Katie moved to Iowa from Idaho a few years ago and met a couple guys named Ethan and Jace not too long after. They became really close friends to Katie, and one day they were joking with her about who to set her up with. Of course they were naming off questionable people to mess with her, one being some guy named Carson. They said while laughing, "I bet if you met him he would like you." Carson, Jace, and Ethan are actually lifelong friends, so to them it was a funny joke, but to Katie it was a warning that he's weird. Some time goes by, Katie and Carson got home from separate two-month-travelling trips, and Carson had reunited with the friend group. The two of them initially met at their young adults group at the time, Ethan and Jace introduced them of course. Carson was oblivious to the fact that Katie has already heard about him, and her initial thoughts were, "Oh it's THIS guy...He's definitely going to make a move." Poor Carson. He didn't stand a chance. Their friends all went out to dinner after and Katie did not want to spend money so she decided not to go, but Carson said he would pay for her meal so that she could hang out. Katie's immediate thoughts were, "Oh boy, here we go." When Katie entered the restaurant, she noticed the only open seat was next to Carson and thought her friends did that on purpose to set them up (this was not the case, it was purely accidental). Of course her mind was saying, "You've got to be kidding me." By the end of dinner, Katie had realized that Carson is just a genuine guy, and was simply paying for her meal out of the generosity of his heart, but still had her guard up. Some time goes by, and they got to know each other on a deeper level as friends. Katie did not want a relationship and had fully surrendered her desire of marriage to the Lord, and Carson was not looking for anything but had decided Katie was "pretty cute" early on. But after actually getting to know Carson, Katie learned there was something different about him, unlike anything she's experienced before-he was genuine, compassionate, selfless, God-fearing, and gentle (the list goes on). And this character was shown to everyone around him, not just towards Katie. He truly exemplifies what it means to be a son of Christ and I guess you could say Katie really admired that quality...if you catch the drift. After some deep prayer and conversations, they decided they want to pursue a relationship, not knowing where it will go, but putting faith in God that He would guide them. Before any of this happened, Katie was accepted into a 6 month Discipleship Training School in California starting that January (in a few months from then), and the Lord led her last minute to a different one in Hawaii instead that started a year from then. If Katie had gone to the January school in California, she and Carson probably would not have started dating, because they made things official on January 15th! The Lord's hand was upon them so evidently and He's been guiding them through their relationship ever since. When they started dating, they were unsure how long distance would be, but they surrendered that obstacle to Jesus and when the time came for Katie to leave, they had no fear. Carson, Jace, and his now wife Lilly came to visit Katie in Hawaii in November and Katie had a feeling it was more than just a visit.. They had been talking/praying about getting married and felt it was the right time to get engaged, and sure enough, Carson proposed and Katie said YES! It was an amazing trip and they had so much fun getting to spend time together to split up the long distance time a little bit! Katie went to Papua New Guinea for a few months and they spent their first 4 months of engagement doing long distance, many days unable to even talk, but The Lord was their strength and comfort through it all. Katie had an amazing time during DTS and has now graduated and reunited with Carson at home! And now the two will become one before God on the 23rd!