I have my first date with a new guy tomorrow and it’s looking very promising and hopeful. If this turns into a happy ending I want this story documented as much as possible in real time so I can look back and see what the Lord has done.
How the date came to be
For the past 4 years a family from the church I grew up in has been hosting an annual Christmas Eve breakfast for a group of now young adults who grew up in that church together. 2022 was the first year I was invited to attend by Demetrius, and I was honored that he thought of me and extended the invite. At first I was reluctant to go, as I knew the guest list wasn’t exactly full of my favorite or close people, and I was worried that attending would drain me more than it would give me life. But I knew that I would like to have somewhere to be that morning, I’d enjoy preparing some food to take (a cinnamon roll casserole), and I wanted to meet Kim’s new boyfriend, Michael since I’d heard good things about him through Katie. All of this added up to deciding to go and bring my dad with me.
It was nice getting to mingle and have small catch-ups here and there with everyone. At one point I was talking with two of the dads about the woes of Christian dating. One of them asked me if I was dating at all, to which I responded, “I’m not actively seeking that out, but if the Lord wants to put someone in my path that meets my standards then I’m open to it.” HA.
As the group size was winding down I made it a point to have a one-on-one conversation with Michael, asking him questions about his background and what his life looked like at present. We talked about serving in youth ministry and traveling and growing up in church. I enjoyed my conversation with him and he seemed like a great guy. The only thing he said that I didn’t like was how he’d given up his free time and hobbies once he started dating Kimberly, claiming that it was “all worth it.” Not for me and sounds unhealthy but who am I.
Fast forward to the next week, I’m sitting at home on New Year’s Day and get a text from Kimberly.
My initial response to her was, “Tbh I’m kinda torn because I don’t know if I want to try dating right now?? But I’m always open to meeting new people! Can I think about it and get back to you in a few days?? Also can you tell me how old he is LOL. I love that her boyfriend, who only chatted with me for maybe 15 minutes, picked up on my personality and life context and thought of one of his friends. What a guy.
A week later after a blind date with a different guy (who was 10 years older than me and annoying to be around), I texted Kimberly and told her if Michael’s friend, Josh, was open to being set up then I was down to meet him! She tells me they’ll talk to him and half an hour later I get a text: “alright he’s interested. He probably won’t text tonight because it’s late but soon.”
The next afternoon I get my first text from Josh!
I love how straightforward and soon he was, and within an hour we had set a date at one of my favorite brunch places! He said he was looking forward to it and it made me realize how much I was too.
He texted me two days later to start the “getting to know more about you until our date” conversation that went on slowly but continuously for 4 days. It was good and hard because I didn’t know what to ask him about that I would’ve preferred to chat about in person with him! I suggested a phone call on the evening of day 3 and he said he’s “actually love to.” I love that he uses real, genuine expressions of interest!
Our first phone call lasted for two hours! When he first said hello + my name I knew this was going to be good. He has a kind and smooth voice that sounds thoughtful and real. He asked me great questions, kept the conversation going, and it was easygoing and felt like we’d been long lost friends. I feel like we’re cut from the same cloth, have good community and friendships, and that we are both living our lives intentionally for the Lord. I truly could not ask for anything better. He said he was really excited about meeting me on our date and I said the same. *melts*
I immediately called my friend and mentor Mrs. Donna after we hung up to tell her about it, how solid and great he sounded and how much my excitement had grown. I told her that it’s going to be the fight of my life to not get ahead of myself here and with him, especially with how great he sounded, and she also advised me not to fall too hard or too fast, and to just enjoy every moment.
Man I’m going to try so hard. Man I hope this is it. Man it feels good to feel this way.
The next morning I wrote out a liturgy in my prayer journal titled “A Liturgy for Feeling Butterflies Around Someone” along with a few short prayers of my own.
