Ed Nicholson: [00:00:00] And so we went to get into her car, and she opened up the back of her car, and she said, “You know, Ed, I don’t think I could ever see a time in my life without you in it.” And- She was like … and I was like, “Whoa, what did she just say?”

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 everything.

He was ready to step forward, and she was ready to step back, but when they let God step in, everything changed. Welcome to Unexpected Love Stories. Today, I’m so honored to have Laurel and Ed Nicholson with us. Laurel is a theologian and an end of life doula practitioner, as well as the founder of the Death and Resurrection Doula [00:01:00] Training Program.

Since 2017, she’s walked with individuals and families through end of life care, offering compassionate, faith-centered support rooted in hope of resurrection. Ed is a Grammy recognized songwriter, performer, and producer, with a career spanning both Christian and mainstream music. He’s toured with artists like Amy Grant, Michael W.

Smith, and DC Talk, and he’s co-written and produced hits for Russ Lee, Jessica Simpson, and Philip Craigson Dean. Now, he plays a key role in designing the Mission Wake platform, creating high energy, impactful content for a broad audience. And they’re here with us today. Welcome, you guys. How you doing?

Welcome. Doing good. Hi.

Ed Nicholson: We’re

Dawn Pruszkowski: here. Oh, I’m so glad. Yay. Finally. I’m so glad.

Ed Nicholson: Finally, after trying for a while. Yes.

Dawn Pruszkowski: I’m so glad you guys are here. Okay, so I know that your story is gonna be one a lot of people are gonna… It’s gonna resonate with them. [00:02:00] Mm. Um, and so would you just take us back to that time, uh, before you guys met maybe?

Like, what was life looking like? Uh, were you expecting a, a spouse to come into your life, or were you even looking for one? What was going on? Do you want me to start? Who wants to go first? I’ll

Laurel Nicholson: go first.

Dawn Pruszkowski: You go first.

Laurel Nicholson: Okay. Ladies first. I was living in New York City. I was in seminary. I, I went back to finish a master’s degree.

I had some, some credits that I had accrued through online school and just the years leading up to that. Uh, it was post-COVID, post-lockdown. We were still, uh, in the throes of COVID, but I needed a really great place to take my kids. I was a single mom, and the seminary in New York City in Chelsea was- Just a, a beautiful, a, a place, a safe place.

It had a green space, and so I enrolled [00:03:00] on a whim and got in, called a moving van, packed my things, moved my children into the seminary with me, and I, uh, was a full-time student. I, I worked on campus, and I, I was raising my kids as a single mom, as I mentioned. And I was hoping to remarry very much. Mm-hmm.

So, yeah.

Ed Nicholson: And I was actually in the process of getting divorced. So I had been married for a very long time. Uh, my marriage ended, and we had been going through a divorce for a very long period of time. And so I was in the throes of that, but probably about a year or two into that process, I hopefully started looking around, not really…

I still was divorced, so I didn’t wanna really start a [00:04:00] relationship, but I was kind of exploring the idea of dating other people. And, and, uh, I knew that I didn’t wanna be alone the rest of my life. Mm-hmm. And that’s kind of like what I hoped and I prayed to God for is that I wouldn’t be alone. But I, and I was struggling with it.

I was struggling a lot with a lot of different things. I was living with a friend of mine who had been divorced, and he was single, and I was also living with my mother who was in the end of her life. And so I would kind of, to avoid, um, that situation because of everything else I was going through in my relationship ending, I, I would go vi- uh, visit a friend of mine who lived down the Jersey So- Shore, and I would spend time with him.

I spent a lot of time with him, and just kind of filled up my days with working in the studio. Um, uh, I, I had a job at a [00:05:00] church as a worship leader. I did that, and just take up my time with music like I had always done.

Dawn Pruszkowski: Mm-hmm. So what brought you guys into the same circle or the same sphere? M-

Laurel Nicholson: my work pretty much.

Um, but I do have to mention, my… I had two kids, as I said, but one of them was adamant that I not remarry. She didn’t want anybody coming around, dating. She liked our little circle, the, me and her and her brother. She did- she, she didn’t want- anybody interrupting that. She was very afraid for a, a new relationship to start.

So I, I lived under that pressure a bit knowing that I would like to meet somebody and not be lonely and not have an adult, you know, to, to talk to, um, in, in a relationship. And she– I knew she despised that. So I always carried that [00:06:00] stress with me. So it was really easy to meet Ed through work and, and he would come to the apartment or he would come nearby in the neighborhood and I always said, “I have someone to see for work.”

And, and it, it, it truly was that. Um, and we’ll explore a little bit about what Ed thought and what, what I thought. But it, it did remove the pressure when I would go meet up with Ed. And, um, we, we quickly, uh, developed a, a real friendship. And so yeah, why don’t you pick up?

Ed Nicholson: Yeah. I mean, I, I, um, met Laurel about that time that I was, I was struggling with, you know, the idea of being alone and not being in a relationship.

You know, even when you’re in a bad relationship you’re still with somebody and so, um, the, the prospect of living out my life by [00:07:00] myself was not a happy one and I had struggled with that and I was really struggling with that. And so I did show interest in Laurel but that interest was shot down really quickly because I, I was still married and because she flat out pretty much told me, “I am not interested.

