A beautiful story of love, faith and prayer. This. Just THIS. How I Met My Husband - or - Be Careful What You Pray For, by Leta HawkThe year was 1997. I had been sort of seeing, but not-quite-yet seeing a man I had met at the business college where I taught one term of English Composition as an adjunct professor. He was the college librarian, and I thought he was all that and a bag of chips. Black hair, brown eyes, intelligent, offbeat sense of humor, and a calmness that countered my spazziness. I thought I knew in my heart that he was the one. Well, for a lot of reasons, that relationship didn’t work out, and my heart got broken. And I don’t mean just broken; it was shattered to a point where I was certain I would never love anyone again. For a long time, I isolated myself, avoiding any places or activities where I might meet another guy who would likewise screw me over. I threw myself into my job and into working with the kids at church, and I was happy. Sort of. To be honest, I was lonely. As much as I was afraid of being hurt again, I knew in my heart of hearts that I wanted someone to love. I wanted a husband and 2.1 kids, a dog, and a little house with a white picket fence (Okay, what I really wanted was a Victorian house, but that’s another daydream). I did the dating scene. I hit the bars looking for decent men (can you just hear Dr. Phil saying, “How’s that working for ya?”), and I even placed personal ads in the local newspaper. Nothing worked. Finally, I began attending Crossfire Singles Ministry, a nondenominational group for people who were single, divorced, or widowed. Their credo was that they were not a dating service, but they were more of a Christian support for those not in relationships. It was a wonderful group to be a part of. They offered all kinds of activities, Bible studies, weekend trips, and more. My faith in God deepened during that time, and I was able to present devotionals at some of the dances and volleyball nights. It was during this time that I felt called to go to seminary and prepare for some kind of ministry, so I began looking for seminaries within driving distance of my home. I also decided during this time that God had likely decided that I was to remain single, and guess what? For the first time in my life, I was okay with that. Still, there was that small part of me that held out the hope that He did have someone reserved for me. So I prayed. My prayer was something like, “Lord, I know You want what’s best for me, and I know that You already have my life planned out. I’m okay with staying single, but please, if there is someone You have in mind for me to marry, please make it obvious who it is, because You know I don’t do well with subtleties.” Not long after that, I was playing volleyball one Friday evening with the Crossfire gang. I was on a team with a guy I was kind of casually dating, a few other friends, and this other guy I had seen around Crossfire but never really talked to. During one rather heated game, the ball was being volleyed back and forth, back and forth, and at one point, it came over the net to me, and I went up and tipped it up. The next thing I knew, a fist landed in the middle of my chest, and down I went. I must have blacked out briefly, because when I opened my eyes, I was lying on the floor with a circle of people around me. In the background, I could hear, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” A couple months went by. The guy I had been casually dating had stopped coming to Crossfire and faded out of the picture. One evening, one of the pastors in charge of Crossfire approached me and asked if I remembered Mike, the guy who had clobbered me during that one volleyball game. I said I did. Well, he told me that Mike had been asking about me, wondering if I was seeing anyone, if I might be interested in going out. I had honestly never thought about him past that evening, so I was a bit surprised. Long story short, we went out a few times, and then a few more times, before becoming exclusive. On Valentine’s Day 2001, he presented me with a red teddy bear that when its paw was pressed said, “I love you, Deb. Will you marry me?” We were married on December 15, 2001 in my hometown of Millersburg. We now live in Dillsburg, PA, and have two sons, Wesley and Wayde, and a dog named Raven. When people ask how we met, I always tell them the story, and then make jokes about how Mike swept me off my feet, took my breath away, knocked my socks off, and was hitting on me. And then I always warn, “When you’re praying for God to send you the love of your life, be very careful what you pray and how you word that prayer. I told God to make it obvious if there was someone out there for me. Mike sure made himself known, if unintentionally.” About Leta HawkLeta Hawk has been fascinated with the paranormal since her first encounter with a ghost at four years of age. Her first novel, The Newbie: A Kyrie Carter Ghost Hunting Adventure, was self-published in the summer of 2014. In October 2015, it was re-launched through Booktrope as The Newbie: A Kyrie Carter Paranormal Mystery, Book 1. A writer since high school, she has written in various genres, including poetry, children’s stories, puppet skits, and novels. Leta currently lives in Dillsburg, Pennsylvania with her husband, two sons, and a dog (but no ghosts). When she isn’t writing, she serves as a Scout leader, Sunday school teacher, and Released Time School Coordinator, Song Leader, and Listener, and tries to keep up with her sons’ busy schedules. Leta Hawk is the pen name of Debra Lerew. Connect with Leta online: Facebook * Twitter * Goodreads Read more from Leta Hawk in |
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