John David Duggar Is Engaged to Abbie Burnett

"It was a special moment to share together," the newly-engaged couple said in a joint statement

Published on July 25, 2018 09:00AM EDT

John David Duggar has found his forever match!

The Counting On star, 28, is engaged to Abbie Burnett, the couple announced Wednesday in a joint statement on the family website.

“Wow! We are engaged! This feels even more real than before! It was a special moment to share together,” Duggar and Burnett said.

“The proposal and the ‘YES’ really solidified that we want to spend the rest of our lives together. One of the most amazing things about following Christ is being able to trust Him to direct your path and lead your life,” they continued. “We are so thankful that He led us to one another. Now we need to start thinking about a wedding!”

John David Duggar Engaged to Abbie Burnett credit: TLC/duggarfamily.com — TLC/duggarfamily.com

Their engagement comes a month after the pair revealed the news of their courtship in a TLC video.

“We’ve known of each other for several years, but we didn’t meet ’til…” Duggar said as Burnett, who works as a nurse, chimed in, “John flew in for a church event here in Oklahoma where I’m from. We really got connected then.”

“We fell in love very quickly,” said Duggar. “And it’s been a wonderful journey thus far and taking the next step to move onto a courtship.”

John David Duggar Engaged to Abbie Burnett credit: TLC — TLC

In a sweet TLC video after Duggar popped the question — he got down on one knee in an airplane hangar in front of a sign that reads “Abbie, Will You Marry Me?” — the beaming pair showed off Burnett’s gorgeous ring and explained how engagement is different from courtship.

“Engagement is very different than a courtship because engagement actually says, ‘Okay, I’m committed to this person to marriage for life,’ ” explained Duggar. “A courtship is more of a I’m getting to know this person with the idea of the possibility of marriage. But now it’s actually that commitment towards marriage.”

“We’ve been ready for this step for a little while, but it was really just I had a lot of things I wanted to get done to make it really special,” said Duggar. “I don’t know if I succeeded or not, but it was a lot of things.”

“He succeeded,” said Burnett, who added that they’re now “looking forward to planning a wedding so that we can get married!”

Counting On returns July 30 at 9 p.m. ET on TLC.