"Fix your eyes on Jesus and the plans he has for your life. Look ahead, and run after him with all your heart. Then look around. Whoever has kept up with you, marry that person.” - Debra Fileta, True Love Dates This quote is the best starting point for our story. I met Elizabeth in 2023 while on a Spring Break missions trip in Florida with the Called to Greatness campus ministry, and we bonded over a mutual competition for Dutch Blitz (I thought I was hot stuff at that game, but she totally destroyed me). As the year went on and our friend groups became more integrated (mine at Washburn, hers at K-State), I found myself intimidated by her, but in a good way. I knew she had true substance in her, and that she wasn’t going to mess around with what she didn’t want. At the end of that year, I decided to take the leap of faith and ask her out; if she said no and I fell on my face, so be it. Thankfully, that was not the case, and I made the first of many trips to Manhattan, this one being in the middle of a snowstorm with four packs of bottled water in my trunk to prevent my car from sliding on the ice. Throughout the course of the next year and a half, I grew to love not just her unique talents and expertise, but also her spacious heart for people and desire to see them walk firmly with the Lord. Even though we lived an hour apart, the connection we forged proved strong. On top of that, I went through an extended youth missions opportunity in Europe, a busy fall of raising support for full-time campus ministry, and the first few months of work on the campus at Washburn University, and she stood by me in all of it. By the end of those crazy times, I became sure in my heart that God’s desire was for us to come together as husband and wife. Even though she wasn't totally surprised by my question (her intuition is well-trained), she has made me an extremely happy man by saying yes, and I can’t wait for the life God unfolds for us in the years to come. Our commitment to Him is what has brought us together and will drive our marriage forward. Thank you for your support in our lives up to this point. We couldn’t have done it without you.