Kelly (Lieneger) Welch is a firm advocate of courting. She was raised in a home that believed in it. She had always known that when she was old enough to marry, she would court, not date. For Kelly that meant seeking the Lord's will and placing herself totally under her parent's authority.

Kelly always kept a close accountability with her parents because she wanted to remain emotionally as well as physically pure. Kelly never did date. When she was younger, an admirable young man entered her life. Kelly and her father prayed about the possibility of the young man courting her. However, because of the prayer and accountability to her father, together they realized that he was not the one for her. Kelly continued to wait on the Lord, and he eventually brought her husband, Richard, to her.

Richard, who did date in high school, was led to courting by his father's counsel. Richard and his father began seeking the Lord's will for timing and for the right girl. Richard thanks God for keeping his dating experience to a minimum and for the wise judgment of his father on courting. Just as God was preparing Kelly, he was also preparing Richard, allowing him to establish a career and the ability to be head of the household. Then, just at the right time, God brought the two together.

Their families had been friends for a while, but Kelly knew his sister much better than Richard. They met about seven years ago at a conference in Knoxville. At that time, Richard was 19 and Kelly was only 13, too young to consider marriage. The families always enjoyed each others' company, but couldn't see each other much because the Welches lived in Alabama and the Lienegers lived in Texas.

Two years ago, the Lienegers hosted the Welches for two weeks while they spoke at a family conference in San Antonio. It was during this time that the Lord started laying it on Richard's heart that Kelly was the one for him. He hadn't felt this way before because, as he recalls, "I remembered her as being a young, godly girl." Since he, too, had come under the accountability of his parents, he spoke to them about what he was thinking. They prayed about it and then called Kelly's dad and all six people began praying.

As the months went on, it became clear to everyone involved that this was truly what God wanted. "It's really neat how the Lord works," Kelly said. "He works in a lot of people's hearts at once."

Also during those months, Kelly's dad, Jim, called around to mutual friends finding out what Richard was like and how others perceived him. Kelly said she is very grateful for such a protective father. After much prayer, her parents flew to Alabama and stayed with the Welches.

They spent time talking one-on-one with Richard and together as families. "I am so glad that the guy is supposed to be the initiator because I wouldn't have wanted to sit through all those interrogation sessions," Kelly said. At this point, they decided that Jim should spend time getting better acquainted with Richard, an important step in the courtship process.

Kelly said that her parents were careful to make sure that the decisions were hers, not wanting to push the relationship on her. Kelly stresses how wonderful it was to have her parents' complete approval.

Soon Jim and Richard started writing back and forth. Kelly remembers how she would come up with hard questions for her dad to ask Richard, "questions I wouldn't necessarily want to answer," she said, such as "How will you manage being the spiritual head of the family?"

In April, Richard spent about a month with Kelly's family in San Antonio. He went on a few trips with Mr. Lieneger and went to work with him every day. At the same time, Kelly flew out and spent two weeks with Richard's family. She remembers asking many questions just getting to know how Richard reacted in different situations and what he was really like. She enjoyed getting the diverse perspectives of different family members. "It was a very good learning time because they know him best," she said.

About nine months after the Lord's initial leading, Richard and Kelly officially started courting. Four months later they were engaged, and six months later they were married.

Now that they are married, Kelly especially appreciates the time she spent with Richard's family. "It wasn't like dressing up and going on a date Friday night when you don't even know what the person is like," she said. "It's so nice to be married to the person I thought I was marrying."

Kelly recalls that their courtship was a time of much spiritual growth because it was such a serious consideration. "We were thinking about a life-long commitment. I had to constantly be on my knees with God, asking what his will was," she said.

It wasn't an easy process for Kelly. She said she remembers just wanting God to write into the sky what she was supposed to do. However, by prayerfully seeking God's will, they were able to feel a peace about everything.

Knowing for certain that her marriage was God's will has been very important, Kelly said. "When you run into a struggle you don't look at it as, 'Oh no, maybe I married the wrong person.' You look at it as, 'Thank you, Lord; what do you want me to learn from this?' You turn it on yourself and not on the other person."

Kelly has advice for women who think they'll never find a guy if they insist on courting. "Any guy who really loves you will do whatever it takes. If he isn't willing then he isn't worth it. He needs to be serious, not just into it for what he wants at that point in time. With courting, the guy is not playing with the girl's emotions; the guy goes into it with commitment."

Richard and Kelly Welch have been happily married for five months and are now living in North Carolina.