You are older than me. I am not– I, I don’t wanna date an older guy. I don’t want to…” Um, you know. So at that point in time I, I didn’t quite– I still tried, um, but we were– Then she started working for my family and when that happened we had a lot of time and we just had conversation and I pretty much had resolved myself at that point in time, okay, she’s, she’s really not interested in me.

And I, and I, I could get it. I was like, [00:08:00] you know, I’m older than she is and she doesn’t want that in her life, and I get that. And so we’ll just be friends and that’s what w- And that’s what we beca- we became. And we talked a couple times a week. We would– not just about my mom, but we’d have conversations about her.

And it was funny because we hi– My brothers and I hired her and two weeks after we hired her, her father passed away. Actually, today is the anniversary of her dad’s death. Um, and that- Four years … that’s four years ago. So, um, and that was when we met And so we, you know, just started being friends, and she started helping with me with my mom, and I just saw how really important the ministry that she had was, and how it was, you know, just kind of something that…

I, I remember being on a Zoom meeting with my brothers and going, “You’re [00:09:00] incapable, you’re incapable,” and I said, “I am going through things right now I never thought I’d go through, and I am definitely incapable of managing mom right now at the end of her life.” And so it, she really came in as a blessing, you know?

And, and I think our friendship grew through that, you know, through watching her care for my mom in a genuine li- way, and then just that, you know. Right?

Laurel Nicholson: Sure.

Ed Nicholson: Been that kind of- Did you have

Laurel Nicholson: a question? Did you have… You had a, a

Dawn Pruszkowski: maybe a question- Oh … or a prompt. I, no, I was just wondering, before he said about his mother, uh, and ’cause you said through work how you guys met.

So you gu- I, you were there to help him with his, his mother’s- Yeah, I mean, that’s- … last

Ed Nicholson: Yeah. We had, we had met for that, for that ex- express purpose. And, um, of [00:10:00] course, you know me, I was like, “Boy, she’s cute,” you know? Like, the first time I met her, I was like, “Hey,” you know? And, uh, you know, and so I thought, you know…

And then she just pretty much shot it down. Well- She shut it down right away. I

Laurel Nicholson: work for myself, and, um, it, it’s, it’s very easy to develop friendships with the people that I work for. And I mean, I’m a Christian, and I’m hired by families because I’m a Christian, so I share the same faith. They have a need in their family as someone’s aging, m- moving towards end of life.

Yeah. So, y- you know, when someone comes in with a heart for… that, that meets the need that you have, it’s very easy to, um, to, to, to admire people and to, um, you know, become friends. And so, you know, Ed in his space, um, really admired that about me [00:11:00] and wanted to- I- … have dinner, drive me back to the city. “Let’s have dinner.”

I’d try

Ed Nicholson: to hook her. I’d s- And I would say- … hook, hook her in with my, you know, put my- Ah. Oh my God … hooks into her because I, I remember I invited her. I played in Times Square a coup- I, every year, I had this big event, Christian event, and I’d play up on the stage. And so I invite her to that, you know, just to see, you know.

And she came With a friend one time to that to see me play, so So I got asked

Laurel Nicholson: to do extra things, right? And I, as I mentioned, you know, had the stress of my, my, my children and, um, they were uncomfortable, particularly my daughter was very uncomfortable with me moving forward in a relationship. So having this work relationship did soften some of those extra outings.

Yeah. Um, but it, it, it, it took us, it took me a couple years, and that’s part of our story [00:12:00] and part of, you know, Ed’s journey of asking the Lord to bless him with this relationship that he wanted, and I was really totally thinking something else. Um- Yeah … but, but I, you know, got to know the family really well, um, through working with, with his mom and working with his brothers who lived far away.

So technology allows, um, everyone, when to be connected, and even the, the, the grandchildren, so his nieces and nephews got involved in the care, and we’d all be on Zoom meetings. So I was already a part of the family before I really became a part of the

Dawn Pruszkowski: family.

Laurel Nicholson: Yes.

Dawn Pruszkowski: So, okay, it’s a couple of years of Ed wooing you, should I say?

Wining and dining you, wooing you. Let me, yeah- You, you had the woo-ah Let me,

Ed Nicholson: let me… I did. I, I did. And when, and she abru- when, after her dad [00:13:00] passed away, she abruptly left New York and came down to live in Charlottesville because of her mom. And at that point in time, before that time, I was traveling down to Nashville again to kind of reestablish myself in the Christian mu- music industry.

I’d go down to stay with… I had a friend of mine who had con- the same friend of mine that lived in New Jersey was, uh, uh, one of the guys from the band I was in in the ’90s. So I’d go down there and stay with him, and we, I’d go back and forth. So when Laurel moved down here, I’d stop down here to see her and go out to dinner with he- she and her mom.

So- And fish … and fish. I started re- Love to fish … I’d fishing again. I, I love, love to fly fish in this region. It’s very well known for that. So, you know, but I, there was a point in time there, too, where I resolved myself that we would never have a relationship.

Laurel Nicholson: Mm.

Ed Nicholson: [00:14:00] You know? That it was very evident to me that she was uncomfortable with a, a real relationship with me.

