OUR STORY
It was
always
you...
Looking back, God's fingerprints are evident throughout our story—a testament to patience, hope, faith, love, and timing - His perfect timing.
We met in Long Beach, CA, in 2008. We always remained friends as we dated others. The timing was never really 'right.' Weeks might pass between phone calls or texts. Eventually, the weeks turned into months, and the months into years....until 2020. And for the first time in a long time, we were ready to share who we truly were, where we had been, and what we had learned along the way. We began to wade into the waters of trust, dedicated ourselves to healing, and prioritized faith above it all.
The day of the proposal was a chronicle of Kristina's first visit to Sonoma County. But what started as a typical drive out to our favorite spot along the coast ended with something from the very beginning - words from Genesis 2: "It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him." So Matty asked Kristina to be that helper, his wife...and she accepted.
There were jumps for joy, child-like screams, and lots of waterfall tears - all tied together by a beautiful ring that once adorned the finger of Matty's great-grandmother (thank you, Carol!). A surprise dinner with family followed shortly thereafter at the restaurant we consider to be our first "official" date of 2020...12 years after we first met.
There are many stories (upon stories) of this adventure that we cherish and hope to share with you one day. The above is but a dimly lit mirror. To all of you who have been a part of our journey - from our parents, siblings, friends, and extended family, we thank you all for your steady presence, support, and love throughout the years.
God is not just good; He is great. Cheers to the next chapter and the many adventures He has in store for us!
Genesis 2:1-25
1 Thus the heavens and the earth and all their array were completed.
2 On the seventh day, God completed the work he had been doing; he rested on the seventh day from all the work he had undertaken.
3 God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work he had done in creation.
I. THE STORY OF THE NATIONS
The Garden of Eden.
4 This is the story* of the heavens and the earth at their creation. When the LORD God made the earth and the heavens—
5 there was no field shrub on earth and no grass of the field had sprouted, for the LORD God had sent no rain upon the earth and there was no man* to till the ground,
6 but a stream was welling up out of the earth and watering all the surface of the ground—
7 then the LORD God formed the man out of the dust of the ground and blew into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.d
8 The LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east,* and placed there the man whom he had formed.
9 Out of the ground the LORD God made grow every tree that was delightful to look at and good for food, with the tree of life in the middle of the garden and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.f
10 A river rises in Eden to water the garden; beyond there it divides and becomes four branches.
11 The name of the first is the Pishon; it is the one that winds through the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold.
12 The gold of that land is good; bdellium and lapis lazuli are also there.
13 The name of the second river is the Gihon; it is the one that winds all through the land of Cush.
14 The name of the third river is the Tigris; it is the one that flows east of Asshur. The fourth river is the Euphrates.
15 The LORD God then took the man and settled him in the garden of Eden, to cultivate and care for it.
16 The LORD God gave the man this order: You are free to eat from any of the trees of the garden
17 except the tree of knowledge of good and evil. From that tree you shall not eat; when you eat from it you shall die.
18 The LORD God said: It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suited to him.
19 So the LORD God formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds of the air, and he brought them to the man to see what he would call them; whatever the man called each living creature was then its name.
20 The man gave names to all the tame animals, all the birds of the air, and all the wild animals, but none proved to be a helper suited to the man.
21 So the LORD God cast a deep sleep on the man, and while he was asleep, he took out one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh.
22 The LORD God then built the rib that he had taken from the man into a woman. When he brought her to the man,
23 the man said:
“This one, at last, is bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
This one shall be called ‘woman,’
for out of man this one has been taken.”*
24 That is why a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, and the two of them become one body.*
25 The man and his wife were both naked, yet they felt no shame.*