John Schafer: [00:00:00] Every time I felt like to reach out, to grab her hand, I got scared and I would put my, so finally, after all this time, I finally reached out by my pinky to her pinky. And, and then she grabbed my hand, you know, and, and we held hands. And, you know, it took me forever. And, and it was like one of those things she said me.

I was wondering when you were gonna do that.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Love stories fill us with joy and inspire hope for the future. And a true life romance can remind us that sometimes just one spark is all it takes to change

John Schafer: everything.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: She thought she was showing up to film a movie trivia video, but he knew he was about to ask one of the most important questions of his life. You don’t wanna miss this cinematic love story. Welcome to Unexpected Love Stories. I’m your host, Don Perkowski, and today I am [00:01:00] thrilled to have John and Rebecca Shafer here to share their love story.

John is an award-winning producer, video effects artist and director. He’s known for his three time Emmy nominated work on the series Superbook and his film Light of the World, which just won the 2026 movie guide award for best movie for children. Rebecca’s a worship leader, a songwriter, and the voice of Mary in the movie Light of the World.

Her work with CBNs Orphan Promise has allowed her to minister to children and families around the world. Hello, John Rebecca, thanks for sharing your amazing love story with us. Wow.

John Schafer: Thank Hello. Thanks for

Rebekah Schafer: having us.

John Schafer: Yeah, thank you.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: I’m, I’m so glad you’re here. Um, people are gonna just enjoy this so much.

Okay, so let’s go back, ’cause I know God’s been writing a story with you before you ever met. So what did your lives look like just about the time that you were, um, in [00:02:00] the same space and starting to meet each other?

Rebekah Schafer: Um, I had just started working for CBNs Orphans Promise, and I was leading worship at my church in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

Um, I had. I’m one of nine siblings. I have five sisters, and I was the last of those siblings or those sisters to get married. You know, I was in my early thirties and I obviously, you know, was, had been praying and believing for, um, a spouse, a companion, a husband. But I knew that it had to be someone very special.

I was never gonna settle for just anyone. Or there had been relationships that had come and gone and just, they weren’t the right person for me. And so I had just decided that I was going to, um, just focus on what God had called me to do. And I was [00:03:00] really happy to be working at CBN and with Orphans Promise and with Terry Muon.

And, um, just loved being there. And, um. You know, we went to the same church, didn’t really know each other at all. Um, had I knew of Superbook, ’cause I used to watch like the old school Superbook, the anime looking one when I was growing up. I’m a pk. So like all of those, uh, you know, the Christian cartoons like Hanna Bara and Flying House and all of those.

Um, so I was into the old school one and I knew that John. Was producing the modern one, the new updated one. And um, I followed on Facebook, but I didn’t know him. And I think the only way we were actually even Facebook friends is his last name is Schaefer. And for a brief time, my family lived in Louisville, Kentucky and there [00:04:00] was a family there with the last name Schafer.

And so Facebook, when it was coming out and knew, I was like, oh, Schafer, I know that person. And that’s, I think the only reason we were even Facebook friends.

John Schafer: Yeah. And she just did the whole interview by herself. Yeah. So, uh, for me, during that timeframe, uh, I had, had come out of a, a divorce. And to be honest with you, I was just trying to focus on getting to know who I am now at that time, uh, a dear friend, a mentor to me, Gordon Robertson, you know, after the divorce hit and, you know, it was final and that, you know, he, he just wanted to share some stuff.

He goes, Hey, I’m coming to you as a friend, not as your boss, not as your CEO, but as a friend. And you know, John, this is a time you need to really focus about you and just kind of a find out who you are. Don’t define what went wrong and all that stuff, and [00:05:00] don’t go looking for love. ’cause everyone’s looking for love and you will find it.

But in the state you’re in, you just need to make sure, don’t let someone else shape you to who they want you to be. You need to become who you are called to be. And then from there, you know, see what, if you trust God to that point, then trust God the rest of the way. And I did take that to heart ’cause I wasn’t looking for anything.

I wanted to get my life back in order. So I would say during that timeframe I was focused in church. I would do everything with the men’s prayer groups. You know, go to all the events, do that. Uh, our church is so big, it had two services. I would attend both services. I was just trying to get reconnected back with God.

And it’s funny to say that because I worked for the Christian Broadcasting Network, one of the largest ministries in the world. And here I am telling you, I’m trying to get reconnected. And I think when you get, when you work with the [00:06:00] ministry so long and, and as big as it is. You, you can actually start dissing yourself.

You, you start building your own kingdom set are furthering his things. Just, you know, I, I just got caught into that circle and so, so I wasn’t looking for love, I wasn’t looking for a relationship. I, I was just trying to focus on my relationship with God, trying to get back to who I need to be for what he called me to do.

And so that’s kind of the place I was at.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: I think that’s really smart too. I, I, I think a lot of people are come out of something and they’re lonely and so they try to fill that lonely hole and instead of saying, you know what, I just need to be one-on-one with God and I need to find my identity there.

And then we’ll move on from there. But yes. So, um, obviously you guys were in the same circle. You’re both with CBN. Um, [00:07:00] how did you guys start crossing paths? I mean, besides Facebook, since he was a Schaffer, you know, passing each other down the aisle at church, how did you guys end up being in the same circle and, and uh, uh,

I

Rebekah Schafer: was one of the worship leaders at our church and so, um, I think there had been like a handful of occasions maybe, um, where he would send me a message on Facebook telling me, Hey, worship was really powerful today.

I really enjoyed, um, you know, your singing, thank you. And nothing ever really came of that. I was just like, oh, thank you so much. God bless you. And, um, I, uh, where I worked, it’s, I was the assistant to the director of operations and so all of the assistants we were. Outside of the offices in this hallway.

And um, it’s a square hallway so you can, you know, there’s [00:08:00] elevators on either side, you can go either direction. And, um, John worked a lot with one of the directors at the corner of the hallway at the end of where I was working. And I guess one time he said something to me when he walked by my desk and I didn’t respond to him and I was really focused on something.

