His Timing, Not Mine

Recently, something pretty exciting happened in my life.  Thankfully, good news like this spreads like wildfire.  That, and Facebook happens to be a great way to communicate important information to a vast audience in a heartbeat, and so the great news-telling task was easy.  Just in case you have been on sabbatical or hiding in the foothills away from society and things like internet and civilization or something, I’ll let you in on the headline of the day: I am now officially engaged to my best friend, fellow nerd, man-bun model and lumbersexual Ethan Hunter :)  He’s quite the catch, in case you can’t tell! 

But I want to tell you something that’s even more amazing: God picked him for me.

That’s right.  God picked him out, not me.  In a line-up, I probably wouldn’t have picked him.  That sounds so harsh (sorry Ethan!) but the truth of the matter is, he’s completely NOT what I was looking for in a guy!  For starters, he’s younger than me.  For whatever reason, I very much wanted an older man in my life, not a younger one. Also, Ethan doesn’t speak Spanish, my adopted tongue.  He speaks Japanese, of all things.  He studied the hard sciences, which is like oil to my water.  He was homeschooled (not necessarily a negative, but not necessarily a positive either—I blame bad stereotypes for corrupting me on this one).  Ethan is outgoing, eccentric, lively—a real people-person a.k.a. the opposite to my introvert nature.  And he’s hairy, for goodness sake! 

Luckily for me, God knew I would come to absolutely love these things about Ethan.  I fell hard and fast for his flowing mahogany locks, compliments of his Irish heritage.  He may be younger than me by a mere two years, but that also means he’s bursting with energy and idealism (which compliments me, in case you don’t know me very well).  His Japanese side is something I gobble up, eager to learn more and explore a world completely different from my Spanish one.  His schooling and background bring a different perspective on things and help me to see things in a new light.  At first glance, we may seem like complete opposites, but he balances me—he’s the yin to my yang.  

To top it all, we met online and I was already partway into a 1 ½ year commitment in Nicaragua!  How in the world could I be in a relationship, let alone a good one, at that distance?!  Well, by the grace and wit of God, we aced a year of long distance and then struggled for a bit with short distance dating (haha how’s that for irony).  We eventually found our rhythm and decided, much to the knowing smiles of everyone around us, that we are a good match :)  

If I had a pen to map out my life, I certainly wouldn’t have drawn it out like this.  Not at all.  There would be no curvy lines, no dotted ones, no hurdles or detours or roadblocks.  It would have been smooth sailing the whole way.  Luckily, I’m not the one in charge or I’d be telling a very different (and probably more boring) story!

Bottom line is this: it was God’s timing, not mine.

God had a plan all along for little Kelsey.  He knew what she needed. He knew how to challenge her, how to encourage her, how to make her grow.  So today, I thank God for giving me Ethan.   I’m thankful for who he is, who he will be, and who we will be together. 

Let’s see where our journey will take us, shall we?

Stay tuned!