How we met Jesus may be a little different from most God-stories you’ve heard. We don’t care. We’re thrilled to know Him.
Our Plan for Success
We met in college, both on a fast-track to success. We had so much in common. From the moment we said, “I do,” we knew our marriage was going to be unique. We thought we had it all figured out. We were building this perfect life. Every box was checked. We had the beautiful large house in the suburbs, two obedient children, and the mini-van. We even belonged to a church where we were very active. But we kept God in the Sunday box.
After eighteen years of marriage we had reached the pinnacle. We were living in Europe and Bruce was the CEO of his company. We travelled all over Europe and met fascinating people from all over the world. Our kids were third-culture kids.
How we met Jesus
God followed us down the aisle and kept us in His sight every step of the way. We had no idea what was up ahead for us. But He did. He had plans for us to meet under unusual circumstances.
We stumbled into the fellowship of genuine Jesus-lovers who nurtured us and introduced us to God’s truth and love at Christian Community Church in Luxembourg. At first we were confused. This was church? These people actually believed the Bible was true (all of it) and were passionate about living out God’s love on a daily basis.
The more we got to know them and the Bible, the more we were smitten. We had to make a decision. Do we believe or not? We had been playing at religion all our lives. Within a few months of each other we both made the decision to be all in for Jesus. We stopped going our own way, turned around and invited Him into our lives and marriage.
It’s an unusual story for a couple of reasons. We left a Christian nation where we went to church but never met Jesus. We moved to a post-Christian nation where we met Him. In addition to that, couples in their forties don’t usually come to Christ together.
What Happened Then
A lot happened then! To write it all in this blog would be impossible. The story is epic. In the twenty-seven years since then we’ve been through some rough times and some great times. In fact, the darkest time of my life occurred just months later. I’ll save that story for another time.
In the intervening years, we’ve grown to know God better. We’ve grown to know ourselves and each other better. We have found peace, passion and purpose but not perfection. Part of our journey includes becoming marriage mentors, and now authors of a Christian romance about a couple who has marriage mentors.
We’re grateful to be on the journey with Jesus. We know that the journey goes beyond life on earth. Nothing we can do can change that. If you have questions about meeting Jesus, you can download my free resource, No Greater Love.
And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
Matthew 28:20b