I don’t know what I was doing, but I don’t remember him ever saying anything to me. But apparently he got it in his head that I was kind of stuck up and he decided that he wasn’t going to pass my desk anymore. So anytime he would go to meet with this, um, director at the end of the hall, he would go the opposite direction around the other side so that he wouldn’t have to pass my desk.

And I remember, um. I heard him one day talking with, um, that director’s assistant telling her that he was very nervous because he had been asked to share a chapel [00:09:00] that day and he said, I am not a public speaker. I don’t like talking in front of people. I get really nervous, and I just, my words get all jumbled up and, you know, I just don’t know what to say.

And so it was just kind of in the back of my head. And, um, I remember he, I didn’t know anything about his story or anything. Um, just like I said, we were very casual Facebook friends, and I never saw him at church. I just would occasionally get a message from him. And I remember he shared something at Chapel that day.

It was, you know, directed around Superbook. But he shared very minimal amount of his testimony. And most of the people at CBN, he had been there for many years. They knew everything that had happened. I didn’t have any context, so I didn’t even know what he was talking about. Um, but he shared that he had been through one of the deepest and darkest times in his life and that he had been [00:10:00] praying and asking God and seeking him for a miracle.

And he said, and you know, God did give me a miracle. He just didn’t give me the miracle that I thought I needed, the one I had been praying for. He did a miracle in me instead. And that really resonated with me because there had been, you know, things in my life that I had gone through and it very similar, like what I had prayed for and believed for.

That’s not what God had for me. And he did something different. He did. A transformation on the inside. And so I was like, you know, he sent me a couple messages encouraging me. I’m just gonna shoot him a message and say, Hey. So I did. I was like, I heard you. Um, I overheard you saying to so and so that you were nervous about sharing today.

And I just wanna tell you that I thought you did a wonderful job. And what you said really spoke to me. And, um, we just started, that was on Facebook. ’cause we didn’t have, I didn’t have his phone number or anything. So on Facebook [00:11:00] Messenger, we just started casually chatting, you know, back and forth. And the chats became phone calls.

And the phone calls became, you know. Our first date. So,

 Dawn Pruszkowski: so John, when did you stop avoiding her desk?

John Schafer: Oh, oh, first of all, it’s called being an introvert. I don’t like, I, I’m an introvert and when I, when you get rejected like that, you don’t wanna get wounded again. So I just go the other way. So it, it took, I, I was, it took a while.

No, but I, I do wanna come back to something she had said, like, uh, I just didn’t message her on Facebook just ’cause Oh, the singing was great. Rebecca’s one of those worship leaders that during the time of worship, all of a sudden if there’s a prompting of the Holy Spirit, Rebecca will speak and saying, I really feel, and she, it might be someone in that room, you know, and she’ll share what’s on, on there or something that happened to her on the [00:12:00] way to, to church or, and, and God spoke to.

Those are the times when I had reached out because those are those moments when. You hear it from someone else and it resonates in your, it almost feels like God speaking to me. That spoke to me. So that’s when I would me, when I had messaged her. ’cause like a lot of times people get uncomfortable with that prompting and to speak it.

And so for her to do that in front of everyone during a worship set like that, that’s, that’s why I reached out that way. And so, uh, I just didn’t, when you think I was using that, oh, by the way you sung amazing. That’s a new pick line for Christians. Oh, it, it was those moments where she said something that.

Either I needed to hear at that moment or it confirmed something that God had been speaking to me, and that was that confirmation, like, you know, Lord, is that me thinking this or is this you? And then all [00:13:00] of a sudden, a few days later, I’m at church and Rebecca during worship speaks on what’s her heart from the Holy Spirit.

And that’s what happened there. And so, so, uh, yeah. And as for Rep, the part where like, I’m the guy who is, I, I, I, you know, I’m a storyteller. I love to produce. I just, just got my dream job of directing a film. I love doing those things. And when I’m comfortable, those are the things that I feel like. I can lead and, and command and that, but outside that I am a total introvert.

So for me to even say hi to her is thinking, you know, and, and that stuff. And when I did say hi to her and things like that, it’s just because I’ve recognized her at church. Mm-hmm. I, you know, and that stuff, when she’s up there leading worship, I don’t look at her and stare, I’m so focused into the worship and that stuff.

So it really was, you know, like, yeah, she did a little more than just didn’t hear me. [00:14:00] It’s just sometimes there’s that body language look. And I’m like, I’m like, okay, all right. I get it. So, so, uh,

 Dawn Pruszkowski: so what did you think when she sent a Facebook message to you? Like the roles were reversed there?

John Schafer: Two things. I was shocked, you know, that she in that, but the other part of it was like.

When I spoke that because like they asked me to speak, you know, talk about superbook, talk about how it’s impacting the world, all those things. Uh, you know, I know everyone at CBN I’m just not a comfortable to go up there and do those things. But I was asked, and, and there was that moment. Sometimes, you know, when you’re speaking you get that weird bubbling and say, and it’s like at that moment I knew like there was someone in the room that’s going through something, whether it’s, uh, gone through a bad relationship.

I knew something was heavy in the room and I just wanted to encourage, like, you know, a lot of times we pray and we get very specific with our prayer, but God does answer our [00:15:00] prayer, but sometimes it’s not the answer we want to hear or that’s what we’re necessarily praying. And I just wanna encourage that came to my mind at that moment.

It wasn’t just me thinking it, it was like I knew okay. I went that direction. It was the first time I actually spoke about, you know, hey, I’ve gone through some of the darkest things in my entire life and I was praying very specifically for God because I needed a miracle. There was nothing that was gonna help this situation other than a miracle, a direct intervention from God.

And you know, God did answer my prayer, but it wasn’t mm-hmm. What I was praying, and it was a prayer I didn’t know I needed. Mm-hmm. It’s just when you look back. And so, so for her, I, afterwards, when you say something out in the open like that, I left that, I left the service thinking, man, what was I thinking?

Why did I say so for me, hearing from Rebecca, yeah. It was, you know, it was like, oh, [00:16:00] it’s Rebecca. But when she said what she had said, that was the con, probably the, the confirmation I needed to hear, like, okay, I did hear from the Lord. It was something that I, it was, you know, and whether that was for Rebecca or for someone else.

