Part 1

Refer to # 3 on my last post "86 things about me." 

Our Love Story:

My love affair with Trey started about one and a half years before I ever knew his name. I was in what I would consider a serious relationship with a wonderful guy. We loved each other very much, and I planned to marry him. Actually, I tried to convince him to marry me several times (does this give you any insight into our relationship?). Anyway, I was happy. Very happy. One day we were at church, and as I was walking to my normal pew, Trey walked in. And I know that this is going to sound cliche, but my breath was literally sucked out of my lungs when I saw him. seriously. I sat down as fast as I could, hoping no one would notice how I was trying my hardest not to stare at him. Of course, he and his family sat down on the pew in front of me, so I was distracted for the rest of the service. 

Over the course of the next year, Trey continued to come to my church. He began sitting with the college group and somehow I caught wind that he was 19 years old. I put him to the back of my mind that instant, vowing never to look at him again. I stayed in my happy relationship with boyfriend, and continued to be very happy. Boyfriend and I rarely saw each other, and even though it seemed to work for us (to only see one another on weekends, sometimes twice a month), we slowly grew apart. We had planned a 8-day cruise several months in advance, and I was sure that this would be a turning point in our relationship. I was right, but it wasn't the turning point that I expected. Soon after the cruise, we broke up. And I do need to mention that "breaking up" in this relationship was a process that took one whole summer. Finally after trying everything within us, we called it quits for good. It was friendly, and we are still friends today. 

At this point in the story, I need to tell you that during the breaking-up process, I was constantly battling with what God wanted for me. Sometimes I was so sure that God wanted me to "stick it out" with boyfriend. I almost felt as if my relationship with boyfriend was a ministry that God had called me to. Something I was supposed to endure indefinately. In these moments, when I was considering staying "in it to win it" with boyfriend, this silly thought "what if God wants me to marry cute boy?" would suddenly invade my senses... (oh, by the way, cute boy is what I called trey because, like i said, i didn't know his name). I would dismiss this ridiculousness  and scowl on myself for even allowing thoughts like those to enter my mind. After all, I was completely distracted by this cute boy during church.... and it got worse from week to week. How was I ever supposed to realize what God wanted for my life, if I couldn't even listen during church.

"My gosh Charity," I would think to myself, "He's 19, he probably has a girlfriend, and he hasn't even looked at you twice in the year and a half since you saw him. get over yourself!" 

I began to pray (HARD) that God would remove this distraction from my life. I prayed for satan to "get behind me." I prayed and prayed and prayed.... and my distraction only got worse and worse and worse.

Finally, God spoke CLEARLY to me one night during a Dr. Phil episode (don't ask). I called boyfriend immediately, broke it off for good, and never planned to look back. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't depressed for the next 6 weeks. I had trouble eating and sleeping, and I felt so alone. It wasn't just the break-up, but I felt as if I had failed. I also felt as if I had wasted nearly 3 years of my life. Plus, I still had to go to church every week, and sit behind the cute boy who wouldn't even look at me... I made an appointment with out church counselor, hoping for some advice. 

Over the next couple of weeks, I saw the counselor, ate healthy food, started running, and trying to will myself to feel better. The distraction of the cute boy wasn't better, so I decided to pray that if God wanted me to meet the cute boy, HE would introduce himself to me. There. That settled it. There was no way that this cute boy was going to introduce himself to me, so I could stop obsessing over him once and for all, and concentrate on what God really wanted for my life.

My counselor encouraged me to find some friends at church, even if they were younger than me, so I did. One sunday night I accepted an invitation from the college and career class to eat dinner at one of their houses. I knew everyone really well, so I wasn't nervous. But I did go home and change into some more "college-like" clothes so I wouldn't look too stuffy. Since the person's house we were eating at was my neighbor, I walked over and let myself in the back door. I talked to everyone, and it felt so good. By the time we were ready to eat, I had walked into the kitchen to fix my plate. Up until this point I had barely noticed the cute boy was there... My prayers had worked! God took away my distraction! Satan had no power over me! As I was silently celebrating and putting an extra large helping of desert on my plate, I felt someone approach me. I looked up, and to my suprise (and inner horror) I saw the cute boy.

"Hi, I'm Trey Murdock. I don't think we've met....."

To be continued......