When I first signed up for the world race, I was in my last year of school. I would graduate with an engineering degree just before setting off on the race (the race is a 11-month mission trip around the world to 11 different countries). I was still very unsure of engineering and didn’t know if that’s where I wanted to go. I left everything thinking maybe full-time missionary work would be where God would take me, all I knew was I wanted to go where He was.
Kiana joined the squad in December of 2016. Her picture showed her standing next to some flowers and I thought she was the most beautiful girl ever. It was that moment when I heard a voice inside say:
“Two years from now, at this Christmas time, you will be standing hand in hand, together.”
When I first arrived at training camp in June 2017, I met Kiana. She was beautiful and amazing in every way. Scared, because I liked her so much, I didn’t talk to her and kept my feelings to myself. But from the very first day we met, God had already begun to talk to both of us about what could be ahead.
One day, I brought a chair to Kiana trying to be courteous, she gently said no, and she was content sitting on the ground, but not even two seconds later she changed her mind and said she’d take the chair. When she later came and apologized for turning my gesture down, she promised to accept anything I gave her from now on… immediately, I heard a voice in my head say, “like a ring!” I freaked out a little bit! I just met her! But the voice continued and kept saying it the rest of training camp, “She’s your future wife.”
After training camp, I finished school and went back to my family in Cheyenne. The day before I left on the race, God gave me two verses while praying. One of which was:
“For this reason, a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. So, they are no longer two, but one. Therefore, what God has joined together, let no one separate.”
It was still so early, and Kiana and I had hardly talked at all, and yet, here God was making promises to me and consistently telling me she would be my wife. I have to say, I didn’t fully believe it. Too good to be true right? When I walked outside that night, there was a giant rainbow across the sky! There, standing in the backyard in awe, God again said “ Two years from now you will see I was faithful. Kiana will be your wife.”
When God speaks to you, and gives you signs, you should listen. But I still didn’t believe, and I wasn’t sure. God speaking isn’t real. Signs aren’t real. These things don’t happen. Not like this.
Then, in France, our first month on the race, God asked me to ask for anything to prove this was His will. I asked Kiana would give me a gift the next day, and if she did, I would tell her how I felt. The next day, as soon as I saw her, the first thing she did was walk over to me and hand me a gift of sour patch kids (my favorite!) and a letter.
In Spain, God asked me to stay true to my word and remember I said I would speak to her if He confirmed His word by the gift. So, at the end of month 2, still having hardly ever talked to Kiana and not knowing her AT ALL, I went and talked to her. I told her I felt God saying this was His will and that I really liked her (I may have said love). We prayed together, both trusting in God and then…
We waited.
For the next 7 months we never talked to each other outside of occasionally spending time together. Imagine spending 5 days with someone over the course of half a year. That was the amount of our contact. I neither knew what she was thinking, or who she was, only that God was promising she was my best friend.
In Morocco, I was in the Sahara Desert with no Wi-Fi on Kiana’s birthday when a teammate came to me and said, “I really feel the Holy Spirit is telling me to tell you that our Host’s friend has Satellite Wi-Fi on his phone.” I said thank you and rushed over to send Kiana a birthday message. A simple Happy Birthday and a picture of a purple flower.
The purple flower I sent Kiana on her birthday.
In Cyprus, Kiana and I shared ice cream with friends in the airport.
In Georgia, we shared glasses of wine and went camping with some of the squad. I asked to use her kindle log in to read a bible study she had. Without talking to each other, we read the bible study together for the rest of the year, watching each other’s notes and highlights pop up.
In Egypt, God suddenly gave me dreams about Iowa. He told me specifically to go back to work for Emerson. He wanted me to go back to engineering and it was the door to where I wanted to be in the future. (Overseas building His Kingdom). The next week, my past boss from Emerson reached out, without me saying anything, and said there was a job opening, asking if I was interested.