Those are those moments in life when you know that the next time you get that prompting, you feel more comfortable and then you start to do those things, you start to be more bold, you start to pr. And so that’s kind of what that really was about. So it wasn’t like looking at, oh, you know, maybe she likes me.

I wasn’t thinking nothing like that.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Well, how did your messages go from just messages to exchanging phone numbers?

John Schafer: I, I think we started communicating back and forth and it was one of those ones, I’m not the guy I grew up like, so am I 13 years older than you? Yeah. Okay. I’m 13 years old. I’m losing my memory too.

So, so I never grew up in a texting world. [00:17:00] I grew up, in fact, it was a rotary phone, you know, and so like if you had a zero in your number, I wasn’t calling you ’cause it took too long to get there. And, uh, but, uh. I just to communicate. I’ve just, I’ve always just been, you know, talking was easier. You, there’s no miscommunication with talking.

No misleading with commu and all that stuff. And so I did message, like, it was one of those ones like I’m thinking, oh, is this too bold to ask? But like, Hey, would you be interested just talking? And, and that’s kind of how it went there. But when we would text back and forth again, it was never about anything like interest with one another.

It was more stuff we were interested in. Like, you know, whether it was talking about what happened at church or that, or I’m a star and if anyone follows me on social media, like I’m into movies. I love Star Wars, I love, you know, Raiders of Indiana Jones. Oh, I’m just Marvel movies. I’m that guy. And so it’s those type of [00:18:00] talks we would have with one another, you know, like that.

And then, uh, it just wanted to, now. I just, I missed that. I sent that text thinking, oh, let’s see if she’s willing to do it. And she didn’t respond right away. So I’m thinking, uh, but then yeah, she said, sure. And so we just exchanged numbers and started talking that way, you know? Mm-hmm. And the first time we talked, it was like we talked for a while.

Rebekah Schafer: Couple hours actually.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Wow. So how long was the, from the time of, of, uh, you’re communicating where you actually know you’re talking to each other? Instead of just giving yourself a or giving each other like a great job.

Rebekah Schafer: Mm-hmm.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: You know, message. What, um, how long did it take until you started going like, Hmm.

Rebekah Schafer: Couple weeks maybe? You know, and I remember we were chatting about, we would talk about movies, we would talk about lots of different things and he was kind of surprised that I’m also [00:19:00] like my family were huge movie fans, star. I grew up watching Star Wars and, you know, I, I wasn’t as much of a fan as he was, but still like a very big fan.

And, um, I knew a lot of the movies that he knew and watched and we would talk about like Lord of the Rings and, you know, star Wars and Indiana Jones. And he was kind of surprised that I knew as much about the movies and things like that, that I did. And, um, yeah, I think after a while it was just like, oh wow, it’s really kind of.

Fun to talk with him. And I remember he, I, I honestly, I don’t remember what it was, but in my mind I thought, Hmm, does he like me or is he just being like, nice to me? ’cause I’m the new girl at, um, CBN and he’s just being nice, you know? And I remember like thinking that in my head, I was like, Hmm, I’m not sure.

And then he asked for my phone [00:20:00] number and then, then I was like,

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Hmm, okay, let’s see where, let’s, okay,

Rebekah Schafer: we’ll see what’s happening here. But yeah, again, it wasn’t like, um, oh, this is like, I’m very interested in this person. I’m pursuing this person. But we were just kind of getting to know each other really.

And I was liking what I was getting to know. And, uh, I thought he was really funny. And, you know,

John Schafer: and, and we did say like. It wasn’t like every single day. Yeah. Every single moment we were talking, it was kind of one of the, it it’s kind like that developing that friendship or things like that, you know?

Mm-hmm. It didn’t go to lunch with her or things like that. If I saw her in the hallway, I’d say hi, but I mean, it was never like trying to get into a relationship like that.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Mm-hmm.

John Schafer: And, uh, but I, I would say this, there was those moments when I would start thinking, you know, there always things I wonder, oh, I’m wondering if she is interested in me.

There, there was times that you start thinking [00:21:00] that. So I have a good friend who was the best man in, in my wedding. His name’s Juan Garcia. So he is the best man in my wedding. So I haven’t, obviously I was married previously for 25 years, so I haven’t dated, I don’t know what dating looks like. I don’t know what the thing with texting is.

So like she would send me a text and I work close to Juan ’cause we we’re doing production and that stuff, and I’d respond. Right away. And Juan said, Hey, was that Rebecca? I said, yeah, dude, you don’t respond right away. That makes you look desperate. You gotta wait at least 45 minutes. Let me see the text.

And I, I saw the text. She, he saw the text. He says, oh man, you should have waited at least an hour. Don’t. And so I learned like there’s this new rule of engagement thinking, oh, you gotta, you know, I’m not that guy, but I’m also taking advice from someone who, at that time he wasn’t dating either. You know, it’s like, maybe Juan, you are not dating because [00:22:00] you got this thing, but no, you know, but, but it was one of those ones, I mean, I didn’t know what to do.

So when I started finding that, hey, we have a lot of things in common. We’ve gone through a lot of relation things that, you know, she went through something, uh, different than mine, but for her just as painful. And so I, I think for us it was, um. I, I just, I, I didn’t wanna be the, oh, am I needy? Am I in the friend zone?

I didn’t know all the, I didn’t even know what the friend zone term meant, but you started hearing all this stuff. So my advice to anyone who’s been previously married for a long time, and you start to, don’t listen to when, if you feel like you’re supposed to communicate, go by your heart, don’t go by some type of routine formula.

Rebekah Schafer: Yes, I can definitely agree to that. Uh, ’cause if there were times where, ’cause then on the flip side of it, here’s the girl. Like, if you wait 45 minutes to respond to the text message, the girl is [00:23:00] thinking like, oh my gosh, maybe I shouldn’t have said that. Do I seem too needy? Am I talking too much? You know?

