“People are going to say a lot of mean stuff about us, and the next few years will be full of gossip and ugly rumors about you and me both. You sure you’re ready?”

Talk about romantic first-date banter… I was courting my future wife on our first date and knew we needed to prepare ourselves for what was to come next.

I was a thirty-year-old energy executive living in Dallas, and I had already experienced a decade of social highs and lows from being in the public eye. On the other hand, Amanda was an introverted old soul, starting her sophomore year at Texas A&M, who would rather remain under the radar and avoid any spotlights.

On paper, the potential relationship math didn’t add up; however, in the way that only God can reveal, I knew that Amanda and I were destined to be married, and I made that clear when I asked her out for our first date. It was a “big time” move, but I literally told her that I thought we were likely to get married, so it makes sense that we should start dating.

Amanda and I met in 2008 when I was blessed to have one of the Texas A&M freshman orientation Camps, known as a Fish Camp, named after me. The life-saving legacy of the CARPOOL safe-ride program, which I had launched nine years earlier, afforded me many great honors, and Camp Schiefelbein was among the top of them all. Meanwhile, Amanda was wrapping up her freshman year and looking to build new friendships as a first-year counselor at Fish Camp.

I first met the counselors of Camp Schiefelbein in February, when they attended a fun reveal night during which they found out what camp session, color, and name they would represent for the next six months, leading up to the actual four-day experience in August. The counselors were generally a loud, fun-loving bunch with many extroverts leading the way. It wasn’t until my second time meeting them all that I noticed my future wife, Amanda.

I was at an Aggie Baseball game with the Camp Schiefelbein crew when God nailed me with a feeling that never left. As one of the players walked up to the plate and the song “Ooh Aah” played in the background, I caught sight of Amanda head-bobbing to the beat as my heart skipped one. “Oh geez,” I thought, as I was overcome with some vision of this beautiful young woman playing a big part in my life. “I hope this crush goes away quickly; there is no way I can date a counselor from my own camp.”

My crush on Amanda never went away. For months, I was invited to cool team-building activities with the counselors, and every time I encountered Amanda, my conviction that something much bigger was at play here continued to grow. I resolved to sit tight and see how I felt once Camp Schiefelbein concluded in mid-August before putting any more mental energy into what could happen next.

The four days of Fish Camp were so much fun to watch. As a former counselor myself, I knew the types of bonds and meaningful moments that were in store for the freshman class, and I was especially proud of the counselors and freshmen of Camp Schiefelbein. The months leading up to that experience allowed the counselors to come together as a team and, strangely, that time also supported my prayerful discernment of God’s will for my future vocation as a husband and father.

Against all odds, I asked Amanda on a date, and to make it memorable, we decided on a road trip to Galveston to watch the sunrise. On that first date, we talked about naming our first daughter Lorelei and imagined having a big family someday. We set the timer on my digital camera and snapped a picture of our first date from the sea wall. It was official, we were dating, and there was no turning back.

In the weeks ahead, the rumors started, and so did the attacks. People can be quick to judge, and it hurt Amanda to have friends and strangers gossiping about her around every corner. I took a few hits, too, but I had grown accustomed to the ugly part of living a life in the public eye. I can remember two different groups that uninvited me to speak at the conferences on campus that fall because of the falsehoods being spread about me and my intentions.

I remember telling Amanda that someday we would have a backyard full of kids and meaningful chaos, and we would have trouble remembering the names of the people who were making life so difficult in those early years. We committed to putting God first, each other second, our kids third, and everything else would fall into place after that. I look back now with incredible gratitude for the courage and fortitude God gave us to stick it out during those times when many others were hoping we would fail.

Since those early days, Amanda and I have welcomed seven amazing children into our family, started several new businesses, prayed together on pilgrimages to the Holy Land and to Our Lady of Guadalupe, lost grandparents, experienced tragedy, and received miracles. As a result of my keynote talks and entrepreneurial success, I receive praise and honor on a fairly regular basis, none of which I could have accomplished without Amanda and our shared belief that faith comes first.

As I type this post, Amanda just ran by me with a sick kid who needs help from both of us. I am so grateful I get to take care of this family, in sickness and in health, and to travel through life with Amanda.

Faith and family are both paramount to all other aspects of our lives. Remember to have hope, courage, and fortitude in both.