Karen and Allen never saw it coming.  They never thought this would ever happen.

They first met one another as new board members for Hannah House in Niagara Falls, a ministry to young women experiencing a pregnancy crisis who want to carry their child to term.  They didn’t even know much about one another’s stories.  Karen was single, with four children , teens to young adults, and Allen was married with three grown boys, married and living across the country and in the US.

Separately God was challenging them to go deeper in relationship with him.  Both had to make some tough choices in their individual lives.  Allen’s marriage fell apart sending him into crisis and crying out to God for healing. After separation Allen struggled with clinical depression and then was diagnosed with bladder cancer — a part of the journey he certainly didn’t count on.  He stepped away from his role as a pastor in a local church to go deeper into his physical, emotional and spiritual healing.  Over the course of the next year, God took him on a powerful journey, leading him into deep healing and renewed joy.

At the same time Karen was on her own journey of healing and renewal.  Karen and her family had been healing through the tragic loss of their 18 year old son and brother. She was a single mom working in a very demanding nursing position as a Director of Care at a seniors home.  She was burning out and sensed God calling her to step away, find spiritual renewal and healing including in the deeper places of herself.  That is quite a big decision not knowing how she would provide for her family.  In her journey she also felt it necessary to leave the Hannah House Board. Then God provided a job that would allow her to provide for her family without the intensive stress of her previous position.

Besides beginning a small business building web sites and doing communications work, Allen took a part-time position with Agora Network Ministries to help care for and support pastors on their mental health journey.  It brought him to Northend Church to help with a presentation.  There, Karen and Allen bumped into each other and struck up a conversation around mental wellness.  Their conversations never ended from that point on.  After a breakfast that lasted 3.5 hours, they realised there was something there.

Over the next couple of months and many, many walks around Niagara Falls, they discovered so much about one another that only strengthened their budding relationship.  They discovered they were on the same page with so many things including prayer, spiritual journey, their heart for God and the church.  There were many things they enjoyed together and found themselves laughing together a lot and praying regularly.

Then they intentionally took a two week break over a Christmas to discern if God was indeed drawing them together.  They decided to wait on the Spirit to show them what God may be saying.  Both had little notebooks where they journaled thoughts and nudges they felt from the Spirit as they prayed.  When they got back together and shared notes, they were surprised how identical they were, even some to identical wording.  For Karen and Allen, that was all they needed to take the step forward and see what God might do.  

That journey has led them down the road on Allen’s motorcycle for many adventures, deep conversations and times of prayer, laughter, tears and discernment.  There are still times when they look at each other and chuckle — picturing the other across the table at a board meeting back in the day.  

Now they have come to this time in their journey certain that God has brought them together for his purposes.  Their love for one another has grown beyond what they ever expected and cannot imagine life without the other.

They are excited to discover what God has in store.

Who woulda have thought this would happen?