Mm-hmm. But I think for me, when, um, things kind of flipped a little bit, were I, and I have his mother for this, because we were, um, not talking, but we were texting. He was driving home and I was going to get myself something to eat, like at a Chipotle or something.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Mm-hmm.

Rebekah Schafer: And I was telling him, yeah, I’m going to Chipotle.

I’m gonna go to Chipotle and get something to eat for dinner. And he was, I guess, speaking to his mom on the phone and he saw my text and he was like, oh, that’s Rebecca behind me. I was behind. I saw his, um, I was behind his Jeep and I was like, oh, I’m behind you. You know? And so she’s, he’s talking to her and he reads my text to her and she goes, you idiot.

She wants you to go there. You have to meet her there. Don’t you know anything? And so [00:24:00] he text me and said, do you want me to meet you there? And I was like, yes, I do. And so, um, he met me at Chipotle and we just kind of chatted for a while and. Then we walked over to a Starbucks that was next door, and we chatted for a really long time until they closed and we just sat outside and we were talking for it.

It had to have been past midnight that we were just sitting there just talking, and I remember that night I was like. Okay. I really like him. I like him a lot. Mm-hmm. And I’d like to see where this goes. That was when it kind of flipped for me, and I don’t know how long it had been, maybe a couple of weeks of us getting to know each other and chatting or,

John Schafer: yeah, I think a little longer than that.

Rebekah Schafer: Three or four, maybe a month. I don’t

John Schafer: know. Yeah.

Rebekah Schafer: Something like that.

John Schafer: But that’s when you said you. The butterfly chest.

Rebekah Schafer: Yeah. That was the first night that I had the butterflies. ’cause obviously having five sisters, you know, I talk to them all the time. And so I had told them about [00:25:00] John and they had already been Facebook stalking John.

I, I was talking to my one sister and she was like, how do you spell his last name? SC Oh, found him. Okay. And so she’s going through all of his Facebook posts and pages and pictures and everything. And I was like, yeah. I mean, I like him. Um, he’s a fun to get to know, like he’s a good friend. He’s becoming a good friend.

But I had never had like that feeling where I was like, oh, oh I really like him. But that night when I was driving home, I had, and I told him after the butterfly in my tummy feeling, you know? Mm-hmm.

John Schafer: So I and

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Sean,

John Schafer: I did. Were you

 Dawn Pruszkowski: feeling it?

John Schafer: I would say for me, I, you know, staying that night, it was this fun hanging out.

’cause we were just talking about everything and everything. Felt comfortable. It didn’t feel like I had, and that’s one thing with, with Rebecca, I, I never felt like I had to [00:26:00] impress her with anything, you know? Mm-hmm. I could just talk, I could be me and for the first time, you know, uh, I’m being this new me.

And I think for me, I felt comfortable because I had been going to men’s prayer group. I’ve been going to, you know, I’ve been going to, uh, therapy and that stuff just to talk with someone about things. So I would go to a Christian therapist, I’d go to a, a secular therapist, just to hear two different opinions, do different thoughts.

And, and I was doing that. I mean, literally I was trying to get my life in order. And so I found a place where I felt like this is me. I feel good about it. So being that person. Felt good. And then, and for how she just accepted me that way. And I think probably the bigger pivotal point is, you know, I was upfront when we started talking that, hey, I had gone through a divorce, I have two children.[00:27:00]

And that stuff, that’s where I thought, you know, if there is going to be something, it will move past that. Or if this is not, you know, not gonna, you know, she, if that’s something that’s bothers her, then Yeah. And that I wanted to be very upfront with that. And so she knew where I was coming from, my head space, all of those things.

And making sure that she knew, like I didn’t want her to feel like, oh man, is he on the rebound? ’cause I, I hadn’t talked to, uh, she’s the first person I. Dated when we, you know, so it was all of those things. And in fact, we dated for two years before I proposed to her and everyone’s going, man, you’re not getting any young, I just, I guess as much as, so it was not, it was one of those things I wanted to make sure, is it right for her?

Is it right for me? Are we, and also at the same time, you know, I, you know, I had two children who were, you [00:28:00] know, not talking to me and that stuff, and I’m trying to figure out how to communicate to them and I don’t know if this jeopardizes it first. So there’s all these things that go through my head, you know, it was going through my head, but I would say that night I felt like, you know, yeah, I’m very, very interested in her and man, like even at this point.

When we kind of, you could tell, we would never say it directly, but like, we would hang out, we’d go to Williamsburg on the weekend, and like every time I felt like to reach out, to grab her hand, I got scared and I would put my, so finally, after all this time, I finally reached out by my pinky to her pinky, and, and then she grabbed my hand, you know, and, and we held hands and, you know, it took me forever.

And, and it was like one of those things she said me, I was wondering when you were gonna do that, finally do that. And, and you know, so again, introvert trying to figure out things [00:29:00] and that, but yeah. But it made it feel like, this is gonna sound weird. It, it felt like that, that gray school crush you have onto someone for the first time, the high going to high school where you got the feelings, you just, you know, you.

You don’t know what to do or how, and, and I was kind of going through that, you know, and except I was 50 years old.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Do you have a love story to share? We’d be honored to hear it. Visit us@unexpectedlovestories.com and leave us a message where it says, tell us your story. It’s possible that your story might be the one someone else really needs to hear, and maybe one day we’ll be featuring it here on the podcast.

John Schafer: Oh my gosh.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Okay, so, um, you said it took two years because it was a slow pace until you got to the, [00:30:00] where you proposed to her. Is that true?

Rebekah Schafer: It was like a year and a half, two years. Okay. Actually, it was like two weeks after our two year. Becoming friend or mm-hmm. When we first started texting and chatting, um, I remember dates, that was August 14th.

John Schafer: Yep. August

Rebekah Schafer: 14th, 20 15th. And so we got married on September 9th, uh, 2017. So it was just like a little over two years since we had starting, getting started getting to know each other.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Okay. Alright. So I, John. You proposed in such a unique way. Um, yeah, I would you share how you like, thought of it and your preparations for it and so, and the proposal?

