Grace Stop #2 An Unsuspecting Friend

After all the mess that I put myself through growing up, God still gave me the desires of my heart. So many times I should have lost my life, been injured, or suffered other major consequences for my very poor choices. He should have lit my seat on fire when sitting in church, but instead he would send a nice man or woman to be kind and shepherd me.

When I was about 8 or 9 I walked around my parents front yard and looked up to the sky and said "God will you tell me who I am going to marry, please?" All I wanted was a sign to know that I wasn't going to be left out of the playing field. I didn't want to wind up without a husband and family. It wasn't about the white dress and beautiful flowers to me...I wanted a best friend to grow old with. Someone who would love me back. Someone to laugh with. Share with. Watch movies with. You get the point. All the while there my future husband was. He may have been in my back yard or on my brothers ball teams. I giggled around many of my brother's friends and of course they didn't giggle back, they laughed and threw spitballs. There was one friend in particular that treated me as if I were the only person on the planet. Sure, he may have treated everyone that way, but he was still different. I remember running into him at Lake Winnie when I was with some friends, and he was playing a basketball game. I couldn't breathe when he talked to me, I nearly fell over! The way he wore his hat backwards and held that basketball, and flashed his pearly whites was nearly enough for my friends to have to call the paramedics. He truly made my heart stop. I was only in the 6th grade after all...but he was a sophomore in high school!

Years went by and I never saw him unless at a ball game, but he had a main girlfriend and everyone was just sure that they were going to grow old together. My brother switched high schools, and he lost contact with many of his old buddies. I don't believe in luck, but I do believe in divine appointments. My brother went to this little country line dancing place on Friday and Saturday nights with his old buddies from high school called the "Pickin Barn." It was a little barn way out in the country that was on the property of a family farm. The family had turned this barn into a place where families could come together and have a night of "good clean fun with no foolishness" (how'd you like that :) My friend and I were curious as to what they did there, b/c we knew that my bro was not going to dance, and if there were any cute guys there we wanted in! I walked in a little taller, and a little thinner than the last time I saw him. I had found out about good hygiene and said good bye to bad perms. No more tight rolling and body suits for this girl..no way. I was much more sophisticated and well versed now that I was 17. :)

I walked in this little barn with Christmas lights surrounding the beams up above. There were people line dancing to bluegrass music and little children running around with funnel cake sugar dust on their faces. There were shy boys standing in the shadows of the barn trying to muster up enough nerve to ask the sweet girls waiting patiently on their hay bales. As I made my way passed the small concessions stand and rolling hot dog machine, that is when I saw HIM. There he was sitting on a fold out chair against the wall...alone. I made my way cautiously over to him as though I had it all under control while all the while sweating bullets under my denim jacket. I sat down and said controlled as possible said "Hey Donnie, how are you?" When at that very moment of thinking I was so calm, cool, and collected he turned to me and said "Fine, how 'bout yourself?" I don't really know what happened after that nor do I remember the conversation b/c something buzzed into my ear at the very moment he looked into my eyes. It was this still small voice, one that I hadn't heard in many years, say "you are going to marry him." Now I don't really believe in fate, but I do believe in the prompting of the Holy Spirit. You see, had that not been in my ear that day, I would have made a series of bad mistakes which would have lead to me loosing Donnie. Donnie is not my savior, but my Savior did hear my prayer and he sent me the perfect match to be my soul mate. God knew what I had been through and what I would go through, and what I will continue to go through. He knew that Donnie was the man for this hard job. He knew that I needed a best friend such as him.

I am so thankful that this story didn't end and that we continue to grow closer each and every day. As we said our wedding vows, I teared as the Pastor said "Donnie will you love Leanne as Christ loves the church?" I can tell you to this very day, he has shown Christ more to me than I have ever known. Have I always recognized it for what it was? No. It devastates me to no end that I have taken for granted many times the love that my heavenly father has sent me in the form of a husband. For reasons unknown to me, God chose to hear my prayer that day, and to save me from the destruction of myself.

After Donnie's father passed away, and his mother was asked if she thought she would ever re-marry, she replied "Why would I want anyone else when I had the best." And that is exactly the way I feel about my man.