And so, but she encouraged me in a lot of ways to grow in my, in my faith and as a person, and to really try to discover myself. And so I just, but I kind of at that point in time had to resolve myself to, “Okay, we’re g- Laurel’s gonna be my good friend.” Mm-hmm. You know? And that, and that’s the way it’ll be, you know?

Mm-hmm. And I was o- I was okay with that. Yeah, I think you were- I was- …

Laurel Nicholson: really at peace with

Ed Nicholson: that. Yeah, I was okay with that. Yeah. I was like, “Okay, God, um, this is never gonna be, you know, anything but friendship.” And yet we still kept working. She, uh, was helping me with my family still. My mother ended up, um, moving into a assisted living place.

We got her out of the bad situation she was in and into a better situation. [00:15:00] And, um, and so, you know- Well, and

Laurel Nicholson: for me, Ed really loved my ministry, as you’ve heard him say. And he’s a creative person, and he’s a connected person in ministry. He’s, uh, worked in many different churches as a, a worship leader. He knows a lot of pastors.

He’s seen, uh, pastors struggle under the burden of, of pastoral care, uh, a- and, you know, w- helping families and when death is near. So he, he really admired my ministry because he had first-hand experience of-

Hmm …

sitting there watching his mother age. Um, he really got a close glimpse when he moved in with her, you know, kind of part-time.

And it just… He said, “Wow, I see in the church and I see at home that your ministry is really special.” It’s very relevant. So I appreciated that so much about him, because I really couldn’t get anybody to get excited about my ministry. And I really admired, I, I began to [00:16:00] admire the age difference, not for a romantic relationship, but for a ministry relationship.

And, um, you know, kind of a colleague, not like I formally wanted to hire him on, but as an advisor, because he just had wisdom of… We’re 14 years apart. He had 14 more years of wisdom and faith and work and ministry that I needed. And so I, I invited him down to Charlottesville after I moved there to stay one night, and then we were gonna go to North Carolina, because we both had friends that lived within 30 minutes of each other and they had never met, and we’re all having one thing or another of ministry in our life.

And we said, “You know what? This is gonna be a powerful connection. Let’s go introduce Matt and Lee.” And so we got them on board and they said, “Absolutely.” So you came [00:17:00] down, we got up early the next day, and we went to North Carolina. Greensboro.

Ed Nicholson: Greensboro, North Carolina. And we went to North Carolina. Where, where my

Laurel Nicholson: friend had lived.

And we, um- Sat around, like we, we, we had our meeting together, and we were all really moved and excited about what the Lord was doing, and I took this little teeny bottle of healing oil… or anointing oil for healing prayer from the Holy Land and said, “Okay, before we go, we’re all gonna anoint the person next to you, pray- Pray

and then we’ll go around the circle,” right? And it was- And it was ran- it was random order, but I do believe it was the beginning of something. That’s why I’m sharing this story.

Ed Nicholson: And I’ll share something in there. Sure. ‘Cause this is something. This is where I saw something change, and that was we had stayed overnight in a hotel, and when we were checking out of the hotel to leave, um, [00:18:00] Laurel, we was sitting in the lounge.

I, I was bringing my luggage down, and then I checked out and she was waiting for… She had already ha- had her stuff and was ready to go. And so we went to get into her car, and she opened up the back of her car and she said, “You know, Ed, I don’t think I could ever see a time in my life without you in it.”

And- She was like And I was like- Ooh … “Whoa, what did she just say?” Wait. And so- Could you repeat that, please? Yeah. I, I literally, that’s what I was thinking in my head. And then I was like, “Nah.”

Laurel Nicholson: She didn’t say

Ed Nicholson: that. No, she, she didn’t say that. So he packed up- And so I, I packed up the car, and I… We got in the car, and we avoided the conversation all…

for three and a half hours back to her house in Charlottesville. And then when we got back here, I was leaving to go back to New Jersey, so [00:19:00] I, you know, ’cause I had to head back to where I lived in New Jersey. So I literally packed up our stuff and we left. And-

Laurel Nicholson: And when we had been there in North Carolina with our friends, one of them had given us a charge of something to work on together.

And so we started having Zoom calls and working on them, and Ed was in his studio, and we s- we’re s- we’re kinda picking up our, our dialogue again and spending more time together through Zoom than we had, um, in, in, had been in touch, you know, in that, that type of capacity for a while. And, um, i- in the, in this kind of ministry corps that I’m talking about, a, a question was asked often was, “Who are you really?”

And that’s by our friend Lee, Lee Rouson. And I was… I remember after one of the Zooms with Ed, we were kinda wrapping it up, and I was looking at Ed, and I, you know, I’d known him for a couple years and knew that that really wasn’t who he was. The, the persona he was giving [00:20:00] off had some maturity to go through.

Um, and, and because- And we get back to the, the age difference. He has that wisdom, and he has that knowledge from years in a career. But he wanted to kind of backtrack and go back to years before. Yeah. I kind of- Like he wanted to go back into the ’90s … I was trying

Ed Nicholson: going back to the ’90s- … when I had long hair and I played in a Christian rock band.