John Schafer: Yeah. So, uh, there’s actually a show on that time, on, on YouTube. It’s called the Star Wars Show. It’s actually from Lucas Film, so it’s the official Star Wars [00:31:00] channel. And what was going on was, uh, that, that show’s on every week we’d watch it, you know, so they always have questions on the show and then they have guests and that stuff.

’cause they were getting ready for the 40th anniversary of Star Wars, A New Hope, the first film. So I just said, I, I said, Hey, they’re, they’re gonna do these question type things and we should do it, you know, we should answer some of the stuff and submit it to see if our, if our stuff gets on their show because they really do do stuff like that.

So, uh, I had it all set up where. It was gonna be kind of, we set up the edit suite where I was working at to have Star Wars memorabilia, all those type of things. And, and it was one of the ones, like we had, we had, I had a friend who was a producer, Roy Peterson. So he had these questions, he was asking that it sounded like it was from the Star Wars show.

And so he’s asking these questions and then that’s when it would lead up to, when I would propose to, uh, Rebecca. And so, uh, [00:32:00] and I wanted to make it so she was not expecting that. So it, you know, it was one, I don’t know.

Rebekah Schafer: Yeah. I remember the night before, um, the recording, he was supposed to come over. I had made dinner for us.

I mean, he was supposed to come over and I, I lived in a, like, I had a, I lived in a house and I had three roommates. So one of my roommates, we were chatting and he was getting everything set up. I didn’t know this and. He’s like, I’m like, man, where is he? Like, he’s not coming, you know? And I was kind of venting to her.

I was like, yeah, well, I guess I’m just, so, I’m texting him, I’m frustrated. I’m like, where are you? It’s been like two hours and now it’s getting really late, you know? And he ended up not coming over because he was getting everything set up and ready. And I just didn’t know that. And so I was like, oh man, he’s, he’s mad at me.

I did something silly, or I don’t know. But I was really in my head at that point, and I [00:33:00] remember, um, the next morning I was getting ready and, um, I had this thought. I was just like, Ugh. Wouldn’t it be so cool if he was like, really gonna propose to me or something? Wouldn’t that be so cool? And then I was like, nah.

So I go into the suite and I’m looking everywhere. ’cause I just had this random thought and I’m looking for like a box. I’m looking for anything. I’m like, is there something that a ring could be hidden in? Is there, and then I scan the room, didn’t see anything, and I’m like, okay, we’re doing the show here.

And I kind of just let it go and didn’t think about it again until he, I remember he was answering one of the questions and he was talking a lot and he was going on and on and on and in my mind I had started thinking of like what my answer would be. And so I stopped. I didn’t hear some of the beginning of what he had said, and I, he was saying my name more and [00:34:00] more.

And so I was like, okay, let me stop. Thinking of my answer and let me listen to what he’s saying. And so he continues to go on and on, and I look and I see that he’s like really sweating. And I was like, what is going on here? And then, uh, he gets to the part where he pulls out the ring and it had been hidden under a Darth Vader helmet.

And he got down on one knee. And I just remember my heart was racing and pounding and I felt it was gonna throw up, but in a good way. And I, it was,

John Schafer: and I had those same feelings too. My heart was racing. I felt I was gonna, I thought when I kneeled down, I was gonna pass out because that was the one time, like when I do get nervous, I sweat and, and I could feel it.

Every pores was just leaking. So, but yeah, so, uh, no, uh, yeah, I proposed and uh, she said yes. [00:35:00]

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Yay. She said Yes. Um, and so how long from the proposal till the wedding?

John Schafer: No,

Rebekah Schafer: not long actually. ’cause it was

John Schafer: because it was May, so

Rebekah Schafer: May the fourth.

John Schafer: No. May 25th. Or May

Rebekah Schafer: 25th.

John Schafer: Yeah. So we, so everyone said, why didn’t you guys do it on May the fourth?

’cause May the fourth is kind of the Star Wars thing. But it was, I wanted to hit the an so for me, because I’m a geek nerd, I had to hit May 25th, because that was the actual date. 40 years later, May 25th, 1977 is when Star Wars came out. So I had to do it on May 25th, you know, 2017. Yeah.

Rebekah Schafer: And

John Schafer: so,

Rebekah Schafer: so we got married September 9th, so not even six months, you know, but we, I mean, we kind of, I, I.

Have nine siblings, you know, and my oldest sister had a huge wedding. It was very stressful, like bridesmaids and all [00:36:00] these things. So I had decided a long time ago, I just wanted a very simple wedding. I didn’t want bridesmaids ’cause I didn’t want anyone fighting over who’s gonna be the maid of honor and who’s, you know, gonna be this or that.

And so I was like, mom, you’re my maid of honor. I have no bridesmaids, no flower girl, no nothing. And um, we were able to put it together pretty quickly

John Schafer: and, uh, she found a venue that looked amazing. And so for, so this is another deep cut. So I’ve been to, uh, George Lucas Skywalker Ranch. So the interior has a certain look and the place she found looked like.

Skywalker Ranch. So I thought, oh my gosh, that’s so cool. So yeah, so she gave up the, the bridesmaid and all that so we could get R 2D two and Chewbacca in our writing so that we had R two that was a full, you know, it was a guy who does it for Make-A-Wish and all that stuff. And so, yeah, he, it, it was a fully working R 2D two, his little doors opened up.

He gave [00:37:00] us each the wedding ring, so it was cool. And our whole wedding was everything from movies. Mm-hmm. Like the, where we did communion, that’s the grail from Indiana Jones and, uh, the Last Crusade. And so everything we had was from movies in there.

Rebekah Schafer: Yeah. I wore Arwin Evan Star from Lord of the Rings, and he had on the tuxedo that, uh, Indiana Jones wore and Temple of Doom and, and James Bond.

And, and Gold. Yeah.

John Schafer: Gold finger.

Rebekah Schafer: Yeah. So, no, it was, it was a very fun wedding and, um, you know.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Wow. And I’m so glad we, um, we have clip those clips, um, on our website mm-hmm. So that people can watch your, uh, beautiful proposal and your incredible wedding. And so, so exciting.

