3 - chosen & joyful!

Kasey and I recently watched the move 'Letters to God.' If you've never seen it, you need to! It totally changed my perspective on my life and how I view the path that God has given me/us to follow. 

Those of you who are closest to us, know that when it comes to moving forward with OUR plans to get married in December, nothing has been working out. It has been really discouraging to both of us as none of OUR plans seem to be working out. I, personally, have been struggling lately with the fact that God's plan for us, might not include the New Year's Eve wedding that I have set my little heart on. I just can't grasp why God is not allowing things to work our for us. After many interviews and not a lot of straight answers, Kasey is still looking for a job. When we finally found the perfect venue that we though was withing our price range, we sat down to calculate the total cost and realized that the tax & tip on just the food, would be over $1000! With the small budget that we have, that is just not do-able. Even down to the smallest detail of going to try on wedding dresses and having my car not start, it seemed as though God really did not want us to move forward with December 31st.  I have spent the past month playing tug-of-war with God over letting go of our perfect little New Year's Eve wedding. It has been full of stress, hardships, and many many tears. And quite frankly, miserable! It has taken me a month to figure out that playing tug-of-war with God is never easy and you will always loose so you might as well just hand it over to Him to begin with. It will make things much easier and you will be filled with more joy than you could ever imagine! Because His plan is ALWAYS bigger and better than ours. 

It was only after watching the movie, 'Letters to God,' that I came to this place of being able to give our wedding plans back to God. (They were His to begin with, but in my selfishness, I took them and tried to hold on for dear life!) In the movie, the main character is a little boy who battles with cancer. With the help of his elderly neighbor friend, He gains the perspective that God has CHOSEN him to be one of His mighty warriors.  From that moment on, He lives his life as an adventure for God in which he has the privilege of sharing God's love with others and winning them over for the King.  

It was then that I realized that God has chosen Kasey and I to be in the place that we are right now. He has chosen us to have a longer engagement. He has chosen us to go through this trying time. But most exciting, He has CHOSEN us to save from the wrath that we very much deserve! And He has CHOSEN us to be his followers! In that, there is no greater joy! I may find happiness in getting married on New Year's Eve, but ultimately, its only one day and IT will come to an end.  And I know that I will find happiness in marrying Kasey, but ultimately, things will get tough, we will fight, and I won't always be happy. However, knowing that God has CHOSEN us to go through good times and bad, all for HIS glory, brings a joy that is greater than any earthly thing. Knowing that in HIM, we find our peace and our strength, is more comfort and joy than any amount of happiness could ever bring us. And knowing that He has CHOSEN us to be mighty warriors and fight for His kingdom, brings the greatest joy of all!!! 

I realized, with the help of Kasey, that I was searching for happiness in our wedding, the planning, our upcoming marriage, and even in him, but I was missing out on the JOY of our King because my focus was all wrong. 

At this very moment, we don't know what our wedding day will look like, where it will be, or even when it will be, but I do know this: 

Happiness is fleeting, but the joy found ONLY in Christ will last forever!

Psalm 16:11 - You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

2 - to my ♥

One year ago, on August 19, 2009, Kasey popped the question and I said yes. Thus began our adventure as an engaged couple. As I look at how far we've come (and how far we have to go) I wanted to take a moment to share my heart with my best friend and the love of my life.

To my love,

As we celebrated a milestone in our relationship today, I just wanted to take a moment to stop and thank you for a year filled with happiness and more love than I could have ever dreamed. When God placed you in my life, I had no idea what He had in store for the future. I love looking back on our year spent together as an engaged couple and remembering all our crazy, outlandish, funny, amazing, and unforgettable time spent together. Your laid-back, care-free personality keeps me sane and helps me focus on the things in life that really matter. Your kind, giving, and selfless heart for serving others has brought me so much joy and happiness and I have been blessed many times by your servant's heart. Your love for me has overwhelmed me and made me realize just how incredibly blessed I am to have a soon-to-be husband that loves and honors me above all else. And most importantly, Your love and passion for the Lord has led me and guided me through hardships and tears. It has changed my heart and my perspective on many things and led me through the storms of life when I couldn't do it alone. I am so proud of the man that have been and continue to be as we prepare for our adventure as husband and wife. I cannot imagine doing this with anyone else but you and I am honored, grateful, blessed, and so excited that I get to spend the rest of my life, hand-in-hand, side-by-side with such an amazing Godly man. I know that your arms will protect me, your heart will guide me, and your love will carry me, forever and always.

All my love, 
Katie 

1 - blessed beyond measure.

Only 5 months to go until our adventure as husband and wife begins! And looking back, I can hardly believe that it's almost been a year since that unforgettable August night that I said "Yes." I can still see his face as he got down on one knee and told me that He wanted to spend the rest of his life with me. Then he placed that shiny little ring on my finger and the past 11 months and 25 days have been nothing short of an incredible adventure with my best friend and the love of my life. The days have been filled with blessings, hardships, tears, laughter, lessons learned and memories that I'll cherish forever! God has taken us through valleys and over mountains. He has given us storms and sunny days. And looking back, I wouldn't change a thing! God has most certainty blessed me more than I ever deserve! He has placed in my life an incredible Godly man who has stuck by my side through thick and thin, loves me more than I deserve, and has led me to a whole new level in my relationship with my Heavenly Father.  I am so looking forward to the day that our adventure as Mr. & Mrs. Kasey Horvath begins! 

8/19/2009