A Story That Must be Told…

“…bless them with legions of children…and may Satan quell at the very name of Carnett“.

If you’ve been reading for a while, you may remember a post referring to the first homeschooling family I ever knew, and how profoundly they influenced my life. (I can’t find the post!) They were neighbors, they homeschooled, they didn’t allow their kids to date, and I thought all that made them the weirdest people I knew. Little did I know…

Meet Lucy…their youngest.

To say Lucy is a sweet girl who has honored the Lord and her parents with her life is an understatement. Those of you who know Lucy know what I mean. Lucy is simply wonderful.

Lucy grew up right down the road from us, spending her days at home with her family, helping them with their ministry. Where most girls may have been lonely, the Lord gave Lucy peace and joy, and a life filled with opportunties to serve her family and others God brought frequently into their lives. And during that time, the Lord drew Lucy to her mother and father in an incredible way.

Lucy has recounted that all she ever wanted to do was grow up and get married and have a family. She is immensely talented, involved in many things through the years, including a business teaching piano and mission work in foreign countries.

But the one thing she didn’t have, as she entered marriageable age, was a husband.

No problem, though, because Lucy was 100 percent trusting in the Lord for his will for her life. I think those of us friends looking in became more anxious than she was, hoping to hear any day that some young man was on the horizon.

But the years kept passing!

So you can imagine the elation when, last October we learned that 31-year-old Lucy was engaged to be married!

I can only try to express the beauty of this courtship–you would have to get Lucy’s version to really comprehend it. There are so many details that reveal God’s divine purpose, it would blow you away!

In her bubbly way, Lucy told how she pleaded with the Lord to either give her peace about being single or to give her a husband. Several young men had approached her father about courting Lucy, but Lucy knew her husband had not yet come.

“There’s one thing worse than not getting married, Lucy,” her father once told her. “And that is marrying the wrong man.”

Meanwhile a young man (Cody) who was on his daily (something like 45-mile) run , was praying for the wife he did not yet know. He says the Lord said to him clearly, “You are going to marry Lucy”.

(As one of many “coincidences” which we know are just God’s goodness, Lucy and Cody are both VERY athletic, and each of them greatly desired a spouse who was equally interested in health and exercise.)

Cody knew Lucy’s family, but had hardly ever spoken with Lucy. So, Cody did what he says was the only thing he could do–obey the Lord.

He walked into the office of Lucy’s father, looked him in the eye and told him he was interested in a young lady who he believed God wanted him to marry. “I see”, replied Lucy’s father. “It’s your daughter”. (Don’t you wish you could have been there?!)

There are so many wonderful details I don’t have time to write in this already too-long post…but as Lucy’s father felt completely confirmed in his heart that this man was Lucy’s husband, telling Lucy and her Mom was more than an eventful experience.

Lucy, barely knowing Cody, said she felt as if she was “standing on holy ground” when her father explained Cody’s desire to get to know her.

And as they began to spend time together, the Lord knit their hearts in such a miraculous way, it’s really hard to comprehend.

Hearing their story created such an awe in me, with a new sense of how big God is when we give him total control of our lives.

They were engaged just a few weeks later, and they married last Saturday. There, in front of more than 1200 people, Lucy and Cody exchanged their first kiss.

I wish I could have gone. A friend recounted that Doug Phillips, founder of Vision Forum prayed…”…bless them with legions of children…and may Satan quell at the very name of Carnett“.

So if you can’t understand how anyone could find a spouse without recreationally dating, maybe you should consider how big a God we serve…and maybe you should just put Him to the test!

Photography credits HERE

Related posts:

1. What a Lovely Description of Motherhood (told by a husband)