John Schafer: The cool thing is years later we get this email and we thought it was a joke and it was from a company who represents the Academy Awards [00:38:00] and they want to use clips for their, the next upcoming Academy Awards promotion stuff.

So at first I thought, man, who’s messing with us? But we did, we end up licensing it. So the official Academy Awards tra uh, commercial that they did, they used our clips and it does say the part where it says, now we pronounce, uh, you know, what, how is the word. Man and wife, a man, a husband, the Mr. Mrs.

Shaffer. Oh

Rebekah Schafer: yeah.

John Schafer: And so we got our name said by the Academy on that commercial. I’m thinking. That’s cool.

Rebekah Schafer: Mm-hmm. We’ve been told by a lot of people, oh man, we, we would love to have had Chewbacca in our wedding, you know?

John Schafer: Yeah.

Rebekah Schafer: And when we exited the, um, exited, you know, as husband and wife for the first time, it was the Throne Room song from the end of a New Hope.

And, you know,

John Schafer: and then that, I think that’s what made the wedding really cool personal for us though too, is mm-hmm. Star Wars movie that for one on the 40th anniversary was called The New Hope.

Rebekah Schafer: Mm-hmm. [00:39:00]

John Schafer: And that’s was our trajectory for, uh, both of our lives.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Yeah. That is so perfect. Well, did you jet off to a honeymoon?

Rebekah Schafer: So we, we actually did like a little weekend, um, because we had some trips planned later. Um, well right away in October. In the next month. Yeah. And like a couple weeks away we were, he was doing something, um, in France and we worked it out for me to be able to go with him there. And then we did a Disney trip a month after that.

So from there, um, we stayed at a hotel close by, close to the venue, and then we had like a four day weekend at, um, a really nice b and b in the outer banks. So,

John Schafer: yeah. Then it was very like two weeks later we flew to France and then after that we went to Disney. So it was

Rebekah Schafer: like the alternate, it’s kind of like the never ending honeymoon.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: That’s so fun. Alright, so now that [00:40:00] your lives had come together. Um, and you guys both had such incredible callings that you were working with. How did your lives expand? How did your relationship grow and change along the way with that?

John Schafer: I think for us, the next step we really wanted to do is have a family.

And, and that was, that was, uh, the part where, you know, uh, do I don’t,

Rebekah Schafer: well we, we had talked about, uh, long before we ever even met, actually, I knew, um, I had had, like, I was praying one morning and I was studying about the life of King Josiah, and I really felt. Strongly. And in this encounter I had with the Lord, I was only like 26 or 27 at the time.

And I felt the Lord show me that I was gonna have a son and that his name was gonna be Josiah and that he was going to be an altar breaker and that he was going to be a leader and [00:41:00] his generation. And I remember like when John and I were getting a little more serious, and he had told me about his past, I told him about, you know, things in my past, but I also shared with him about Josiah and what God had shown me.

And his response was, then I get to pick the middle name.

John Schafer: No, but that was not what I was thinking. Like, no, it’s

Rebekah Schafer: just, he made it funny, you

John Schafer: know, the, the hard part, you know, it wasn’t a hard part. It was, you know, I did share about my, my past sooner before. Before that it’s now we got more closer. It was the first time now.

Rebecca’s bringing up that, you know, she wants to have a child. And at that time was I like 48, somewhere around there.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Mm-hmm.

John Schafer: I was somewhere around 47, 48 at that moment. That was a reality check for me, thinking man, you know, uh, I’ve, I’ve gone through [00:42:00] this, you know, and now being at this age, you know, most of the people I know who are my age are just a little bit older.

They’re having, they got grandchildren. And so it was one of those ones, you know, like I wanted to be honest with her, you know, ’cause she asked me what my thoughts were and I would say, you know, I was definitely open for that.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Mm-hmm.

John Schafer: I just had not, I just not know that was gonna be on the Bingo card to be asked at that mo or talked about that moment.

And so, uh, but it was one, like, I was definitely open, but it was one of those ones I went home thinking a lot about, like, wow, like. Can I, I, I’m this old, you know, you know, can

 Dawn Pruszkowski: I do it again?

John Schafer: Any time our, our, our child would be 15, she’d be feeding me with a spoon, you know, and I’m just, you know, you think about all those things.

But yeah, that was, uh, I think that was another one of those. And it wasn’t a hurdle when I don’t, I don’t know if the Right, it was one of those ones that, that was [00:43:00] something, didn’t think about it was now asked. ’cause now I knew that’s what she wanted and it was one of those ones, okay. If we, if, if I am gonna propose to her, I now know that she wants to have a child, you know, when we get married.

So I think the next step is when we were, when we got married, we wanted to enjoy our time together. So we were spontaneous. We’d go to Disney quite a bit. We would travel a lot. Mm-hmm. We’d just be super spontaneous. And after those couple years, and that’s when we thought, this is the time, you know, and.

Rebekah Schafer: And so we had a bit of a journey, you know, getting there. Um, but Josiah was born, uh, in 2020, just a couple weeks after COVID, you know, no. After the world shut down?

John Schafer: No, no. Before COVID. He was born in February.

Rebekah Schafer: Oh, right. Just a couple weeks before the world shut down. Yeah. Yeah.

John Schafer: So he was born and, uh, on February 7th, 2020.

So we were [00:44:00] taking, I took my, she took her, you know, her leave. I took some leave and literally the day I go back to work, you know, uh, I just thought, oh man, ’cause I missed Josiah and Rebecca. ’cause we just being together like that. And uh, and then it was like the next day I came home, the next day it was when, you know, uh, president Trump and some, the team was on, they did the broadcast of, uh, we, we gotta stop this curve or bell curve.

I forgot what the term was, but we’re going into lockdown. So it went from the two weeks lockdown. It kept getting extended. Extended. And, you know, and for us. I know that was a rough time for a lot of people in, in the world and I, you know, it was rough for us as well, but we got to be together and watch everything happen to Josiah together.

It wasn’t like one of those ones, we missed this, I missed that, or she missed this or that. We were together the entire time. So for us, as bad as what was going on in the nation and around the world, it was an amazing [00:45:00] time for us as a family. And then for me, because of, I travel so much with Superbook and I was not around my, my children as much as, ’cause I’d be traveling so much, or even when you get back, you’re just still not present here.