And I- So

Laurel Nicholson: he knew he wasn’t himself …

Ed Nicholson: and, and I, and I’m proud of those things. I mean, I got s- stuff, wall candy hanging up on my walls because of the, my career. And I’m proud of my career, and I’m proud of what I did, and I’m thankful to God for the opportunity, for the little bit of time I got to do Christian music on a full-time basis.

And then I got to do some other really wonderful things that Laurel had learned about in our friendship over the years. [00:21:00] But she really challenged me. She said, “Who are you? What, what are you trying to be?” And I said, “

Laurel Nicholson: Who are you really?” Really.

Ed Nicholson: And that’s what she said. And I remember I walked into, to Lee one night, and he knew something was up, and he goes, “What’s up?”

And, ’cause I was living with Lee at the time up in New Jersey. He ha- he had, he was moving down to Greensboro. And, um, Lee looked at me and he goes- And you said, “

Laurel Nicholson: Laurel asked me the question.” I said, “Laurel asked

Ed Nicholson: me the question.” He goes, “What?” And he goes, “What question?” He goes, I s- “Who are you really?” “Who are you really?”

And he goes, “No way.” And I was like, “Yep, bro.” I said, “She said, ‘Who are you really?'” Yeah. And he was like, “No.” And then- So it

Laurel Nicholson: started something new. Yeah. It started something. It did. It started something new in me. And I can only say it was the Lord, because, uh, as you asked earlier, Don, you know, where were you before you met?

Did you want a relationship? I did [00:22:00] really want to get married again. Uh, you know, in that period of moving down to Charlottesville, my oldest went off to college, which was great. And, uh, I was at a place where I knew she wasn’t gonna like it, but, and wasn’t gonna be excited about Christmas. But I, I, I was in a place where I was free now to have a relationship.

I had worked hard and gotten her off to, uh, the next step where, where she needed to be. And I, the Lord just started to, I’m not sure, I can, shouldn’t say foster a love, because I think through that period I had started to foster a, a, a special love for Ed, even as a friend. But that he more revealed to me, the Lord revealed to me that this is the kind of man you’ve been praying for, you know, a faithful man.

Ed Nicholson: And it was funny because the turn came one night when we were talking. I don’t think we were on a Zoom. I think we were just talking on the [00:23:00] phone. And she said to me, “Ed, I just want you to know I truly love you.” And once again, I had one of those moments where I was like- … did she just say what I think she said?

And I, we, she was down here, now I know the house that she was living in, and it’s funny, that’s another God, God was showing up. Laurel moved to Charlottesville. She couldn’t find a place to live. She was living with her mom, and she c- she did not want to live with her mother. And she, I started praying for a house, and God gave me a specific vision for a specific house, and when she told me about this house, I knew that, what the house was.

I knew it. I, I told her- And we still live

Laurel Nicholson: here. We live here now … and we still live

Ed Nicholson: here now. But I remember she was, her wa- she was having trouble with her hot water heater, and as soon as she said that to me, I changed [00:24:00] the subject to start talking about her hot water heater. And so, like, three days went by where I, we texted, but I avoided the subject.

And then- I’ve got a- Yeah, go ahead. Um, can I ask

Dawn Pruszkowski: Laurel a question? Um, so Laurel, when you said, “I can’t imagine, I, uh, y- I could see you being in my life for all the, you know, all, all the days of my life,” and, and I, and mentioning loving him, were those, like, friendly thoughts? Or were those like- Great question

my heart is changing towards you in a romantic way thoughts?

Laurel Nicholson: Well, I s- I, I, I think I, it, like, I wasn’t determined for it to be something. And, and, and I think I was a little s- apprehensive too because I had put this w- wall up intentionally, and, [00:25:00] you know, one reason, like I look back now to see, you know, what the Lord had done, and, you know, Ed still had to wrap up his divorce, like the, the legal part of the divorce.

I had my children at home. You know, there was, it was just not the right time, and so I, I really, right before that, “I can’t see, you know, my life without you in it, and I truly love you-” Yeah, this- We had been, o- on that drive down to North Carolina, so Ed being a musician, he had created a playlist for the drive, or maybe it was his favorite songs.

I don’t know. Well, one of the songs that Three Crosses performed, that Ed wrote and was the lead singer on, came on in the car, and I’ve heard it with them, like, tons of times, and it was like a new song to me. So like, I really know that physically the Lord was changing something, even in my hearing.

Ed Nicholson: She said, she said when we were- I get-

listening to the song, [00:26:00] she’s like I really, I wanna learn. ‘Cause she’s, was, I was teaching her. She knew how to play the guitar, but I was giving her kind of lessons, teaching her to play better. And she said, “I wanna learn how to play a song like this. I love this.”

Laurel Nicholson: And it was Ed. And I go- And it, it, he’s- “Well,

Ed Nicholson: you know who that is?”

Like- And she goes, “No, who is it?” Like clear ears And I went, “

Laurel Nicholson: It’s me.” Like clear ears, clear heart, clear mind. Like, the Holy Spirit did that. But he chose it in such a time that was, that was right. Yeah. So when I began to think about that, I k- I kinda let go a little bit and, and surrender. ‘Cause I had not fought it i- in the means that, oh, I really want this relationship, but I shouldn’t have it.

