Having Faith in God's Timing

Life doesn't always turn out the way we plan. I speak from recent experience. I look at where I am now compared to where I had planned to be and it's not even close. With that being said, sometimes the things you want most in life come when you least expect them (so cliché, I know). Timing is EVERYTHING!!! I've learned just how important it is to have faith in God's timing. He really does know what is best and WHEN it is best.

I had planned on going to school full time, working part time at the spa, maybe taking a few institute classes. I was basically coasting through life not really knowing what to do and not going anywhere. I was done with choir which was my whole social life. All my friends were married. I was still finding out what direction my life was taking. But then I got the opportunity to be an EFY counselor this summer! :) (I'll write more about that later!) I got to do 3 weeks in Provo, 3 weeks in Tacoma, and 1 week in Ogden.

About 2 weeks before I left, I started hanging out with John Cozzens. We spent the day together at the park where we had a picnic and played catch. Little did I know at the time, but this would become a crucial day in my life. John and I have always had an up and down relationship when it came to "liking" one another. Our timing was ALWAYS off. I was casually dating 2 other boys at that time but after that day I had the thought that I could like John Cozzens. But I honestly didn't believe anything would happen. I wasn't planning on acting on it. I already had 2 other boys that were occupying most of my time.

The weekend before I left for my first EFY session in Provo, I hung out with John Cozzens. It was filled with long talks, the game "life", musical video games, and guitar playing. It was pretty great. That is when I knew. I knew I liked this boy. And I was pretty sure he liked me too.

I was gone most of the summer but I called John almost every day. I had some very hard and lonely weeks at EFY. Some weeks where my faith was tried and tested. John was my rock. He helped me through the some of the toughest times just by listening and giving me great advice. There was one particular night where I had one of the worst days I've ever had (dramatic, I know). I called John and just sat in the stairwell of my apartment and cried on the phone. I don't remember what he told me, but I remember how he made me feel. It was at that moment that I knew I loved him. And I knew I needed him.

Upon my return home for the summer, and I never left each others sides. One night, as we were hanging out he told me he needed to talk about "his feelings". He then sat there for a moment with his eyes closed and took a few deep breaths. He then told me that he liked me! :) I told him I felt the same and we had a short discussion about how we should go on dates. We went on a date to Lagoon the next week (which is SO expensive!). It was the "first" date we went on while we were actually "dating". John was in a super weird mood though and was singing to strangers. haha (oooh John).

After that, I saw him every single day!! And we were both okay with that. The day I got back from my second to last week of EFY he took me to the Ogden rodeo. My favorite part was when the kiddos rode the sheep! Hilarious! When the cowboys were putting the sheep back into their stalls, there was one defiant sheep that would not move! It took at the cowboys to drag the poor sheep to it's kennel! It was good entertainment. After the rodeo we went to John's house and he held my hand for the first time. :) He gave me butterflies.

Fast forwarding to a month later.... On August 12th, John Cozzens asked me to be his girlfriend. :) He then told me he loved me for the first time. I'll never forget that moment. I have never had anyone look at me the way he did. I've also never loved anyone like I have loved him! :) It was a special moment!

A few weeks later we went to the Ogden Temple open house. Wow was it beautiful!! It has the most stunning pictures in it! I love that even though it's not dedicated, it still has a feeling of peace. I'm so happy that I got to go through it with my best friend. I'm also excited to have the Ogden temple open again. I have greatly missed it, it has always been one of my favorites!!

A few weeks later, John, his sister and I went to Comic Con. :) Okay... so going to comic con is so out of my element. I have never done or gone to anything like that before so I admit I was nervous. I didn't know what to expect. But it was actually a blast! I loved it!! They have SO many booths and speakers. We went to this panel where it was a symphony playing popular songs. It blew my mind! They played star wars, walking dead theme song, Dr. Who, how to train your dragon, and many others. I would have never thought Comic Con would be something I would enjoy, but I liked it and would definitely go again. Especially if I get to go with my man :)

These last few months have come and gone so fast. With school, my new full time job, working at the spa, and having a new boyfriend, there isn't much time for extra activities. But October just ended and that is my favorite time of year! I was able to go to plenty of haunted houses with my co-workers and my partner in crime, Julio! :) (john's not really into that sort of thing) Although John didn't go with me to the haunted houses, he did paint pumpkins with me! :) That is one of my favorite October festivities. I look forward to it every year! We went over to Kayla and Logan's' house and painted/carved pumpkins. He carved his into a batman while I painted mine like minion. :)

These past few months have been amazing, but not even close to where I imagined I would be. If you would have told me 5 months ago that I would be dating and in love with a boy I've known for years, I would have said that you were cray-cray!! I've known John Cozzens for about 5 years now. He has always been one of my closest friends and I never thought we would become more than that. But I'm so happy we did because he makes me so happy. Timing is everything. It took us 5 years to be ready. It still blows my mind that for the last 5 years I have been dating and searching for that person to marry when he was standing in front of me the whole time. Never give up on anyone and never count anyone out. You might miss out on a great opportunity if you do. God knows what we need and when we need it. He see's the big picture. :) I'm sure glad God prepares us and guides us to where we need to be at the time we need to be there. John Cozzens is my best friend and the love of my life and he was SOOO worth 5 years of waiting!!