She Returned To CatholicMatch Over And Over And Over Again!

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At 25, Griselda joined CatholicMatch not so much out of personal interest, but out of social pressure!

She had just graduated with her master’s degree, and her family was hoping she would start looking for someone to marry! That was all back in 2016....

“At that time, I thought I could meet someone offline . . . hence, my profile was on CatholicMatch for a long period of time with no success!” she recalls. She didn’t put much effort into online dating, and tried instead to meet men in real life. (God had other plans for her, though!)

Three years later, in 2019, she started her second master’s degree and headed abroad for study. It’s always tougher to meet people in a foreign country, so she dusted off her old CatholicMatch profile and gave it another try.

This time around, she had much better success.

She messaged several people and even had a fairly serious relationship, which ended in a breakup. But at this point, Griselda was not deterred and rejoined CatholicMatch again!

A gentleman named Matias liked some of her photos, so they began messaging. They both felt an instant click! 

“Our chats were lengthy, and we even switched to WhatsApp on day one!” Griselda says. Circumstances didn’t allow them to meet up quickly, as they preferred. So they messaged and called back and forth for two months. Finally, Matias was able to come visit Alberta where Griselda was. They had a delightful first date in Banff, overlooking the beautiful emerald lake and stunning mountains, and declared themselves an official couple. As they continued to date, they spent time playing board games, cooking hotpot with friends, and watching Ascension faith studies with friends abroad. They also joined Catholic Christian Outreach for another faith study and took long walks in the park!

But every relationship has its struggles; Griselda found herself struggling to get over her past relationship. 

“Matias was patient and calm; he was always beside me,” she says, as they talked out her struggle together. With his support and prayer, Griselda was able to let go of the past and move forward into the serious “I love you” phase of their relationship. They tackled every obstacle as a team–and there were definitely obstacles! There were several difficulties with job opportunities, and uncertainty about future locations. They weren’t sure if Matias was going to need to go back to his home country for work–and Griselda found herself saying if he did, she would commit to a long-distance relationship together, if that’s what it took. Matias responded with patience and encouragement to turn back to God through prayer and reconciliation, and the path would become clearer.

“Together we became better children of God!” Griselda remembers.

In late November, Matias landed a long-term job in the area. He wasted no time in proposing after that. Although they had talked about marriage together, Griselda was still surprised!

Of course, she said yes.

The two then asked for blessings from both sides of the family. 

“My parents were touched–they were almost speechless–while Matias' family gathered together in WhatsApp group call and cheered!” 

They married in a church in Canmore because it was near Banff, their beautiful first date location. Since neither of them had family nearby to help out, they did most of the wedding preparations themselves. They discovered how their priest and several church members were happy to help them fill in the planning blanks!

Thankfully, family members were able to join them for the wedding ceremony itself.

“On the wedding day, we were filled with peace and joy. We were blessed to join in a union and we were grateful for everyone's well wishes!” Griselda says.

What advice do they have for CatholicMatchers today? 

“For users of CatholicMatch, I recommend you to pray always . . . But also, take a chance. God has so much in store for you! Looking back, I don't regret being single for 28 years. It was the time to grow, to open my heart, and to listen to God's will!”

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