But I fought it in that I knew Ed would like to move in that direction, and I really didn’t want to. And I always wanted to be friends and, and be, uh, but be clear with, with my boundaries. So it was really a new day.

Dawn Pruszkowski: So are you starting to realize, “I [00:27:00] think this is the one. This might be the one God has for me”?

Laurel Nicholson: It wasn’t lovey-dovey like that. Mm-hmm. Um, it, it was, it was, it was difficult in, in a few ways because I had set my mind elsewhere, but also could see what the Lord was doing. But it took faith. Really, it did. It, it, it took faith for a lot of reasons, I assume. Uh, my past, uh, for, you know, not… I, I, I had a previous marriage.

I’d also had some relationships that had caused me pain. Um, so it, it was, it was a step of faith. Like, I could see this was what the Lord was doing without knowing the outcome. But that’s, that’s life. That’s faith. I mean, the Bible says that to us. Um, you know, we, we cannot see, uh, what is ahead of us, so we do have to trust the Lord.

So, um, it, it was a mix of [00:28:00] relief that, oh my goodness, I am not gonna have to be alone, and apprehension because this was really not what I was looking for, that I thought. The Lord brought what I was looking for out of something that I really thought was not what I was looking for. It’s a miracle.

Ed Nicholson: Yeah.

And then the three days goes by where I don’t say anything to her. And then finally the third day I go, I just said to her, I text her in the afternoon, and I was like, “Hey, can we do a Zoom tonight?” And so she said, “Sure.” So I was working in the studio. I got done, and it was, like, pretty, it was pretty late.

It was, like, around 8:30, 9:00. And she got on the Zoom with me, uh, and I looked at her and I said, “You know that thing you said to me the other day about loving me? What did you mean about? What did you mean?” And I [00:29:00] think that was the first moment where Laurel was being totally vulnerable with me. And she said, “No, God is changing my heart, and I really mean what I said.”

Hmm. And she said, “God- He’s like … the Lord is, is changing my heart for me.” And I did. I was, I was doing some flip-flops. And then we, we didn’t th- we didn’t have time to see each other. Like, she lived in six hour, six hours away from me. So I was living in New Jersey still. I had three jobs I was doing. I, you know, I was working driving Uber, working as a social wor- uh, a worship leader, and then teaching at a, a Christian school part-time, and then doing session work at night in my studio.

And I was working my butt off because I had, you know, alimony to pay and all kinds of stuff that I [00:30:00] had to do. And, um, and so- So

Laurel Nicholson: we, it was a month, I think, before- It was a month … we could visit It was

Ed Nicholson: like four weeks. Our first night that we actually were together

Laurel Nicholson: was- We went to dinner with my mom We went

Ed Nicholson: to dinner with her mother.

It was, it was on-

Laurel Nicholson: Valentine’s Day … it was on

Ed Nicholson: Valentine’s Day.

Laurel Nicholson: And she’s

Dawn Pruszkowski: a widow. Doesn’t everyone want to have Valentine’s Day- Well, this is what, you know, when- … dinner with their mom. Yeah She was

Ed Nicholson: lonely, so it’s a dinner- This is what we were talking about today. This is what we were talking about. Do you know how like, you know, our parents, everybody always wanted this pure relationship, you know, that w- like, like biblical relationships where, you know, the bride and the groom were separated and they weren’t able to see each other, and then they get married and then they have a time where they’re in the tent of whatever.

The chamber

Dawn Pruszkowski: together. Yes.

Ed Nicholson: Yeah. They’re, they’re together. The marriage chamber. The marriage chambers and stuff like… Well, Laurel, [00:31:00] Laurel and I, we, we were forced to have conver- and, you know, we both were married. I had a lot of trauma from my first marriage because I basically had lived alone for a long period of time, um, without any intimacy or touch or anything like that, no affection.

And um, and so I was nervous about that. And so we got to talk about a lot of things that I don’t think couples normally talk about. I mean, we talked about everything. We got, we got really into what does a relationship together g- what’s it gonna look like once this relationship moves forwards, you know?

Mm-hmm. And so- It, it was [00:32:00] really a good time. I mean, I thank God for that time. And, and we- That time of where we were s- we kept- We did that- He kept us separated …

Laurel Nicholson: so we did that for a, a couple months, then Ed decided he would make the move to Charlottesville. And we ended up, I mean, we thought we would have a wedding, very small, but we were talking about different options.

Ed Nicholson: We had a friend of ours who was- People- … who was a pastor who was counseling us, like, through Zoom and stuff … my

Laurel Nicholson: mom was a little shocked because, you know, she’s like, “Well, you didn’t want anything with him, right? And now you want something with him?” You know? She’s- Yeah … you know, later part of her 70s. Like, she didn’t understand at all.

And we- He doesn’t have anything. He’s broke. So, so we ended up, we ended up getting g- going to get our marriage license so we could have this pastor friend of ours marry us. And but we went to ask them, you know, how, how can we best figure this out? Can [00:33:00] we do a Zoom wedding? Because he doesn’t live here, but Ed needed to move in because we could not get two apartments for a short period of time, right?

So there were these logistics that actually forced us to make the decision that, “Oh my gosh, we’re just gonna go from the license office down to the sheriff’s office and go ahead and get married, and then we’ll figure out what we’re gonna do next- Because, because- … as in with our family- Yeah … and with the celebration.

