Engaged…for real!
(Sorry this post is so late, since getting back to school things have been kind of crazy.)
Ok, so it’s a little confusing but here’s how it works. From the beginning Patty and I were aiming towards marriage. Some say it’s cool, some say it’s weird and other look at me like I’m off my nut (…keep your comments to yourself). We had gotten to know each other very well before our “romantic” relationship started. Once it did start we were both clear that we didn’t want to mess around with this if we both weren’t serious. Therefore, talk of marriage. So that is what courting is: a purpose driven relationship. Now I don’t really care what you call it. I know people that are in a very purpose driven relationship and they call it dating. In the end it’s just terminology. This mindset wasn’t something that tied us down or made us feel that if we didn’t get married we had failed or let the other down or anything like that. We both recognized that we may not end up married. So with that out of the way we get to the confusing part. Since we were courting and talking of marriage everyone just assumed that we were engaged. We had a wedding date picked out last June or July but were waiting for me to meet her parents before making it official (i.e. me asking her dad formally and asking her formally and giving her the ring… which I’d had since August).
So, all of that to say that as Christmas eve turned to Christmas morning I officially asked Patty to marry me.She said "Yes!"
Lord willing, we will be married on June 16th, 2007 near Kellogg, Idaho at her grandparents house. Interesting trivia: Patty’s dad and mom were married at the same house almost 29 years ago.

So What About Our Future?
Patty and I would like to ask for your prayers concerning the decisions that we will have to be making in next few months and years. We are in need of a place to live and a job for after we graduate. Here are some of the details that play into those decisions. I/we need some sort of job(s) that is flexible enough that we can be working on our support raising without being bogged down by hours. Now, it would be nice to just settle down and make money for a while and that may even get us over seas but it won’t keeps us there. Both Patty and I know churches in different parts of the country so that plays into our decision making. We are looking into midwife training for Patty as that has been a desire of hers for a long time and we can definitely see the benefit to that on the field; both for nationals and missionaries. We are also trying to see what areas of ministry we can fit into as a couple. We don’t want to just pick a country of service and hope that there is something there that we can do. We want to find our ministry and then a place with that need. Please be praying with us as we look, and ask questions and talk to people. God will lead us where He wants us.

"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."
-I Peter 2:9