It felt like God made everything new with us, being together with us, with our child. That now all those times that I lost or maybe how the, and sometimes the enemy can take stuff from you. God gave back way more than ever. And so it was a, it was a, it was a. It was an amazing time for the three of us.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Mm-hmm. That’s so beautiful. Okay, so, uh, you guys have been work, you worked together at CBN, but not together, but you were in the same thing. When did things start moving, um, into bigger circles?

John Schafer: So, we were our, so CBN even though [00:46:00] that the, you know, the nation was opening up and that stuff, CBN was still, we were all working remote.

I, I would just say we went to Disney. It was in March of 2021. We were, and it was the first time we were taking Josiah there. And so we literally got back from that trip. And, uh, Brendan McPherson, uh, he’s a president of Salvation Poem Project, a good friend of mine and, and, and the McPherson family. To give some background, uh, Matt McPherson, who is the founder of the Salvation Poem Project, but also he’s the founder and the, uh, CEO and President and the, uh, chief engineer of Matthews Archery.

So it’s the largest archery company in, in the world, compound Bose. And he has McPherson guitars, and so he’s a very successful businessman. But what Matt does. He gives his money to ministries and he helps ministries around the world. He helps missionaries. And so he helped, you know, he worked with us at CBN.

He [00:47:00] gave, uh, a, a generous gift for us for Superbook. And so I got to know the McPherson family ’cause of that relationship. So Brennan is someone I’ve kept in contact. He’s my point of contact at the Salvation Poem project for things that we’re working together on. And, uh, he reached out to me. We just landed back.

It was, it was March 7th, 2021. And he text me saying, Hey John, if you get a chance, can you call me? It’s kind of important. And um, I called him and it was one of those ones where he said, Hey John, my dad and I have been really praying. We really feel it’s time for Salvation Poem project to, uh, go to another level and we would love to offer you an opportunity to come work for us and be part of our ministry.

And, and the position was, is I would be producing these, uh. Little shorts called New Believer course, and it’d be like these, you know, 12, three minute shorts. And it’s like kind of the next steps of what you do after you accept Christ. So, ’cause their whole mission is making the gospel simple, [00:48:00] making it easy to understand.

’cause if you can make it simple, then it can be translated in many languages. Make it accessible. And so that’s their mission, that’s what they’re all about. And so I thought to myself, man, I’ve done all these seasons of superbook, it’s been translated over 70 languages around the world. I’ve, that’s my legacy is Superbook.

It’s uh, I’ll have that forever. And I, you know, so we prayed about it and it was interesting. It’s one of those, they gave me two weeks to pray about it, to give an answer. And I would ask Rebecca, like, has the Lord showed you anything? And it was kind of like, this is the one you need to hear from yourself.

And so. It was one of those ones. A few days later I felt this peace come over me. There was a, you know, a moment that I knew, okay, my mission is the same, it’s just going to be in a different location. I am still gonna preach the gospel in the medium that I know and love, you know, whether in [00:49:00] that stuff. So, so we did say yes to it, and it was relocating from Virginia Beach, Virginia, which we had a condo we were renting that was right on the beach.

And I’m not making this up. She’s there as a witness. You could open up the slide area, walk right out to the beach. We would see dolphins.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Mm-hmm.

John Schafer: Jumping and everything. It was the most amazing thing. And now we’re coming to Sparta, Wisconsin, which has the most beautiful falls, but the most horrific winters, like minus 35.

And so, so I, we were here for a couple months and I think that was the hardest thing for Rebecca. ’cause. Rebecca has such a big family.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Mm-hmm.

John Schafer: And the core of her family is in Virginia Beach, Richmond, Virginia. And so for her to take the step to move to Wisconsin, she’s sacrificing everything. When we came out here, um, it was literally for me to do these new shorts and all that stuff.

She would work remote and that stuff. And I was here for about two [00:50:00] months and that’s when Matt McPherson had took Brennan and I out to, uh, coffee and he just said, Hey guys, back in the nineties, I really felt the Lord put on my heart that I’m supposed to make a movie about the life of Jesus. And he literally said this, that totally makes sense.

I make guitars, I make bows. Of course I’m gonna make a movie. And he said it like that. But he said, but John and Brennan, I never ask, you know, if God puts something in my heart, I just don’t jump and do it. It is one of those things, okay, Lord, show me when, show me how John, all these years later, here you are.

You know, animation, maybe it’s supposed to be about an animated story about the life of Jesus, not a live action one. And that’s how that journey really started. And, and, uh, for me, I was just going to produce it. I was gonna, you know, but they wanted me to direct it and to give, give context. My childhood dream has been to direct when I was, uh, back in [00:51:00] 1975, you know, you know, or 74, you know, I saw, you know, the, the movie Disney’s Robinhood in the theater.

That was the first feature film I ever saw in a theater. And I fell in love with animation. I fell in love with the, the, the movie theaters. You know, that same year, my mom, my dad, my brother and I, we watched Charlie Brown’s Christmas special. And that’s when, uh. Linus when he was telling Charlie Brown what the true meaning of Christmas was, that’s the first time I’d ever heard the word God and Savior.

And to give context, my mom is Japanese, so she has more of a Buddhist background. My dad met her when he was in the Navy Station to Japan. My dad did not have a, a relationship whatsoever with God. So me asking what a God and a savior is, they did not have that answer. But it was something as simple as a a TV show, a cartoon.

That planted a seed in me and you know, and then 18 [00:52:00] years later, you know, I find out who this God and the Savior is, his name’s Jesus. And you know, I accepted it in my heart at that time. And, you know, and that’s how my journey of loving movies, loving film, but now falling in love with this new relationship with Jesus I have.

And, and that’s the purpose what I wanna do. And so I’ve directed little shorts. My, you know, back in 1975, my dad showed me how to do stop motion animation. I was making movies with films, super eight film, not video. There was no video at that time. And so I was making little shorts and films like that. And, um, but fast forward, you know, they wanted me to direct this movie.