And so we got married, went over to Mom, my mom’s house for dinner because she had just had her knee replaced, told her, and she was so surprised she choked on her dinner. Not, like, really, but she was like, like went forward and started coughing. And my sister was there, ’cause she had come up to help, too.

And then we went home, and as soon as we got home my son called, and his, his dad- This is classic … first marriage, had decided that he would finish high school in New York. I still had one in high school, and it hadn’t been going very well, and his dad, um, and him had c- pretty much [00:34:00] come to the end of that arrangement.

And my son said, “I’m moving in.” So two week- And we- … two weeks

Ed Nicholson: after we got married, I drove to New York, picked up Sam, and brought him down here to live with

Dawn Pruszkowski: us. I’ve created something special just for you. It’s a beautiful creative guide to help you document your own love story, because your story is important and it’s worth remembering.

You can download it for free at unexpectedlovestories.com. That’s unexpectedlovestories.com. So you’re in a house with Mom, your son, and newlyweds. Well, no, no, no.

Ed Nicholson: It’s, we’re, we’re- Mom lived out. Mom lived out. Okay.

Dawn Pruszkowski: Okay.

Ed Nicholson: We’re in a house. We’re, and we’re in a tiny house. It’s not a big house. So- But all of a sudden I have a, a 17-year-old kid coming in to live with us who’s g- getting ready to go to high school.

And- Finish the school

Laurel Nicholson: year. Oh, gosh … and

Ed Nicholson: he has a- Yeah, yeah … you know. So

Laurel Nicholson: really what we’ve had is- You know, it [00:35:00] hasn’t been the romantic story of, you know, maybe first love and all the wonders that go with that. It’s been, our marriage has really become one of service. Mm. And just to look back at our story and see how the Lord prepared both of our hearts for that at the right time, and prepared, uh, uh, a, a godly love, and that we’ve been able to, to serve.

Serve my mom, continue to serve his mom, who, who did die in January. Um, my son came to, to live with us and is, is excelling from, from that year. So we see that-

Ed Nicholson: And we saw miracles. We saw miracles- Yeah, we’ve seen- … happen in, in our relationship over and over. Mm-hmm. I’ve seen miracles in my life that God has transformed now into my marriage.

Mm. I like to say, “God’s got us,” you know? The will of God is restoration. The plan of the cross is restoration. Right. It’s, it’s, it’s, it’s God’s plan of [00:36:00] grace being played out. That’s basically what it is. And so, um, so, and that shocks a lot of Christians because a lot of, some Christians don’t look at it that way.

But I look, I know I am incapable of being or doing any of the things that God has allowed me to do and i- is allowing me to do.

Laurel Nicholson: Mm-hmm.

Ed Nicholson: I’m incapable of loving my wife correctly. I’m incapable. But yet, with the little time that we do have, you know, time together, God gives us some of the greatest moments.

That’s right. We look at it and we go, “Look at this.” Like, look at we’re… You know, sometimes we’re in a crazy situation and we’re like, “Did you ever think we’d be here? No.” You know? And we’re, we’re here, and we’re like, the Lord’s given us an opportunity to be together. I mean, you know, now I’m doing some stuff, you know, [00:37:00] kind of in a career change again.

I have a day gig, and that day gig is about to change. And all a sudden, two years after we’re married, we could end up living in a really nice part of the country in a very nice house with a very good salary.

Laurel Nicholson: Mm-hmm.

Ed Nicholson: And everything else because of God, God’s plan. And- His

Laurel Nicholson: fullness. And you just have to- Yeah

trust it even when it’s not what you think you want, or you think you deserve, or you think that’s what God’s gonna do. And, you know, we both had that first marriage that is- Yeah … just, you have an expectation, and not, not for every couple that doesn’t work out, and it ends in a disaster. And there’s pain from that, and then you can see that- Like, I even can see that in the people that I did, you know, get to know or found interest in before [00:38:00] meeting Ed, they were like the repeat of my first, of my first husband, right?

God had to do it for me. I still wasn’t capable of doing it for myself.

Dawn Pruszkowski: Mm. Yeah. Okay, so you said that your daughter had originally said, “I don’t want you dating anyone.” What did she think about, “Well, hello, honey. Guess what? I went down to the sheriff’s office and got married”? Yeah. Does

Laurel Nicholson: she- She, she, that made her mad.

She, she was… She, she tried really hard. She ha- she has a fantastic boyfriend who has been saving grace, because he is, I think he’s helped her come to terms with it in, in a really good way. He has just a, a great spirit about him that’s very even-keeled, where my daughter’s a little bit more, um, easy to [00:39:00] upset.

Mm-hmm. And so she would get really mad at me, and then the next day she’d be like, “Well, I’m gonna be okay with it.” So I know she had gone to her friends and her boyfriend and said, “I’m so mad at my mom.” And they’re like, “Why are you mad at your mom? Your mom makes it possible for you to go to college.” Yeah.

Like, “Why don’t you want your mom to be happy,” right? So she would come the, “I want you to be happy.” And I know it was really, really hard for her. But, but there’s been healing for, for my daughter and f- and for me, and she and Ed get along very well.

