When I met Cale in the early fall of 2009, it was love at first sight - a shallow version of the term for sure, but nonetheless, I was captured by him.
While my heart yearned for him, he was busy pursuing other interests. Fear of rejection shackled me for months, and while I longed for us to be friends, I also ran from him. No joke, once I walked into a coffee shop, saw he was there, panicked, and walked right out. "What if he knows I know he is a regular here and thinks that I am coming just to see him?" I illogically thought as I ran to the car.
But the cross, oh the sweet mercies bestowed upon me at the cross of Jesus, changed all of that. Slowly over time the grace of God displaced fear with confidence and turned despair into joy. I felt free to be myself and love people courageously as brothers and sisters.
Before the summer of 2010, a group of us (including Cale) went on a road trip to a conference called NEXT, and it was there that Cale became captured by me. Shortly after that, we started dating, were engaged in a few months, and then married March of 2011. What a crazy but wonderful year it has been!
Cale sent me this little video the other day in an email. In it he said,
"Thanks for not letting love pass you by. Who knows what would have happened had you not decided to come on the NEXT road trip with me. I am so thankful that you are my wife!"I hope this video brings a smile to your face and encourages you to love courageously.
-Jessie
