Talking about time passing by, today I was reminiscing on how 20 years ago my husband asked me to marry him... where did the time go?We were a "young" couple each with our own truckload of baggage, trying to get our lives in order. It was a Friday night, March 1993, at Primera Iglesia Bautista Hispana de Manhattan and I can still remember him walking into the young adult meeting dressed in black, I turned back, our eyes met and there was no going back - we "zinged" lol, this was the Lord's way of introducing us to each other. But it wasn't the right time - this was just an introduction, as much as we wanted to make it work, the Lord had other plans (Ray has his version of what happened and I have mine - but I'll just leave it at that lol).
During this time of separation, we were able to grow, let go of a lot of baggage, get our lives in order, and let the Lord work in our lives and in our hearts. We got involved serving at our local church, many times bumping into each other and the butterflies fluttering all over. It is incredible how those memories are still so vivid in my mind.
Even after getting back together, our relationship was not an easy one. But we didn't give up, we sought prayer and counsel from those we looked up to, loved and respected. We prayed and waited on the Lord. This was such an important time in our lives.
Fastwind to a crisp Friday night on October 30th, we went out on a date to the South Street Seaport. I can remember how clear the evening was and his cologne. We had Italian, Chicken Parm and Chicken Marsala. I remember he got a new sweater for our date. After eating we went out to the pier for a walk... it was a beautiful night, the people were out, there was a sense of excitement in the air. We stopped to talk and he was sharing what he felt for me and how much he loved me... he turned toward me and went down on one knee and I remember hearing that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with me and I looked down and he was asking me to marry him. Every detail was perfect because each detail that brought us to that moment was orchestrated by God. I said yes.As a single mom of a little boy and a painful past, I truly did not think anyone was going to want to be with me. My spiritual mom, Ligia, shared 2 Corinthians 5:17 various times - "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come." She kept reminding me that the old had passed away, that I was a new creation. She helped me to stay focused and seek Him more. The more I learned who I had put my hope and trust in, who I believed in, I began to focus on Psalm 37:4 which became my life verse... "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart". My deepest desire was to have a man who would love the Lord and who would love me and my son, but the more I delighted myself in Him, I was no longer looking for something external to fill me because I found that joy in Jesus and when He became my delight, He brought Ray into my life.
So thankful for the gift God gave to me that Friday night 20 years ago... He gave me what I was longing for, He knew my heart's desire and He answered my prayer...
