Dating is something all young adults look at, and its perfectly fine. I personally have my own convictions and desires when it comes to relationships. I made a commitment to God that I would wait for love until I was mature spiritually and growing in Him. Not that any young adult who chooses to date isnt ready, but sometimes spiritually and emotionally we arent ready. There isn't a point of maturity or growth that you have to reach before you choose to begin searching for that Godly relationship, but for myself I set boundries.
Having divorced parents and having parents who are not Christian influenced my decision somewhat as well as seeing young adults continuously fail at relationships because they do not have God centered in their life. I feel like when God sends that Godly man and the time comes for when I get married, divorce is not an option. Divorce will not be mentioned in my marriage, it will not be joked about, it will not be thrown up in fights. The "D" word is deadly in marriages. Marriage is a sacred bond that has been defiled. In Illinois I heard on the news the other day that they are trying to legalize same sex marriage in the state. Im not going walk into the "gay marriage" debate because thats not what this blog post is about, but I do want to share with you what I feel marriage is and what the bible says marriage is.
"A man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh." - Genesis 2:24
If we back up a few verses to verse 21, we read that God had caused Adam to fall asleep and he took one of Adams ribs and made a woman from the rib taken from Adams side. I want to come back to that verse a little later in the blog because I have a really great quote that goes along with dating. But back to marriage, marriage is a beautiful thing. When you think of marriage, if you're a girl you think of the moment you wait for your whole life the "I DO" and the beautiful wedding. If you're a guy, you probably think you're signing your life away to your future wife, lol. Just kidding. Who says we cant be humorous about it?! :)
That moment when you say your vows, traditional or if you choose to write your own. You make a commitment to your partner and you both make a commitment to God. Not only to love eachother but to love God first above anything. To keep God centered in your marriage. I wish everyone had the this view on marriage and took the commitment and beauty of it serious like my heart does. You may think I know "alot" of the subject and its not that its something I cant wait for, because you have to learn to understand what love is in order to even taken the neccessary steps of getting to the point of marriage, but it is something my heart desires. I think thats every man and womans desire whether they admit it or not.
Now that we covered how sacred marriage is, lets get back to understanding your worth and beauty, and what you want to search for in that future relationship. As young ladies, we often compare ourselves to others. Even as Christians we should know who we are and what God says we are. We are fearfully and wonderfully made, we are a beautiful masterpiece, BUT even then sometimes our flesh looks at earthly features. We compare our weight, the color of our skin, our hair, our clothes, who wears make-up, for guys; hair cut, style, weight, acne, etc. If a guy or girl has ever "dumped" you because of any of those reasons then trust me that wasnt the relationship God had intended for you to be in. When God places someone in your life for good, that man or woman will love you for who you are on the inside not for your outward features. Thats the beauty of waiting for a relationship too, because as you grow in the Lord he begins revealing these things to you. Lets be honest its good if you find someone good looking, but it shouldnt be the thing your looking for in a relationship, because if you're looking at a man or woman for the outward features it may end up leading you into a place of lust and both of you will get hurt.
When God sees you're ready for the commitment of a relationship he will place that person in your life at the right time. Why would you want it at the wrong time? Its better to have patience and understand that Gods timing is perfect than to receive it too soon before you're ready and if that happens, you may pull yourself or him/her down. Thats why its crucial to understand Gods timing is perfect and if you can be patient he has a plan for you and a plan for your future husand/wife.
[Quote] "When God knows you are ready for the responsibility of commitment, He will reveal the right person under the right circumstances. Wait patiently. Don't waste your time searching and wishing. Grow and be ready. And you'll see, God will give you a love story far better than you can ever dream of."
[Quote] "God's timing is perfect, it's never early, it's never late, it takes a little patience, and a whole lot of faith"
[Quote] "Having faith in God also includes having faith in His timing".
Whenever you find yourself ready to begin searching and seeking for that person and you know that God is at the center of your life seek His will as you begin to search. Im not saying go out there find a guy and say "he's the one, God sent him, we're going to live happily ever after" what im saying is if you find someone who is special to you make sure he/she has God centered in their life and that they hold the same values and respect God has placed in your heart about the future of the relationship. Its important that you understand the other persons feelings and desires about relationships as well. Respect them if they feel they arent ready to be in a relationship yet. Maybe they are still growing spiritually and seeking Gods will for their future relationship too.
If you find someone and you both feel God has placed you in eachothers life for a reason you have to learn patience, kindness, tenderness, work through problems, uplift, encourage, and support one another. Before you find yourself "in love" with another person its important that both people understand what love is, and who love is. GOD is love. Its important that God is centered in your relationship as well. It takes timing and again TONS of patience.
One of the most used scriptures used when it comes to "Love" is; "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres." - 1 Corinthians 13:4-7
I love that scripture, I find it beautiful to know what love is. When someone asks you to define love, they may be looking for some cliche words or saying but as a Christian we know what love is. If you find yourself in love and you find yourself losing patience with one of the emotions in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 its always good to examine your heart and evaluate your motives in the relationship. It may not be that you dont love the person it may just be that you're flesh is losing patience with the whole waiting game and you are becoming anxious. I love that as your growing and maturing in the Lord you can also learn to understand each emotion or fruit of what love is. It helps when you find yourself ready to begin a relationship.
I feel like i've covered alot about dating in this blog post, and thats great. I think this topic is a serious topic for young adults and espeically Christians. Its a topic that im passionate about and I have very strong desires about it. I only hope that you find your beauty and worth and understand the importance of patience in waiting for a relationship and understand that when the time comes that its not about the outward appearance. The young man/woman God has for is not going to care about your outward appearance but for your heart and your deep love for God.
One last quote before I end the post and this is my favorite it has to do with Genesis 2:21-23 as stated in the beginning of the blog post;
The woman came from a mans rib. Not from his feet to be walked on. Not from his head to be above him, but from the side to be equal, under the arm to be protected, and next to the heart to be loved.
Girls, you are to respect and treat the man the same way.
-Tiffany :)
