Our Love Story

Below is a series of God Nods (God-orchestrated persons and events) that led to my marrying Marilynne
some 40 years ago. These same God Nods appear in God Nods on His Story About Me (my Spiritual Memoir). I’ve italicized words that indicate each God Nod:

I had briefly dated two young ladies who didn’t know one another.
Each was a babysitter for Stu and Donna Gardner’s children.
Each independently suggested I dialogue with Stu.
Stu had studied the same humanistic psychologists I idolized.
Stu was a strong Christian counselor who used Humanistic techniques without embracing a Naturalism worldview; we discussed this a lot.
Stu employed his best counseling skills while listening to my struggles about Becoming a Born Again Christian. [Should he have “charged” me or should I have “charged” him for practicing on a difficult “client”? I laugh every time I think about this.]
Stu invited me to attend Marineville Chapel where Jesus and I found one another.
Stu baptized me – on May18, 1980 as Mount St. Helens was erupting!
Stu suggested I take Christian courses at nearby Regent College.
For a course assignment on Christian Counseling, I was writing a paper analyzing how Transactional Analysis describes Jesus’ way of interacting with the Scribes and Pharisees.
I was task-focused, trying to understand Jesus better, books spread out on a large conference table, all alone, dressed in a tee shirt and shorts, wearing sandals because it was early August, minding my own business.
Unexpectedly, a gorgeous blonde entered the room and asked me, “Have you bought your ticket to our department social?”
I told her I was a faculty member in a different department, so she left.
About three hours later, she stuck her head into the room where I was even more results-oriented, trying to finish writing my paper.
My keen eye noticed she had several books tucked under her arm, so I asked: “Are you going to the library to return those books?”
“Yes, I am,” she replied.
“Would you mind returning these books for me?”
“Certainly.” A minute later she left for the library.
About 40 minutes later she returned and said, “I’ve returned your books. Just wanted you to know.”
You have to understand that at this period in my life I was not looking for any woman in my life – I was totally focused on learning about Jesus, but for some reason, I said: “Could I take you to dinner at the Student Union to thank you?”
We enjoyed a meal like any students might eat there, and I learned her name is Marilynne, and she was working on a Masters Degree.
After a quick meal, I had to get back to completing my paper. She left to go to her home.
I didn’t think about Marilynne for another month. Until ...
Every September, for several years, I had booked a location on campus for a Social + Dance, so my current students could meet my former students.
As the faculty sponsor for this event, I had to post the Liquor License in the room where our Social was occurring, but had left it in my car – the first time I had forgotten it.
While walking to my car to get the Liquor License, I saw Marilynne alone in her office, working on an assignment, at about 8 pm on a Friday night.
Her small office faced the road I was walking along, instead of facing away like all other offices in her building.
Her office window was open on an unusually hot night in September.
I tapped on her open window and asked: “Would you like to come to a Social that’s taking place just down the road?”
Marilynne said, “Yes.”
We touch danced like Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers – Marilynne followed my lead as though we had always done this. [I was thinking: I could do this forever with this partner.]
We started dating – for over a year.
Marilynne was a former high school teacher, so we shared a love for learning (avocation) and then teaching this (vocation).
During that period, we worked together training my students (future teachers) to carry out Mentor-Assisted Enrichment Projects (as I describe in Chapter 8 and Appendix D).
Not only had God brought a Christian woman/partner into my life, but a daughter as well (Tam, age 8).
I had prayed for a Christian wife with children because I really didn’t want to start a family from scratch at my age (late 30s).
For over a year, we dated and got to know each other.
We wanted to be sure about marrying “for richer or poorer, for better or worse, in sickness or in health, until death do us part.”
We got our parent’s blessings and support.
We married when we were both approaching age 39.
Marilynne’s parents liked me and I liked them so much that they went with us – on our Honeymoon trip to California.
Marilynne and I have been married and business partners for nearly 40 years – because of God Nods

on His Story About Me – and about us.

What’s the probability that this entire sequence of events above
“just happened by chance” (or by fate or good fortune) –
and not because of God-orchestrated events (God Nods)?
Answer: ZERO % because of chance!
100% because of God Nods!