The Story of Us | How David + I REALLY met + Fell in LOVE

It started when I first moved from my hometown in Powhatan, Virginia to the sweet and southern city of Mobile, Alabama in January 2013….

I was new to the University of Mobile, and one of the very first people I met was Jessica, the bubbily Residential Assistant for my new dorm room.  Jessica instantly made me feel welcomed and it wasn’t long before we were spending a lot of time together.  Moving from Virginia to Alabama had been a big leap of faith for me.  I had moved fifteen hours from home.   Jessica, being her sweet and considerate self, invited me to spend countless weekends and holidays with her and her family, since mine was so far away.  We became best friends, and I loved her family deeply.  They often joked that I was the third daughter they never had.  Jessica’s momma even confessed later on that she prayed her son would marry a girl like me….

It was on one of those trips to Jessica’s hometown that I met her younger brother, David.  

It wasn’t an instant spark that brought David and I together.  At the time, we were both dating other people, and honestly we both were other people.  David knew me as his older sister’s “very joyful (and slightly over the top) photographer friend” and I knew David as “Jessica’s little brother who loved punk bands, goofing off with his buddies & leading worship at Church”.

Obviously weren’t exactly a match made in heaven…. then.

But, in 2015 the Lord started doing something.

I was leading a mission’s trip to Eleuthera, a small island very near and dear to my heart in June of 2015.  As our team began recruiting and preparing, we all agreed that we needed a worship leader.  I reached out to a handful of my friends, inviting them to join us but none of them were able to go.  None, except for David Robbins.

The time came for our team to fly to Eleuthera and our missions trip began.  David and I led worship together and we were also in charge of all sports activities.  We were naturally gifted in music, but sports?  Not so much.  But, that didn’t matter.  We had a heart for the kids, and we both were very competitive.

I distinctly remember praying that my future kids would have a daddy that loved and played with them like David did.  

The trip ended, and new friendships were formed.  David & mine included.

One evening, about a month later, a few of us who had attended the trip together agreed to meet up for sushi.  We started asking each other the usual questions:

How have you grown since the trip?

What is the Lord teaching you?

What does this year hold for you?

Then, suddenly the questions got deeper.  One person would ask a question, and then we’d all go around the circle to give our answer.  We talked about our fears, and I admitted that I was often wondered if there was a man out there for me.

The evening got later and David said he had one more question before we all went our separate ways.  All eyes were on him as his eyes were on me.

“This question is just for Anna though,” he explained.  

He looked at the ground, as if he was mustering up the courage to look up again.  He glanced my way, and before he could convince himself to stay quiet….

“Will you give me a chance to be the man you described?  One that won’t give up on you when things get hard?  One that learns to love you and be loved by you ?”

My face flushed and I stared at David Robbins, wide-eyed.  

One girl stood up and high fived David, as if she knew all along that this question was coming.  

All I could do was attempt to process what he asked.

“Do you …. Have…. Have a chance?”  I asked.

David nodded.

I began to stumble over my words.  “ I mean… every guy has a chance…”

David smiled, “ But will you give me a chance?”

“David… I don’t… you…”

David waited patiently, a small, nervous smile twinkling in his bright blue eyes.

I exhaled slowly.  Until that moment, I had never known that David had feelings for me.  In fact, I had written off dating for a bit after my previous relationship had ended.  I didn’t want to date anyone – especially my best friends little brother.  What if things ended poorly?  

A part of me knew I needed to be fair.  At the time I had plans to move to Atlanta.  With David living in Mobile, I knew that it would be extremely difficult for anything romantic to develop.  

I glanced at David.  “Every guy has a chance, which means you have one too.”

I began to nervously gather my things. The others did the same and we walked to our cars.  

I would never forget that night.  That’s when everything started to change.

Unbeknownst to me, David started praying.  He prayed that if he was meant to pursue me romantically, then the Lord would have me move back to Mobile.

 Unbeknownst to David, my plans to move to Atlanta fell through practically over night, and I made arrangements to move back to Mobile in August of 2015.  

It was in August, that I got a phone call from David.  Nervously, I answered it.  “Anna, The Voices of Mobile want to bring me on as a tenor in their vocal group!  I have to give them an answer by tomorrow!”  

This was big news.  The Voices of Mobile was the composed of the best singers and performers at the University of Mobile.  This vocal group travelled worldwide and offered a huge scholarship to it’s members.  Only 16 students made it in every year, and competition to get in was high.

 Amazed, I congratulated him.  “Are you gonna take it?”  I asked.

“I’m not sure…. I think I will!  What do you think?”  David asked.

I smiled into the phone.  “I think you should definitely pray about it.”

“I will!  So… how have you been?”  David asked.

“I’ve been okay… I’ve got some big news too… I’m moving back to Mobile….. My plans to transition to Atlanta fell through.”  I was a little less than thrilled to admit defeat.

“Wait…. You’re moving back to Mobile?!”  The excitement in David’s voice was evident.  

“Yes… and I’m a little less than thrilled about it.”  I confessed.  At the time, I felt like it was a huge step backward… I had told everyone that I was going to move to Atlanta… and now I wasn’t anymore.    

“When will you arrive?” David asked.

I gave him the details and we agreed to meet for coffee as soon as I got back.  Neither one of us mentioned the last time we had seen each other, and neither one of us had forgotten it.

The months that followed were a beautiful mess.  One that I’m still finding treasure in.  

David started pursuing me.  But he didn’t pursue me with charm and gifts, instead, he pursued me with time and patience.  Our friendship deepened, and my journal entries were filled with adoration for him.  I had so many fears… fears that led me to “end things” with David more than once.  But David, ever patient, and ever kind, never stopped pursuing me.  He became a friend to me that I couldn’t live without.  

It was in the Fall of 2015 that David asked me on our first date.  “It’s just one date, Anna.” He encouraged, “Give me this one date, and if it’s horrible, you won’t have to worry about me asking you on another.”

In October of 2015, I wore a little black dress, he wore a suit jacket, and we’ve been together ever since.  

Recalling the details of our story still leaves me in awe.  To think that the Lord had David in mind for me and I in mind for him all of those years ago, still makes me smile.  

David, thank you for loving me so selflessly, and loving Jesus all the more.

xoxo

AnnaFilly