Ed Nicholson: Yeah.

Dawn Pruszkowski: Oh, that’s great.

Laurel Nicholson: Yeah. Yeah. And how about your

Dawn Pruszkowski: kids, Ed?

Ed Nicholson: Well, my kids, it’s a different story. My kids live in New Jersey. They live with their mother. Um, I hear from them every once in a while, um, but not, not the closest. The restoration, that will come at some point in time, I think because of the influence of their mother. And, and you know, they, they live [00:40:00] in a situation with their mom where she’s living in a, in a place with her, her parents so, and caring for her parents at the end of their life.

So I think my kids, you know… And I, I always remember I got a call from my m- my daughter one time, and she was upset because, you know, in the divorce we had to sell our house, and that was my kids’ home, and that was very painful for them, you know? Um, and so I, I know that God’s gotta do some healing. But like I said, I trust the Lord, you know?

Mm-hmm. I, somebody asked me, they’re like, “How…” You know, I, I pray for the day for restoration for my, with my kids.

Laurel Nicholson: Mm. Mm-hmm. I

Ed Nicholson: do. You know, I know they both struggle. I text them every once in a while to let them know that I love them and that I’m always here for them and I will always care about them. Um, but you know, it’s really gonna take that step [00:41:00] from them of wanting to have the contact.

And every once in a while they do. Every once in a while I hear from my s- my son. And you know, he was, I was his best friend at points in his life, so I don’t, you know, I don’t, I know he can’t just put that aside.

Laurel Nicholson: But you can- Yeah … look at the restoration that God’s brought, brought through in marriage- Yeah

to believe that at the right time, he’ll- Yeah, I believe

Ed Nicholson: at the right time that- Yeah.

Laurel Nicholson: But it’s not without pain … that is. I

Ed Nicholson: mean, you know, it’s

Dawn Pruszkowski: like- Well, look at the, your, your guys’, your journey together. Yeah. It took a while and stuff. We- So it’s gonna take a while on their journey, too. But the good news

Ed Nicholson: is- My st- my stepson, Sam, you know, was forced to come live with us.

So we got to spend a lot of time together. And you know, I don’t wanna be a replacement dad for him. I wanna be his stepdad. That’s who I am. I love him because I love his mother. [00:42:00] So, um, and that’s what Christ wants me to do. Mm-hmm. So that’s part of the sacrifice, you know, um, of being a Christian. And service there again.

And Laurel and I have been called to service, so that’s what we’re called to do. So for me, it’s just a extension of that.

Laurel Nicholson: Yeah.

Ed Nicholson: And I, I’m, I’m not, Sam has had an amazing-

Laurel Nicholson: Transformation … transformation

Ed Nicholson: living with us. It’s nothing I’ve done. It’s God’s hand in Sam’s life. Yeah. And that’s when I say, God’s got us.

He’s got us. You know? He has us.

Laurel Nicholson: So our story is about restoration. Yes. And spilling out from just the two of us already into my son. Yeah. My daughter’s found some peace, and we hope that for your kids- Yeah … for his kids, too. Yeah. Well,

Ed Nicholson: I- I wrote a song about it. You wanna hear it? No, I’m kidding. [00:43:00] I did. I actually wrote a song years ago for Phillips, Craig & Dean called Restoration.

It was a title- Great … track to their record. But it, it’s- Mm. You know, that’s what the song is about.

Dawn Pruszkowski: I love that. Love that. Okay, I do have a question. Yeah. So did you ever get a celebration for your wedding? Did you have a honeymoon? Yeah. Did you have any-

Laurel Nicholson: No. No? No. I know we’re not- Oh … we don’t have an exciting story.

We have a real story, but no. We, um, I have a beautiful ring, beautiful ring. That’s special. Did, did that come before or after the wedding? My, my family, uh, this is a cool story. My grandfather was an estate attorney, and he had these two sisters who were his clients, and they couldn’t pay him, and they gave him diamonds.

And I had, um, one in a necklace that my parents had given me when I [00:44:00] graduated from college, so my mom exchanged it with me and took the smaller one back and gave me the bigger one, and said that Ed and I could use it for a ring. So he got creative at the jewelry store with that, and-

Ed Nicholson: Actually, with my, with my mother-in-law.

She, she went with- My mother-in-law went with me … yeah, yeah … and she helped me pick a ring out. And I was leaning toward this one thing, and Mom said to me, “Look at this.” And then the girl put the two rings together, and it was just beautiful together. Yeah. It has a lotta, a lot of meaning behind it. Yeah. And those are, I think, Dawn, for Laurel and I, those are the mo- You know, you can have a big wedding and have a blast, and you can have a big, you know, you could spend, you know, thir- $20,000, $30,000 going to Hawaii, and you can do all that stuff.

But we, I think we were away a couple weeks ago, and Laurel said, “Look at where we’re at. Like, this is kinda like a honeymoon, you know?” And that’s, like, we [00:45:00] get those moments all the time. Yeah. And that’s, a lotta couples don’t ever have those moments. We get to do some really cool, exciting things. We get to meet some really cool, exciting people like yourself, and we get to do th- And connect with other people who love the Lord and, and wanna see their lives prosper and wanna hear stories.

