We’re getting married!

I knew only two things about Daniel before we met: 1. He did not want to be in a long distance relationship 2. He did not want to be set up With this little knowledge, I was skeptical of my friend Becky and her husband Jake when they very wanted to introduce me to Daniel. Becky once told me, “Julia, I met your husband.” And even though this did not sound promising to me, Becky is not the type of person to make such strong claims so I agreed to meet him if he ever agreed to be set up. In December 2024, I was in town for a Christmas party at Becky and Jake’s house, and after everyone else left, Jake asked Daniel if he wanted to meet us for dinner. He left his apartment to meet us for pizza immediately, uncharacteristic of a man who had no intention of being set up. In my opinion, it was the providence of God. Our impromptu dinner went so well that Becky and Jake set up another “double date” but by the end of it I was ready to ditch them and get to know Daniel better myself. We made plans for our first date at Metro Diner on my way back to Nashville on New Year’s Day. During our conversation, it became evident that Daniel loves the Lord and seeks to live a life that honors God. It also became evident that we wanted to see each other again. It really should have been more difficult to start a long-distance relationship, but the Lord went before us and established our path every step of the way. In the beginning, there were many weekends when I was driving through town for bachelorette weekends, weddings, or work, and we would get dinner while I was passing through. We also had very gracious hosts in the Browns and the Mortons, who allowed us to stay in their guest rooms every other weekend as we took turns driving to Nashville and Huntsville. But after eight months, we had enough. In October 2025, I moved to Huntsville and we finally got to hang out on weeknights! I am so thankful for our time long distance but I am even more thankful to no longer be two hours apart. It did not take long of being in the same city to know that we wanted to get married. In March 2026, Daniel asked me to marry him at the botanical gardens in Huntsville. And I said yes! Daniel is a good gift from our Sovereign God. The Lord has sovereignly directed our paths and established our steps. We cannot wait to continue to run the race set with endurance alongside one another, to encourage and point each other to Christ, and to glorify the Lord through our marriage. The Lord has been so kind to place so many people in our lives who have encouraged us and prayed with us in every season. We are excited to celebrate God’s faithfulness with you at our wedding in October. Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him all creatures here below. Praise Him above ye heavenly host. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen