they also faced a new challenge: developing a relationship while being long-distance. Assured by their love for God and for each other, Liana and Ariel persevered. To try and overcome the strain of distance on their relationship, they did everything they could to stay connected and develop their relationship more and more - whether is was spending hours talking about every little thing that happened each day, showing each other their favorite movies, or even playing games over the phone. The couple can testify that, as with all things, there was beauty in the hardship. Through their struggles they learned how to be patient with one another, how to communicate more effectively, and more importantly, that building a Godly relationship and Christ-centered future together were their greatest goals. Over a year later, in August of 2023, the Lord blessed Ariel with the chance to move back to Apopka and finish his education online. Shortly after his return, Ariel met with Pastor Luis in his home to ask for an even greater blessing - the chance to ask Liana to marry him. Through the shared tears of a nervous boyfriend and a proud father, he gave Ariel his blessing, and months later, on December 15, 2024, Ariel’s proposal to Liana was met with a resounding “yes!” From their engagement until now, Liana and Ariel have been working towards fulfilling the goals they set forth. They are extremely grateful that you are able to witness them as they embark on their journey to see God's wonderful plan for their lives together in marriage.