Christian Testimony - February 2013

Me sitting behind a computer screen in Gothenburg, Sweden (which is where I am from) and her in Pittsburgh, USA. I saw her profile picture and was blown away by her beauty and just knew that I had to talk to this woman.

I complemented her on her beautiful smile and from that day on we spoke everyday more and more, on average about 3-4 hours per day. The reason both of us had even ended up on ChristianCafe.com was due to our mutual longing to meet someone who shared the faith we have in Jesus.

Neither of us was really expecting that it would REALLY happen, but I guess we were grasping on to HOPE...and thank God that we did because here we are !

Our story could be made into a book itself if we just wanted to, but in trying to keep it somewhat short here is a break down of where we have ended up since that New Year's Day 2011.

After some time of constantly staring at each other on a computer screen day in and day out the longing to ACTUALLY MEET IN PERSON became VERY strong !

We decided to meet for the first time on neutral ground, LONDON, ENGLAND at the end of February the same year. We had 4 amazing days together before we had to part ways and go back home.

At the end of April I visited Heather and her family in America. I spent 8 days there and during that visit we got engaged and also decided to start my VISA process so I could move there and we could get married.

The following year I flew back and forth from Sweden to America about every 10 weeks or so to see each other. Heather also visited me in Sweden for 4 days at the end of November. During that visit, without us knowing it at the time, our fiance VISA petition was approved ! Heather got the approval letter when she had returned back from the visit in Sweden. I had my interview at the American embassy in Stockholm, Sweden on January 31st 2012 and was approved!

I received my VISA in the mail a week later and started the process of selling every possession that I owned and quit the lease to my apartment and also finally quit my JOB... it was getting serious now.

I arrived in Pittsburgh on April 1st 2012 and we were married on May 27th. I now live my life here in America with my beautiful wife and 2nd blessing I was given in this process: my step daughter, Sydney!

Life is a process and not always easy, but we know where our foundation is, and that is in GOD and everything can be worked out if we just learn to let go sometimes and let HIM work.

Mike-blessedman777 {Sweden} & Heather-heather427 {Pennsylvania} February 2013

We sent you our story and you posted it. We now have a 3 month old baby! Here are some pictures of her.

Balazs-balazs358 {Ontario} & Christina-christina829 {Cyprus} February 2013

[Editor's note: See March 2010 testimonial for photos of the happy couple on their wedding day, December 2018 testimonial for an update on their 3 "Cafe Babies"! and February 2020 testimonial for their 10th anniversary post!]

35 years we waited for one another. 35 years of heartbreak, lonely days and nights, pleading and asking and questioning God about when, when our love would come along; what Lord, what was wrong with us? Who Lord, who? Is there someone out there for me?

Friends and family in both our worlds would tell us, "Better to be single and wishing to be married than married and wishing to be single", or, "There is always hope", or "I think you will make a wonderful spouse someday".

Then, in September of 2009, our love story actually happened. Now I have to tell you, I (Kev) was beginning to lose hope. I had just attended a friend's wedding the weekend before, and I had had it with the silly charades that they force the poor singles at weddings to go through: the bouquet toss, the garter toss, etc. I had grown tired of the game.

Meanwhile, Rachel had just gotten signed up for 6 months on ChristianCafe.com herself 10 days before me, thanks to her Dad's encouragement. I myself was only on the trial run - I intend on signing up for a 6-month term with ChristianCafe.com, simply to honor the site through which I met the love of my life, and to set all this to right.

Such anticipation built up in me just before God chose for us to meet by this medium. At the time, I was employed with a Christian humanitarian organization, working in Sudan. Pastor Simon, a fellow I worked with, just a couple months before I came home for that fateful break, gave me this verse to hang onto after I had told him everything about my dating life and the divorce of my parents. He had us pull over to the side of the road we were on, and he read me these words from Isaiah 43:18-19, which says:

"Forget the former things;
do not dwell on the past.
See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland."

How true this is in my life...Rachel is a burst of water in a dry place!

Back to how we met:

On my break at home here in Canada, I was up one night, surfing through profiles on ChristianCafe.com. I came across Rachel's. I looked and read with interest, and winked at Rachel, as I had done with several others. I even wrote a one-liner saying that I felt we had a lot in common.

I kept reading through profiles. But something about Rachel's profile drew me back for another look. I did not have a sense that I desired to look again as much as a sense of urgency: I NEEDED to go and look deeper.

I read her answers again. The more I read, the more I could sense this girl and I were on the same page in many ways. So, I risked it and made an internet dating "faux pas"...I wrote her a second, unanswered email - and this one was much longer.

In my own eyes, I imagined this could be misconstrued as desperation - but I knew my heart: it was not desperation but a quiet resolve to search out what my heart was sensing. I told Rachel, over the course of a few paragraphs, about how the Scripture verses she was citing were not your run-of-the-mill verses that a new Christian might choose...that I was struck by her testimony bearing witness to the deep struggle (and, by inference, the deep relationship) with God that she had. I was compelled to contact her.

And she did write back, and agreed with me that we had a lot in common, and we did end up meeting. She told me later that she was glad that I took a risk and contacted her in my emails, as she had resolved to "let God lead" and just put herself out there, and allow others to contact her with their interest.

Fast-forward now to the present. More than 3 years later, Rachel and I have been living our ever-after now for 19 months, and have welcomed our beautiful daughter Sasha into the world in September of 2012! We are so blessed!

And so we owe ChristianCafe.com a debt of gratitude. Thanks to the website that allowed me to meet my wonderful, godly and beautiful wife. Thank you for what you and your team are doing. It has forever impacted our lives, and made possible, through God's hands, what is now unfolding beautifully as we live out our remaining days on earth together (may they be many) - and YOUR website was the touchstone that God used to start that process! Praise Him, and thank you!

Kev-christiankev599 {Ontario} & Rachel-hislamb134 {Alberta} February 2013

I am Ivy from the Philippines, I just got married last Dec 29, 2012. I met Lawrence from Florida, USA here on ChristianCafe.com 2 years ago.

I was checking my 'Who's Viewed Me' page and one of them was Lawrence. I admired everything that he wrote in his profile and I sent him a message.

I was surprised when he replied with a very long message. At that moment I already felt he was nice and a real person. We chatted for 3 months until we 'met' via cam. We enjoyed chatting so much that we even forgot the time.

Lawrence decided to come to the Philippines last Nov 27, 2012 and met my family. I first met him at Manila international airport and he was the exact same Lawrence that I'd talked at ChristianCafe.com.

On Dec 29, 2012 we got married here in the Philippines. We are both sure that our marriage is really from God. Thank you so much ChristianCafe.com. Glory to God and God bless!!!

Ivy-imbornagain759 {Philippines} & Lawrence-larry37 {Florida} February 2013