If you ask Josh:

I first met Sam in high school. We both played cornet, but I never really got to know her. I was an awkward kid and kept to myself and my small friend group. I believe it was during college when Dylan and I really started to party hard. My circle of friends changed and I got to meet more people. One of these people was Sam's cousin, Erin, who my best friend Dylan was dating at the time. Lucky for me I was in the dating scene and Sam piqued my interest. The first time we hung out together, Sam had something of an eye infection. I will never forget those big, puffy, pink eyes. Eventually, after her eyes returned to normal, I asked Sam on a date, where we went to the movies. Then I asked her on a second date, where she came over to my parent's house to watch the movie "Horrible Bosses". I remember we got Chili's to go and Sam did not finish her food (this is a reoccurring theme).

We started dating and even moved in together. I had just started what turned out to be one of the worst jobs I have ever had. I was working on average 16 hours a day and this put a strain in our relationship. I had come to know Sam as a very loving person that I could see myself with for the rest of my life, but I was too scared to commit. Our relationship faced some challenges and I was committed to working through them because I had deeply valued what we had. However, at the time, I lacked the maturity I needed to nurture the relationship in the way it deserved. As I grew in my faith, I came to realize that our worldviews were not aligned. In a leap of faith in my relationship with God, I ended the relationship of three years, trusting God that this was the best decision for both Sam and myself. I never stopped caring and loving Sam, and I kept in touch with her, encouraging her to go to church and find a small group to study the Bible with.

After some time, Sam was fully committed to figuring out more about God. She went to the Next Steps class at Stonegate Fellowship, found a study group, and even continued to the Baptism class. I was overjoyed to see that Sam committed her life to Christ and got baptized. I was so happy that she was finding peace and joy in God.

Over time, I saw so many positive developments in Sam's life and we tried staying friends. But ultimately, the spark in our romantic relationship was rekindled. Sam and I had been seeing each other again for some time and through self reflection and prayer, I realized I was not going about things the right way. We weren't officially dating, but we were basically boyfriend and girlfriend again. On one hand, I was portraying myself to be a single man, but on the other hand, I wanted to be with Sam. I felt that I was compromising my relationship with God by being in this state. I prayed to God to help me get things back in order. Although, I have not heard God speak directly to me, God had answered my prayers in the time leading up to my proposal. He showed me that I was blessed to have the opportunity to be fully committed to Sam and to be uncompromisingly faithful, through marriage. I was overjoyed at the thought of committing myself in marriage to Sam, and ultimately, God.

I sat on that thought for a while, continuing to pray and seek wisdom, I wanted to make sure I did things right. I realized that things were only going to move as quickly as I moved them, God willing. So I took the next steps and talked to my family one on one about the situation. My mom was surprised, but thrilled and supportive of my decision. My dad was also very happy and supportive of my decision. My brother was blindsided by the news, but after some heart to heart conversation, he supported me as well. My next step was to talk to Sam's father and ask for his blessing. He was happy for us and thought that we were ready. He had known Sam and I were unofficially dating again for some time, so I think he saw it coming when I called him to meet and talk (that was after he called Sam out of concern and kinda sorta spilled the beans, which was my fault for not clarifying the reason for calling him).

I then proceeded to invite Sam over for dinner, my plan was for me to propose to her in the same house that we had originally moved into together, as a symbol of my commitment.

I am so honored to take the next step in my life with Sam, and my love for her is beyond what I can describe. I cant thank God enough for the friends and family that we both have, who show their love and support for us everyday. It is such a blessing to be with someone who is as loving, caring, and selfless as Sam.

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