Celebrating 5 Years of A DREAM COME TRUE

Almost 11 years ago during my senior year in college after going through a crushing heartbreak, I went on Fall Break with one of my besties to her home in beautiful, peaceful Maine. This break was SO orchestrated by the Father and He ministered to my soft heart and began restoring the pieces that had been rejected and broken.

One day during one of His heart procedures, I felt the Holy Spirit nudging me to make "a list" of the qualities that I wanted in a husband. I had always avoided making this list because I did not want to put God in a box or make Him my Santa Claus where I submitted my wish lists. However, given the place of brokenness in which I found my myself, I knew that I had to listen to my Father's leading.


So I began to write and this is the list that made its way into my "Dream Journal":

1) He must love God with His entire being, His whole heart, His whole soul, & His whole mind.

2) He must desire God's will above all else, being willing to do anything & everything

that God would ask him to do at a moment's notice.

3) He must place God first, family (me&kids) second, and ministry third.

4) He must be passionate about the things of God, even if his personality is laidback and quieter.

5) He must have a heart for the world -- the nations, the people, & the desire to reach them.

6) He must be a man of strong character and convictions.

7) He must be a man of his word.

8) He must be hard-working but have a good balance in time spent with family

(at least be willing to work at it).

9) "Nothing is so strong as gentleness and nothing so gentle as true strength."

-- I would like for him to fit this quote.

10) He must pursue me and state his intentions in the proper time.

11) He must be a man that I am proud of, that I respect, that I trust, & that I can lean on.

12) He must be someone that my parents approve of, feel good about, like for me,

and love (or learn to love quickly & effortlessly).

13) He must have strong convictions of how close physically we are before marriage,

treating me as the bride of Christ & daughter of God (& Tom Brumbley :) )

14) He must want children & be good with them to some extent,

really respecting & championing my desire for and love of children.

15) He must be someone that I am physically, emotionally, intellectually,

& spiritually and the feelings must be mutual!

16) He must challenge me spiritually & intellectually & I want to do the same for him

(even if he is smarter & deeper spiritually than I am).

17) He must be kind to people, especially the unlovable.

18) He must be the kind of man that all who know him would genuinely & sincerely speak well of him.

19) He must be well respected and trusted.

20) He must love and know God's Word.

21) He must love me as his #1 and only sweetheart from the beginning and for the rest of our lives.

~~We must be a team~~
~~We must laugh together -- A LOT!~~
~~We must be best friends~~

When I wrote this list, I was 21. 6 years later, after measuring every guy who caught my interest by this list & thinking that he was NEVER going to come, God sent him from the opposite hemisphere from my own, fitting every single criteria on this list.

Today, I am celebrating 5 years with this amazing man! I am so thankful that God searched the world to put us together! I cannot imagine my life being as exciting an adventure and as fulfulling of a ride without you & me on this journey together.

I love you, Bokkie!!

(see meaning below)

September 3, 2005

September 3, 2010

("BOKKIE: One of South Africa's nicest words, this is a term of endearment which can be applied to either sex. In literal translation it means "little buck" or "little deer", and its English equivalent is "sweetheart." When a couple walks down the road hand-in-hand, somebody may remark that they are 'bokkies.' ")