What’s Up Dyck?  

Ok,so this may be a bit lame for those of you who have celebrated 10, 20, 30, 50, or more years of wedded bliss, but for me, I find myself reflecting on the past 9 years. October 17th, 2007 will mark 9 years of marriage for Melissa and I and it’s amazing to see where God has brought us, how we have grown and what has been accomplished in seemingly so little time.

I can remember back to that exact day in 1997 when I was living on the small island of Helene, Honduras, working with Alternative Missions. I was awaiting the arrival of our next short term outreach team from a church in Phoenix, AZ called Skyway. The first of several boats arrived at our dock and out stepped this angel, dressed in a blue and white striped shirt, drenched in sweat as the boat had broken down several times during their journey up island. Over the course of the next few days I spent day after day telling this new team of volunteers about my amazing girlfriend home in the states. Unbeknown to me however, the first day Melissa and I had met, she had returned to her room that evening to journal about the days experiences and had written, “God, I think I just met my husband”. It seems one of us was a bit more connected to what God was saying than the other.

Later that same week a dear friends from back home joined me for a month in Helene and brought with him a “Dear John” letter from my girlfriend back home. I was crushed and wasn’t quite sure what to do. Skyway eventually left Helene and I was certain that I would probably never see the people from this team again…namely Melissa. Then the next team arrived and when they did, they brought with them a large manila envelope filled with letters for me from the last team. In this group of letters there was a beautiful 20 page letter from Melissa chronicling her every day experiences upon her return to Arizona. I quickly responded with a brief 30 page letter of my own and from that day forward we continued to communicate via letters until it was my time to depart from the island.

God continued to build upon this connection as He placed several divinely orchestrated road blocks on my pathway home to Seattle. Because of these road blocks, I was detoured from Texas to Arizona and had a week long layover in the city of Phoenix. It was during that time that I decided Melissa and I should have a heart to heart discussion about the hidden meaning of these 20 and 30 page letters we had been exchanging. After a tearful conversation which revealed our true feelings for one another I decided that it was imperative that I return to Seattle and insure that all of my relationships were in order before making commitments of this nature.

One month later I found myself standing at the end of the concourse awaiting the arrival of an Alaska flight from Phoenix to Seattle. Out stepped Melissa and the rest they say….is history. We had our first date, our first kiss, (which incidentally happened on the same occasion). We were engaged on December 27th, 1997 and married on October 17th, 1998. We moved back to Seattle and worked for several years before launching out again into full time foreign missions with Alternative Missions. We moved to Honduras, Mexico and Costa Rica. We lived in Puerto Escondido and eventually returned to Phoenix, AZ where we have established our base of operations.

God saw fit to add to our family in May of 2004 when we welcomed Max and Clay Dyck into our lives. Today, we are living in Goodyear, AZ, raising our two sons and working with Alternative Missions. God has used us to help establish a ministry in Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica as well as assist in overseeing the continued development of ministries in Mexico and Honduras. Together Melissa and I have ministered side by side on foreign soil, in churches, and wherever else God has led us. The past 9 years have been an adventure that I wouldn’t trade for the world!

All in all…I have to say that my wife is the most incredible person I have ever met. She shines with a beauty that can only come from within and lives her life with a love inspired by the grace, love and forgiveness that Christ has given her. She is an amazing mother, a helpmate beyond my wildest imagination and the love of my life.

I think back to a day before I left for Honduras in late 1996. I had met up with some dear friends and mentors to enjoy dinner before I finally left for 1 year. This friend turned to me and said, “Jeremy, you really need to prepare yourself. God is going to introduce you to the person you’re going to spend your life with this year.” I nodded my head and smiled figuring I would humor her and quickly move beyond that part of the conversation. Well…Diana, you were right, (as always), and thank God you were. I am forever grateful to God and His amazing grace, that he would bring such a precious gift into my life.

Melissa…I love you sweetheart. Here’s to the last 9 years, and all the years that lie ahead of us!