His Timing. Always.
Y'all, get ready for this. I am about to tackle writing about one of my favorite topics: relationships!! I honestly can't put into words how much I love talking about the sacred bond between a man and a woman, how it comes into being, my personal love life, and just how God made dating and marriage to be. This post will likely be one of many, and I don't really know what that looks like yet. Anyway, buckle up!
I am a strong believer in most, if not all, of my convictions. Like, I'm one of those people who is either all in or all out. So, that quality makes itself very apparent in my love life because dating is a major step in a person's vocational journey, and you can't walk that path halfheartedly! Something that I believe really strongly about is dating with a purpose. This concept is generally seen as really strange because we live in a fast paced world that thrives on whatever the next thing is, never staying too long on one thing before bouncing to the next. The hookup culture is thriving for that very reason. People date and hook up to pass time, to look more acceptable through the eyes of society, or just because they can. Just because they feel like it. There is no end goal in the mind of most modern daters. That is a huge problem! Many of us seem to forget that when you date somebody, the relationship culminates either in a break up or in marriage. Woah. Very few decisions that we make have higher stakes than that.
It leads one to wonder when a person is ready to date. Here's the answer: when you are ready to get married, you are ready to date. Now, there is a bit of wiggle room there (high school sweethearts still happen, I know!), but as a general rule of thumb, dating should be saved until you are ready to pursue a lifelong commitment to someone. That's the purpose of dating, after all. It's serious business! Everyone needs time to work on being happy with themselves and their identity in Christ before doing anything that will change their life, especially something like getting married. It takes everyone a different amount of time to get there, and that's okay! That season of singleness is imperative. God uses the part of our lives when we're single to do amazing things within our hearts and to serve the world in a capacity that isn't possible otherwise.
I really believe that if you aren't happy as a single person and knowing that God alone is enough to make you completely happy, you need to stay single for a while yet. It took me a looooong time to get to that point. It was all His timing, though. And it is so good. This past year has been one of huge growth that would not have happened had I been dating someone. Having gone through that, I am completely at peace with entering into a relationship that is centered around Christ. His timing. Always. My boyfriend and I both had very much needed single time before we met each other, and it is very clear to both of us that God planned it this way. I needed a year, and my boyfriend needed three. The Lord works at a different pace with every person, and that is beautiful! Let's just say that before the time off from the dating scene, we were different people than who we are now. The Lord took both of our hearts separately and prepared us into the man and woman we are today.
We certainly could not have planned out how we got to this point with any degree of success, that's for sure! My plan when I was younger was to get married right out of high school. Seeing as I am going into my second year of college, that obviously didn't work out. But that is because it was my plan, not God's. Looking at where I am now, I'm soooo glad that my plan didn't happen! God always has the best in mind for us; now the trick is learning to trust Him. Some people are single for a few months before being ready for a relationship that could lead to marriage. Others need years or even decades. They are all completely fine, because it's God setting the pace. And He is always right! I promise you that when you commit to a real relationship with the Lord, all your other relationships will fall into place. His timing. Always.
I am a strong believer in most, if not all, of my convictions. Like, I'm one of those people who is either all in or all out. So, that quality makes itself very apparent in my love life because dating is a major step in a person's vocational journey, and you can't walk that path halfheartedly! Something that I believe really strongly about is dating with a purpose. This concept is generally seen as really strange because we live in a fast paced world that thrives on whatever the next thing is, never staying too long on one thing before bouncing to the next. The hookup culture is thriving for that very reason. People date and hook up to pass time, to look more acceptable through the eyes of society, or just because they can. Just because they feel like it. There is no end goal in the mind of most modern daters. That is a huge problem! Many of us seem to forget that when you date somebody, the relationship culminates either in a break up or in marriage. Woah. Very few decisions that we make have higher stakes than that.
It leads one to wonder when a person is ready to date. Here's the answer: when you are ready to get married, you are ready to date. Now, there is a bit of wiggle room there (high school sweethearts still happen, I know!), but as a general rule of thumb, dating should be saved until you are ready to pursue a lifelong commitment to someone. That's the purpose of dating, after all. It's serious business! Everyone needs time to work on being happy with themselves and their identity in Christ before doing anything that will change their life, especially something like getting married. It takes everyone a different amount of time to get there, and that's okay! That season of singleness is imperative. God uses the part of our lives when we're single to do amazing things within our hearts and to serve the world in a capacity that isn't possible otherwise.
I really believe that if you aren't happy as a single person and knowing that God alone is enough to make you completely happy, you need to stay single for a while yet. It took me a looooong time to get to that point. It was all His timing, though. And it is so good. This past year has been one of huge growth that would not have happened had I been dating someone. Having gone through that, I am completely at peace with entering into a relationship that is centered around Christ. His timing. Always. My boyfriend and I both had very much needed single time before we met each other, and it is very clear to both of us that God planned it this way. I needed a year, and my boyfriend needed three. The Lord works at a different pace with every person, and that is beautiful! Let's just say that before the time off from the dating scene, we were different people than who we are now. The Lord took both of our hearts separately and prepared us into the man and woman we are today.
We certainly could not have planned out how we got to this point with any degree of success, that's for sure! My plan when I was younger was to get married right out of high school. Seeing as I am going into my second year of college, that obviously didn't work out. But that is because it was my plan, not God's. Looking at where I am now, I'm soooo glad that my plan didn't happen! God always has the best in mind for us; now the trick is learning to trust Him. Some people are single for a few months before being ready for a relationship that could lead to marriage. Others need years or even decades. They are all completely fine, because it's God setting the pace. And He is always right! I promise you that when you commit to a real relationship with the Lord, all your other relationships will fall into place. His timing. Always.
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