Psalm 105:1

Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done.

Some stories need to be told. This one is ours.  After a divorce in 2004 it felt like I almost would not survive. I was left devastated and holding on to my faith. I remember asking God to guide me "Please choose the person I should spend my life with."

In 2005 I was attending a real estate trade show in Columbus Ohio. At these shows there are small church services for attendees who want to have some quiet time of worship before the trade show opens. Sitting in the circle of people was Leslie Ann Croft. She was in marketing for one of the major attendees at the show. I had briefly met her on the elevator the night before. I remember how beautiful she was and that I was surprised that she did not have a wedding or engagement ring on her finger.

That morning in the church service we began by saying what we were thankful for. The first words I remember her saying are "I am thankful for my salvation."  I was pretty amazed that she was both beautiful and bold enough to make that statement in a group of people she did not know. She had my full attention for anything else she wanted to say and still does today.

When the meeting was over we introduced ourselves and started to talk. I remember asking someone to cover my shift at the tradeshow and our talk turned into a few hours. We exchanged phone numbers, finished the show and I rushed to catch a flight. For the next 10 days we sent each other text messages and talked until late in the evening. We started keeping a list of interesting things we had in common. Here is a brief look at some of it:

1. Both suffered difficult divorces that sounded very similar. 2. Each had two children from previous marriage 3. Both in Real Estate for Planned  Communities 4.Same friends who knew us both, Terry Weaver, Dennis Rogers, Wade Adler. 5. We both use the numbers 143 to tell our kids we love them because they are embarrassed if we say it out loud at school. 1=I 4= Love 3=You.      6. Same soda (Mountain Dew and all of our friends knew it was our favorite) 7. Same favorite books about relationships The Five Love Languages  and The Power of a Praying Husband or Wife.

The list grew and the coincidences began to add up. We both were praying at this time for guidance. Leslie, I found out later was praying that if I was a "Wolf in sheep's clothing" that I would be taken out of her life. I was praying for "God's will be done" worried that I was rushing from one relationship to another.

We planned our first date in Boston at Legal Seafood and it went well, I later came to visit her home and met her 6 year old daughter Lauren and 5 year old son Garrett. This was a very special time in our life and we all knew it. The only problem was that I was in West Virginia helping start a new community and Leslie was in Tennessee. We discussed the problem and left it in God's Hands. We both agreed that if God wanted to move Kentucky out of the way he could certainly do it.

With in a week or so the job I was working on was shut down because of permitting issues and I was asked/ordered to transfer to Asheville NC. This was important because it is exactly half way between Leslie, Lauren & Garret and My sons Jeff age 8 and John age 4 who live in Burlington NC with their mother.

It is hard to explain but I felt that Leslie and I were supposed to be married. I worked long hours, prayed for guidance and visited her. I visited a Hendersonville jeweler and bought a ring and prayed "Lord, if this is your will please make the ring just fit." I called her father and asked him to meet me for dinner. I put the ring in my pocket and drove 2 hours to Knoxville to meet him at the Bone Fish Grill. As I was getting close to the exit on the highway I became more and more nervous. I asked God "Lord please help me to know if this is your will." When I arrived at the restaurant the billboard above the restaurant was an advertisement for a jewelry store that looked something like this.    

Hint Hint!  

I took one look at the Billboard and laughed out loud and gave thanks.

I had a great conversation with her father Tom Carroll. He told me his story of how he fell in love with his wife and that they married only a few months after first meeting. He let me know that after 30 years of marriage he did not regret it. He told me he would be praying for us and he felt what we were doing was the right thing. 

I went on to propose to Leslie Ann Croft at Chimney Rock Park exactly 30 days after we first met at the show in Columbus Ohio. When I slid the ring on her finger it fit perfectly. We were married that June at the Hammock Beach Resort in Palm Coast Florida. (See picture below)

I know it seems personal to share this story but God works in people's lives and he leaves it up to us to tell of his glory and power. Webster's Dictionary defines Faith as: A firm belief in something for which there is no proof. Our story is not proof of God but it certainly could be the hint you are looking for.  Thank you for taking a moment to read our story. If you know my wife invite her to tell you her version of the same experience, it will not leave you disappointed.