And I’ve been in it, done enough stuff to direct, but I just felt like, no, I’m gonna find you a good director. As a producer, I am good at finding all the right people. To build the right team and to manage that team and, and, and get us across the goal and meet all expectations. And that’s kind of [00:53:00] my role.

And, but no, they were insistent that, you know, no, you need to direct. We feel like you were born for this as a, and we trust you. And so, and for me that was a huge responsibility. ’cause this is one man, Matt McPherson’s, $20 million. Like if I fail, I, I can walk away.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Mm-hmm.

John Schafer: Brennan my friend, that’s his dad.

If I fail, he’s gotta deal with the repercussion. But Brennan was always the one who believed in me. And it got to the point where Matt just told Brennan like, if John’s not gonna direct it, he’s not sure he wants to move forward with it. And so that’s how that all started.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Okay. So looking back on your journey together, what’s one piece of wisdom that you would share with someone that’s hoping to have the kind of love and strength that you guys have in your marriage?

Rebekah Schafer: I would just say, um, follow your heart and don’t allow, [00:54:00] don’t allow other people to steal what you feel like for me. Um, you know, obviously there was a quite an age gap between John and I and all my family fell in love with John once they met him. But my oldest brother and, you know, some of the, the, uh, mentors in my life, um, when I shared his story, you know, everyone was like, we’ll, proceed with caution.

You know, there’s nothing, everyone has a past, everyone has a history, but, you know, proceed with caution and, um, you know, so take wisdom, get advice from people that have the, um. The position to speak into your life, but also follow your heart and don’t allow something that you never expected to, um, cause you to lose interest.

You know, like for me, [00:55:00] I never imagined, you know, that I would be fall in love with someone with the age difference that we had with the just very vast difference in backgrounds and histories. And, but there’s no one in the world that’s more suited for me and our personalities and, you know, the, just everything.

And, um, just trust your heart and trust the Holy Spirit and do, um, don’t focus on like trying to find love because like John said, when we first started. Love will always find you, and it’s not always the right love. Um, so at that time, and he shared it, at that time we were both just focusing on getting, doing what we were called to do and being connected to the Lord.

And it’s God who joins us together and what he joins together, no man can separate. And so I would just say trust your heart. Listen to the [00:56:00] wisdom of people, but don’t allow the cover of a book to cause you to have fear or, um, doubt.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: That’s so

John Schafer: good. And, and for me, I’m coming from a whole different, of a lot of hindsight type things, and I, I just think if I was speaking to a generation of men or whatever, who, you know, you, you gotta be confident who you are, but by being confident who you are, it’s like.

Who do you belong to? And you have to have that relationship first. If, if, if I didn’t have the relationship, I regained with God in a whole new way. So that, that was a thing when I, when I was asking, when, when I would tell you guys earlier on about, I would, I, I was praying for a miracle and for a relationship to be restored.

Obviously in the natural that was with my previous marriage. I was praying and sa wanting that marriage to be saved. That [00:57:00] relationship, that’s not what happened. The relationship that got saved was the one that I walked away from God, but it looked so good that I was with God, so to speak. ’cause I worked for a Christian ministry.

I worked on children’s programming that was introducing Jesus to the children of the world. But in. Hindsight, I was the furthest from God. So the relationship that had already ended was the one with my marriage. And that was by choices beyond my control, the relationship that God was trying to save. And that’s what he did, was for me to come back to him.

And I think for that is anyone, man or woman, you have to have that relationship with God. Let that one be the strongest one. Hear that voice because then you will know how to have a relationship with someone outside that. And, and that’s gone through a lot of heartaches, [00:58:00] a lot of pain, but now seeing what the real fruit of it is and what it’s like.

Yeah, I, you know, there would be no light of the world if there wasn’t a Rebecca.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Yes, absolutely. I

John Schafer: I would not be directing, I mean, no, I mean the movie that’s there is because of what God brought here with Rebecca mm-hmm. And all that stuff. And, uh, the bad thing is, is like when I won the movie guide award, I went up there, I was so nervous.

’cause we didn’t think we were, you know, Rebecca was nominated for, so she was going against Uma Therma, uh, Vanessa Kirby and all that. We were shocked that we got nominated for the movie her for Best Actress. So we went there to thinking this is gonna be an amazing date night. And, uh, and when Light of World one, we beat Zootopia two and Lilo and Stitch in that.

I was stunned. I didn’t [00:59:00] have, I didn’t prepare a speech or anything. And so I went up there and I said everything came out. And then when I was walking off stage, I didn’t think. My wife also, who was also nominated that night too. But I came back to the table and I went to her right away, says, I am so sorry I didn’t thank you.

And she says, that’s okay. I’m just glad you did a great speech. She was, she was, even when I messed up on that, she gave me so much grace in that stuff. But she’s been the supporter all the way through.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: So got a jewel there. Yeah,

John Schafer: I do.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Sure.

John Schafer: Definitely married up.

 Dawn Pruszkowski: Thank you so much for sharing your delightful story with us and friends. Now, I’m sure you’re wondering, well, how can I learn more about John [01:00:00] Rebecca and see their story come to life? How can I connect with what they’re doing? How can I see. That video of their proposal and their wedding? Well, it’s easy.

Just head to the show notes and click the link that says More info and photos here. And that’s gonna lead you straight to their very own episode page on our website where you can explore more about their journey, see their photos, their work, and their videos, all that you wanna find out in just one package right there.

Or just go to unexpected love stories.com. And would you choose to bring a new hope today to someone? Because while listening to this story, you thought about one person who needs a reminder that God is still writing beautiful stories with our lives. So right now, would you share this episode with that person?

And I’ve got a question. Have you followed or [01:01:00] subscribed to our podcast? ’cause if so. Then you’ll never miss one episode. And believe me, you don’t wanna miss one because every story we share is unique and is a reminder that love is alive and that there are no two stories that are the same. Well, I hope that your heart feels lighter and full of hope after hearing the story.

’cause you know, often the best love stories are the ones we never saw coming. So keep your heart open because love truly is waiting for you. We’ll see you next time. Bye.