Before the beginning of time, God Almighty designed a man named Rob Hulson. And in His mind He had a perfect helpmeet for him in a woman by the name of Rosanna Storey.

…but, in the interest of time and readability we’re going to skip a lot of what happened between then and when they actually met.

In the summer of 2003, Rob and Rosanna were both involved with an online community designed for past and present members of a Christian ministry to keep in touch with each other. Rob, in Edmond, Oklahoma, was the moderator of the message boards and asked a beautiful, winsome, God-centered, and fun brunette girl to help him in the task of moderating. Rosanna, in Dallas, Texas, had noticed the spiritual depth and delight of God in the posts of a certain curly-haired moderator. She agreed to help him, and a fast friendship was formed out of their working relationship. Their year-and-a-half friendship was focused on their mutual delight in the glory of God and helping each other grow spiritually, with lots of fun along the way. Little did they know, God had a bigger purpose for their relationship than friendship (take a guess at what that might be). The next summer held changes for both of them as their friendship was put on hold and the Lord did deep works in each of their hearts, preparing them for what was to come next.

In January of 2005, with Rob back in Edmond after a brief move elsewhere and Rosanna back in Carson City, Nevada, Rob inquired of the Lord regarding the next phase of his life. He was confronted with a question: “What do you want to do?� Basing his decision on the promise that God gives the desires of the heart to those who delight in Him, there was one person on his mind he knew beyond any doubting that he wanted: Rosanna. There simply was no one else like her with her combination of both zaniness and depth (being drop-dead gorgeous sure didn’t hurt, either!). Ten days of constant communication followed. During those ten days, Rosanna began to realize that her feelings toward Rob were quite different than just friends. His wholehearted pursuit of Jesus, their connection on so many levels, both fun and serious, and his leadership to direct the focus of their friendship to the Lord had finally won her affections. She asked the Lord if this new feeling was of Him, and if it was, to prompt Rob to initiate the subject. One evening, during a five-hour phone conversation stretching late into the night, Rob took the risk and bore his heart to Rosanna. He was rewarded by finding out she felt the same way about him.

Through many confirmations early in their relationship, God’s lavish grace was filling them to an overflow. Much was shared and much was forgiven over the next nine months of phone calls and visits. They both came to view the other as a tangible expression of God’s grace in their lives. It wasn’t long before they knew that their quest for their mate was complete. In August, Rob asked Rosanna’s dad for his permission to ask for her hand in marriage. On October 7th, after months of scheming and planning, Rob flew into Reno with a beautiful diamond ring to ask Rosanna to marry him. He had “primed the pump� by sending her CDs of him singing their favorite songs and instructing her to listen to them at their special place, “The Hill�. This day was different, however. Unbeknownst to Rosanna, Rob was waiting a few yards away as she sat in her car and listened to a song that he had written and recorded just for her. At the end of the song, Rob read a passage of scripture over the phone before coming out of hiding to give Rosanna the surprise of her life! As he went down on one knee, the world seemed to come to a standstill and only one word could be heard in answer to that famous, life-altering question… “will you marry me?� YES! For more details of that grand event, see [Rosanna’s entry] on her weblog.

Nearly a year has passed since that day, and Rob and Rosanna have grown closer to each other and to Jesus. His purposes have continued to unfold as they see more clearly every day how they were created to perfectly complement each other in their strengths and weaknesses. They look forward to becoming one and pursuing God’s designs for them as a couple who will bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to as many people as possible.