The following is more of my personal testimony! I hope you read it and are encouraged by it! Be blessed of God, He loves you! (Dedicated to my loving and cherished wife!)

My Wife, My Partner, God's Perfect Provision For My Needs, Maristela By: Richard P. Duffield

Looking back I can honestly confess that my choice of Maristela for a wife was based on all the wrong reasons. It is without any doubt that it was I who chose and decided my spouse, as I was as lost as a soul could be and the choice was made for the most incredible and faulty reasons.
Maristela was for many years (almost 10) my wife but not something I considered permanent in my life. A wife to me was like so many other possessions, just a thing that could be changed when it got old, when it got boring or out of style
After all, my mother had been married 4 times, my father 3. (This was only my first!)
God however changed all that in 1994.
In October of 1994 I was radically saved while spending 6 months in a Federal Prison Camp in Jesup, Georgia. In frustration with how my life was stacking up, painfully aware that life had to have more to offer than what I was presently experiencing, I completely abandoned all to God through repentance, acceptance of Jesus' sacrifice on my behalf, and giving Him the Lordship of my life.
At this point in time I was married and father of a young girl of 7 yrs. and boy of 3, both of which were at that time temporarily living with their grandmother in Brazil, the country of my wife's birth.
Born again of the Spirit, I now claimed no possessions, all having been surrendered to God I hoped that in turn He'd return them to me to serve as His steward over but in completely honest admission, I did not waste a lot of time worrying about that issue as to me it was out of my hands and totally in His.
His will would be done and to say it bluntly, I felt that "beggars cannot be choosers", after all I had truly abandoned my claim over them to Him...
What a relief when almost immediately He made me see "in the spirit" that maybe, just maybe He'd be inclined to return them to me for a second chance.
Keep in mind here that I didn't even know if I wanted them back now that I had surrendered all to God! I mean, I had never really known what love was and what I knew of it seemed shallow and something that I could have or do without... (Sad situation!) Right now I knew I felt this incredible love (a foreign concept to me until now) for a newfound Savior, I couldn't get enough of His presence, of His closeness, of knowledge about Him into my life! To try and fit more pieces into my small and complicated life's puzzle quite frankly didn't weigh too heavily into my thought process! I really wasn't dwelling much on the whole situation...
Rationally thinking, I hoped for the best but after all the things I'd put my wife through, it really wasn't a likely possibility that she's have me back!
But God knew, He understood a need that I had, JUST LIKE ADAM, a need that could best be filled by a wife, one He chose this time around and one He anointed to meet my needs like no other person could!
It was God this time that chose my bride in Maristela, He chose to woo her with His Spirit and help her to come to repentance and the saving knowledge of Jesus as her Lord! He knew that she'd be receptive even when I didn't
One must remember that there's almost 5 billion people on this earth! Probably half or even a little more are women, that would be roughly 3 billion women to choose from! As I'd frequently traveled abroad, I had access to pretty much all of them.
Of all those possible choices, of all those divinely created possible help mates, God in all His sovereign power and glory chose Maristela as the exact one who could and would meet my needs! That in itself has to be a miracle of the largest proportions!
Keep in mind that I was in prison, my wife had now for the second time caught me in an adulterous affair, (with the same woman, 7 years after the first time) and our children were in Brazil already. There were countless other "flings" while I worked abroad as a boat captain, these she really didn't even count knowing the class of gentleman (or lack of) I was
God, knowing the end from the beginning as only He does, still chose her for me! Instead of allowing this marriage to collapse as it was surely on its way of doing, He used me to proclaim the gospel to her and as a result she was saved and our marriage was reconciled! God's grace! Wow!
This time around it was He who chose my bride, this time it was His stamp of approval on our marriage that sealed our wedding vows!
Of all the possible mates in this entire world, He chose Maristela for me and I wholeheartedly seconded His perfect decision! Praise His name!
Make no mistake, God is not fooled and His wisdom is flawless! He knows who best compliments all of my flaws, who makes me complete, who fills the gaps best and who best enables me to be all that He ordained for me to be!
That person is my Maristela, I trust God, I trust His decision, and I best of all trust you Maristela to be the best possible choice for my mate in this entire world!
I'll keep you, I'll thank God for you, I truly appreciate you, and I love you, Maristela!
May God bless and keep you and grant you many, many years of life for me to love you during! Come to think about it, I'll love and be with you for eternity thanks to His wonderful grace! Bless God!
Hey, did I mention that I had been "arrested" by the Holy Ghost? That's what got me to Jesup, Georgia !
Well, that's another story isn't it....

Thanks for your time in reading this, I hope it helps someone!

Be blessed of the Eternal Jehovah God, His Perfect Son Jesus, and the Wonderful Holy Spirit! Please feel free to contact me for help, explanations, for whatever reason whatsoever!

In His Service,

Richard P. Duffield