But used to think that it was a Disney love story. It’s not. Yeah. And our story is God’s story. Yeah. And so that’s really what it’s all about for the two of us. Because I think so many times we strive for that love story that we read about in books or we see in movies or, [00:46:00] and, and m- that’s just not necessarily reality.

Dawn Pruszkowski: Yeah. Yeah. It is. I think a lot of, like, the Disney things, that’s, that’s just the first chapter- Yeah … in the book, and they always end the story there.

Ed Nicholson: Yeah.

Dawn Pruszkowski: You know? But yet, I- And then you don’t see the rest …

Ed Nicholson: but yet you shared with us your story, and it does sound like, it sounds like a love story, but it’s still God’s story.

It was God’s calling on your life, and I think that’s where it’s important. Mm-hmm. I, I just never, you know- I, I really, it took me a lot of years to figure out who I was. It did. And, you know, I think I got a mate who helped me figure that out.

Laurel Nicholson: Mm.

Ed Nicholson: Who God used- Yeah … in my life to push me that way.

Laurel Nicholson: One, one joke- And, and he’s totally supportive

that we have, [00:47:00] just when things are tough, either you’re working too much or you’re not feeling great, or you have to do something you wanna do, you don’t wanna do, we say, “Well, at least you’re not by yourself.”

Yeah, that’s

Ed Nicholson: our joke.

Laurel Nicholson: At least we’re doing it together. At

Ed Nicholson: least we’re doing this together. You know?

So. And it

Laurel Nicholson: does, it grounds us in what we really want, and that is to do things together. That’s what we really want. Yeah. Whether it’s really exciting or romantic, or whether it’s a little bit of drudgery, which comes in life. And e- We’re happy to do it together …

Ed Nicholson: and even when we don’t do things together, we’re both excited about what it…

When we’re not a pa- when we’re apart, about what God’s doing, so when we get together, we talk, we talk about it. Like, we really- Yeah … vest into each other. I, I used to have this feeling, like, that your ministry was together. That’s not necessarily true. Laurel has what [00:48:00] God wants for her, and he has what God, God wants for me.

And now he’s brought our ministries together. He’s given me a time where I’m doing music therapy in hospice now. I never thought I’d ever be doing that, but I’m doing it, and it, and it shows me what my wife’s ministry really is all about. And so I think that it gives me a, a glimpse into that. So, but, you know, it, it’s really the Lord.

I mean, I- Mm-hmm … I can’t put it any other way than that. I just, you know. I love my wife. She’s beautiful. I think she, you know, she’s the bomb. So. And the

Laurel Nicholson: boss. And

Ed Nicholson: the boss. Yeah. The boss. Yeah, we talk about that too. Oh. In a good way. Ah. No. No. Like, but we, we serve each other too.

Dawn Pruszkowski: Mm-hmm. And

Ed Nicholson: [00:49:00] that’s a- I love…

Dawn Pruszkowski: I was gonna say, I love how you are so real with each other too.

Ed Nicholson: Mm.

Dawn Pruszkowski: That’s important. Yeah. But I

Ed Nicholson: think it’s that time that God gave us where we had months where we weren’t, like, on top of each other together every day. Like, when we got together, it was very special, because the moments we were together, we were really together, you know? And, but those moments apart, it gave us time to talk about the ha- you know, have hard conversations.

We got a- An extended family, both of us do. You know, we have other children involved. You know, w- there, you know, there was a lot of those dynamics, you know? Yeah. And, and it’s hard. That’s a journey that we’re still on, you know? Mm-hmm. Is that restoration. Mm. And there are so [00:50:00] many broken families that it takes a long time, and it takes hard work.

Mm. And it takes hard conversations. It takes a lot of prayer, and God g- but God’s the God that restores,

Dawn Pruszkowski: so. Yes, He is. Absolutely. Yeah. I, I love your story. Well, thank- Thank you so much for sharing it. I mean, I, it’s like a true testament that if you surrender to God’s process- Mm … that He’s gonna make your story excellent, beautiful, something beyond what you ever imagined it would be.

Yeah. You know? That’s right. And I just cherish that.

Ed Nicholson: Yeah. Well, thank you, Dawn. Yeah. We appreciate it. Well, thank you

Dawn Pruszkowski: for being on. Thank you. Hey, did you know there is so much more to learn about Ed and Laurel? And it’s all on our website. We have their fun photos and links to the amazing things that they’re doing, and all the ways that you can connect with them.

Just look in the show notes for the link that says More Information [00:51:00] and Photos About Ed and Laurel, and that’s gonna take you right to their page on our website. Or you could just visit unexpectedlovestories.com and see not only their page, but all these amazing stories that we have there. Now, I want you to be a blessing and share this episode with at least one person, because I know that you know s- somebody who’s healing from past relationships, or they’re unsure if they can open their hearts again.

Or maybe somebody who’s learning to trust God with what comes next. Well, you can make a difference in their lives. Just share this episode with them. And one last thing. Would you help us get these inspiring stories in front of people who need to know that God really cares about them? It’s easy. Just give us a thumbs up or a top rating, and just leave a short comment about how this story blessed you.

Well, I hope that your heart feels [00:52:00] lighter and full of hope after hearing this 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.