I'm convinced Jesus works through dating apps. It's almost as he secretly loves them -- swiping right on destiny. Years ago, I ventured into the world of dating apps and along with that came a string of less-than-ideal first dates, never progressing to a second. Until I saw someone named Wes pop up on my screen. At first, I swiped left, hesitating momentarily, then hit undo and swiped right. We agreed to a Friday night country bar first date at classy establishment called Whisky Dix. Even as I was doing my hair and makeup, I contemplated whether to stand him up or cancel last minute, but something in my gut urged my to go. Despite the fatigue from a long work week and history of failed first dates, Friday night lights beckoned. My grandmother, who found love in a bar, had an uncanny premonition upon meeting her husband -- declaring she would marry him from the second he stepped into the bar. Fate seemed to have threaded a similar narrative for me. The moment he walked in, all of my uncertainty vanished. No more dating for me; he was my person.
We talked all night, and spent almost every day together. We discovered our wildly similar upbringing and shared life values, and we realized how our paths nearly crossed multiple times. The year my family moved away from New Mexico was the same year his family moved there. We both lived in Texas just briefly overlapping each other. He was stationed in San Diego with the Navy the exact same summer I had an internship in San Diego. The same winter he was a ski lift operators at Copper Mountain was the exact same winter I visited my sister for a ski trip on the same mountain. He was likely the guy that picked up my lost ski pole I dropped while loading the chair lift.
Our meeting in Hawaii, a tiny rock in the vast Pacific, occurred within a narrow three-month window between his last deployment and the end of his military service. The odds of us crossing paths earlier in life, perhaps touching hands while passing a lost ski pole, or passing each other in a bar in San Diego as young 20 somethings drunk on tequila linger as intriguing 'what if's'. Yet, deep down, I know it wouldn't have worked out. We weren't ready for each other during those missed intersections. We were each forging our own career paths, learning lessons along the way, and wanted to enjoy our times as a single drunken construction worker and sailor.
The only explanation for our union lies in the supernatural -- God's perfect timing. He molded us individually, preparing us for the person we needed. Our encounter, orchestrated within a precise three-month timeframe defies rational explanation. As I reflect on our journey, I am convinced that God's timing is flawless -- absolutely perfect.