Praise the Lord! For He is so good!

Long before Elijah and I met, God had his hand and design in our relationship. We first met in 6th grade at ICS (Independence Christian School)! That was a very fun year for both of us, as we had lots of laughter, memories, and middle school chaos together. Elijah had a crush on me the second he laid eyes on me for the first time. On the other hand, I was more interested in dancing, sparkles, and beating every boy at school in basketball or any sport. At the end of our school year, I left the school and never returned for 7th grade. We did not end up talking again until we both got Instagram around 13. Elijah would always post Bible verses and amazing photography of God's creation, which always sparked my interest. Throughout the years we would chat about God's Word or His amazing creation. During this time, Elijah always thought that I was "the ideal woman of God," and when he rededicated his life to the Lord at 17, he prayed that God would provide him a woman like Devin, a woman with a heart after the Lord. I have been praying for my future husband since I was 13 years old, and I can confidently say that the Lord has more than answered my prayers! When I began my first year of college, I had a very special memory with the Lord when I wrote Him a letter about my heart's desire for my future husband. I surrendered everything to the Lord and felt the Holy Spirit speak to me during that time. I still have that letter, which is a testament to God's faithfulness because he more than answered everything He put on my heart. I ended up reconnecting with Elijah a few months after writing this letter during COVID in 2021. During this time, Elijah had been growing his relationship with God deeper and praying for ways to reach out to me because I had always been on his mind since he met me in middle school. The closer he got to God, the more he desired to reach out to me. I ended up posting an Instagram post that was a reflection of what the Lord had been teaching me lately: not to look towards the world for happiness but rather to run to the Lord for my eternal joy. God had been recently telling Elijah that same thing, as we both had to go through a period of letting go of friends who had not been the best influence in our lives. Elijah reached out to me on Instagram and sent a giant paragraph about how the Lord had been speaking to him about finding joy in Him. I felt the Holy Spirit strongly when he reached out, and we ended up connecting deeper. We became instant friends and bonded deeply over God's Word, music, and sharing our stories. I think the moment I knew that Elijah was such a special guy was how he was honest in every conversation we held; he gave his whole heart and always pointed me back to God's Word and truth. Elijah was always so bold, and I still remember how, when we first started talking, he told me, "I had a smile that lit up the room and was so beautiful." I appreciated Elijah's open heart, joy, and abundant love, and I could so evidently see the Lord in Him. He ended up asking me on our first date a few weeks later, where I got to see him face to face again since 6th grade. I ran into his arms and instantly felt our deep connection, the Lord was so good and that was only the beginning of our many memories of joy, laughter, and adventure.