Our Story: First Sight

For the first installment of this long story, see Our Story: Introductions.  Second installment, see Our Story: Rescued. Third installment, see Our Story: A Long Wait.

Our Story: First Sight
Was That Love?



The summer of 2005 was notable for a few reasons. It was my first summer living in the 'hood in Minneapolis. It was my first summer working full-time (as a real, independent adult). And it was the summer that Ben moved to town.

One of my duties as the now-full-time Adult Ministry assistant was to coordinate the weekly Wednesday Connection meal.  We alternated between the parking lot of our under-construction North Campus (in Mounds View) and the parking lot of our Downtown Campus (in Minneapolis).  Hot dogs, chips, water.  This was not a complicated meal.  But you would hardly believe the trouble I had.

I wrote an essay about my experience that summer. Laugh or cry, you know? (I'll try to post the essay, but I only have a hard copy right now.)

Ed Katterson was my noble hot dog griller. On a Wednesday in June, I was rushing around, per the norm, when a lanky fellow peddled into the Downtown parking lot on a bicycle, his shoulder-length, curly blond hair billowing behind him. My impressions were of a high-octane smile and a bit of a wild appearance. Ed introduced him as his youngest son, newly moved to town to be a part of Bethlehem, Ben.

I said hi and continued on my stressed-out way. [Ben recalls feeling a bit deflated by my welcome. Little did he know what strenuous demands were riding on the shoulders of that distracted hot dog lady...]

The next time our paths crossed was at a game night at Ben and Melissa Piper's house, maybe a few weeks later. I had served as Ben Piper's ministry assistant for about 6 months, so we were friends, and they also invited their neighbors across the street (who happened to be Nathan and Laura Katterson),  another single guy, and ... Nathan's younger brother Ben. The card game we played [sadly, I don't recall what it was] involved going around the circle, each person laying down a card. In the course of play, Ben laid down a card, and I happened to lay down its pair. Ben looked over at me, with his wide grin, and said, "Well, I guess we'll have to get married!"

Cheeky man, I thought. He doesn't even know me.

Aside from crossing paths at morning prayer meetings and church, nothing notable marked our interactions after that. We were acquaintances (not particularly friends) and each heavily involved in different things. Ben was almost immediately drawn into the Messengers drama group (a performing arts group that presented at Bethlehem as well as traveled around the country) and some short-term missions trips with his dad, and I was leading a small group and a neighborhood Bible study and working too much.

It would be a year and a half before I had any indication God would be crossing our paths in a more significant way.

Next installment: Just a Hint