In Azerbaijan, I had my interview and was accepted to my new job as a test engineer in Iowa. All of this still without knowing or talking to Kiana. To be honest, I was extremely nervous. I doubted whether it was what God really wanted. It doesn’t make sense to never talk to someone and yet for them to be your future spouse. You’re supposed to fall in love laughing at each other’s jokes, sharing your interests and hobbies, and doing fun things together. Instead, we didn’t talk to each other and were holding on to a hope and a love that still hadn’t even had a chance to begin to grow.
On the way to Kazakhstan, I told Kiana about my job and where God was leading me. I didn’t know what she would think, or if she would even want to move to Iowa! We hadn’t even talked about dating yet.
Then, in month 9, we reached Kyrgyzstan. God opened the month by giving me the word TOGETHER. He said, this month, I bring you together. At the end of the month, I asked Kiana to go for a walk with me and we talked about all God had done through the year. After knowing each other for nearly a year and not talking to each other, we both sat down and shared our stories.
The purple flower I sent in Morocco: Kiana had prayed and asked God to confirm that this was a part of His plan, and that she would move forward with what He was talking to her about (me being her husband) if I would send her a purple flower on her birthday… because I was in the desert, without WiFi, and probably no flowers, so she knew it wasn’t likely.
The bible study we ended up doing together… Kiana had prayed her future husband would do a bible study with her for a year before they were married. Turns out, a year after we started, I proposed to her and she said YES.
And of course, when we sat down in Kyrgyzstan and shared our stories and our first real time alone together… I asked her if she would marry me! Ooops! But she laughed and said “God said you would do that! That my future husband would propose before our first date! I think I needed another confirmation.”
We both sat amazed at how true God’s promises were. We spent a year without talking to each other, a year of God speaking to each of us, and a year waiting to see His faithfulness. My biggest regret was how much I doubted. Almost every step of the way I didn’t believe that God was really speaking and really telling me she was my future wife. How could that be true!? He sent signs, miracles, and I was still unsure. But now, two years later, I see the amazing faithfulness He shows to His promises. When He said…
“Two years from now, at this Christmas time, you will be standing hand in hand, together.”
I could hardly imagine that exactly two years after first laying eyes on Kiana and adding her as friend on Facebook, I would be proposing to her “at this Christmas time”. But that’s exactly what happened. My heart has been overflowing with joy ever since.
Kiana and I after I proposed on December 28th
I know it was a little long and even now it isn’t the complete story. Expect a book to be published sometime in the next 20 years. I also know you could try to write all of this off as “coincidence”, but I have seen God’s word prove true too many times in too many amazing and miraculous ways to believe that. And I’ve done enough doubting already in my own life. Kiana and I both want you all to know:
God is real, He speaks, and HE LOVES YOU.
In the simplest form, God created us to walk and talk with Him in His creation. When that relationship was broken through Adam and Eve’s sin, we were separated from Him. But in His love for us, He already set a plan to RESTORE that Relationship. He sent His own Son to dies for us. But that’s not the end, in paying for our sin, He bought back the right to be WITH us. Then, He sent the Holy Spirit to be with us today. Today, we can again walk and talk with Him in His creation. My biggest sin is doubting that He can and wants to walk and talk with us. When was the last time you talked to God? When was the last time you heard from Him? You don’t need to do anything, He already did it. Just seek Him. He wants to know you and for you to know Him. To be with Him. The greatest marriage of all.
“Jesus replied, “that in the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? So, they are no longer two, but one. Therefore, what God has joined together, let no one separate.”
Matthew 19:4-6
Kiana and I sat next to each other on the first flight and the last flight of our race
The morning view in Mijas, Spain the day I talked with Kiana and we decided to wait for the rest of the year.
Looking like a couple Racers with our backpacks and twinning styles. Racers dress like each other, it’s a thing. 😀 Now we are finally on a team together. Team for life!
Of course, it wouldn’t be the race if you weren’t completely exhausted when you reach the end. Joyful, content, and truly amazed by God’s faithfulness.
