When You Least Expect It...

Many people will tell you that God answers prayers. And I am definitely one of those people. However, even if we believe that He will answer, we still tend to ask that those questions of "when" and "how" that answer will come. We humans can be pretty demanding and kind of high maintenance. We want what we want, and we want it now. So, when we don't get that, it can be hard. One of my favorite quotes is by President Uchtdorf, an apostle of Jesus Christ. He said, " The Lord's promises are not always swift, but they are always certain." God promises that He will answer us and give us what we need. That is certain. Whether it's tomorrow, next year, or when you least expect it, it is certain. 

I have been home from my mission for nine months now. Crazy, I know. I knew that once I got home the next thing we work towards is marriage and having a family. I also knew that I was nowhere near ready for that stuff. But, I started praying anyways. I asked Heavenly Father to at least just help me be prepared so that when I met the right person, I would know that it was right. But that was it. I was not asking for a time frame or a prince charming or anything like that. I was in no rush; I was just leaving it up to God.

I started school in January at BYU, where there is a lot of pressure to date and get married. I remember being home one weekend after having been at school for few weeks and having a conversation with my amazing stepmom. She asked me how dating was going and all that fun stuff, and I told her that I wasn't really worried about it. That it wasn't very high on my priority list and I was just kind of going with the flow of whatever happened. If I got asked, I'd go, but I wasn't necessarily seeking... She told me that I needed to at least pray for Father to send the angels to prepare someone really great for me. And she said I needed to do my part. Whether it was one date per week or whatever, but that I at least had to try. Now don't get me wrong, I wasn't avoiding dating. But I wasn't fond of having a different first date every weekend, half of them being blind. But, I agreed to at least add to my prayers that someone would be prepared for me. 

After a couple months of that, a friend that I had since the beginning of the semester asked me on a date. I said yes, because I always said yes to at least a first date. And he was pretty cute too, so it wasn't hard. :) It ended up being one of the best dates I'd been on. So, we kept going on dates and hanging out. He ended up leaving for the summer, and it sucked. I was always so wishy washy and unsure about our relationship, which I'm sure drove him insane, but I kept praying for those things that I had been praying for for months. I'll admit that I was getting a little impatient with God for not letting me know if this was the right person for me to be with. But, I knew that God had a plan for me and I was learning to accept that. Even if it was a hard thing. 

Well, long story short, I went to visit this boy one weekend, and it just clicked. That is the only way I know how to explain it. I was not expecting that to happen at all, but like I said, sometimes God answers our prayers when we least expect it. After praying all that time to know when it was right, I knew. There were no more doubts. Nothing had ever felt so right to me. No, there wasn't writing in the sand that said, "MARRY HIM," which is what we sometimes wish would happen. I had been praying for someone great to be prepared for me, and for me to be prepared for whoever that may be. And, after weighing it out logically and emotionally and spiritually, that happy feeling I had while I was there had to be my answer. It was everything I could have asked for, even if the timing wasn't what I had imagined. 

Remember, this doesn't only have to be about dating or getting married. It could be for anything that is in our future--jobs, housing, family, school. If we continue to trust in God and ask, His time table is much better than ours, and the right thing will happen exactly when it is supposed to. So keep praying. Keep working. And keep that faith in God and His timing. Because when you can look back and see the bigger picture, it will all my perfect sense, just like it did to Him the whole time.