My Daughter's Engagement

How can it be 2011 already when it seems like only last week it was 2008 and my beautiful daughter met her first boyfriend?
Julie was 17 and in her junior year of school. Just months before she was praying that God would send into her life the boy she would marry. She had never dated and didn't want to until that special guy was in her life.
It is interesting that Keith had broken up with a girl the year before and was praying that God would send into his life the girl he would one day marry. He was not interested in dating different girls anymore.

It was April 2008 and Julie was attending her junior high school prom. A friend of hers could have set her up with a blind date, but she declined. She was in a very pretty strapless, long white dress scattered with black and silver polka dots. She wore long black satin gloves. She was stunning.
Keith happened to be in the church where the prom was taking place. He went there to do a job and was dressed in jeans and black t-shirt. Toward the end of the evening he bumped into the mom of one of his friends. She invited him to go over to the gym and say hi to her son who was also at the prom. He walked into the dimly lit room and Julie spotted him. In a completely out of character move she walked toward him and said hi. She asked if he was looking for someone. Keith told her he was looking for his friend Anthony. She said he was over on the dance floor with his girlfriend. Julie and Keith ended up talking for several minutes and he got her phone number. That was also unusual because she was careful not to give out her number to people she did not know.
The large group of prom goers ended up at a bowling alley and Keith asked if he could go there too. When he showed up, several of the chaperone moms, being protective, tried to make him leave. He was not part of the group and he looked like a trouble maker with close fitting black t-shirt and a little facial hair(Keith trains in a gym as a fighter). The shirt was actually a Christian t-shirt. He stayed for a little while and talked to Julie. Then he left and the party broke up.
He later told her that on his way home he had called his mom and said "Mom I think I just met the girl I'm going to marry some day"

The next year Keith took Julie to her senior prom and they made a stunning young couple. Now she is 20 and he is 23 years old. They have been through a lot of growth together and continue to grow with God.

In April of this year Keith gave instruction to his family to place about 50 luminaries on top of the flat roof of church. He had them set a small table for 2 and align the candles in a path to the table and some were placed in a circle. Meanwhile he picked up Julie and said he had a special date planned. He had asked her to wear the "pretty little yellow dress" so he could take her somewhere special.
She was taken by surprise when he drove her to church. They climbed a lighted ladder to the roof and he walked her to the table. After they ate their dinner while his brother served them wearing a black suit, he slow danced with her in the circle of candles as he whispered beautiful things in her ear. At the end of the song Keith knelt down and asked Julie to marry him. He put a beautiful ring on her finger and she cried and laughed and bubbled over.

They met one spring and were engaged this spring. Now they are planning a wedding for September. But the amazing thing to me is the way God spoke to Keith's heart and led him to his bride. I love them both so much.