Relationship Road Mapಮಾದರಿ

WHAT ABOUT FEELINGS?

If you get married, you can know with 100 percent cer­tainty that you are going to marry a flawed human. You can also know with 100 percent certainty that you do not have the ability to change that person. So, the only way to guarantee that your spouse’s flaws won’t bankrupt your life is if your spouse is submitted to the One who is able to change them—God.

You have to see that before you marry someone.

I don’t care how cute they are.

I don’t care if they can finish your sentences.

I don’t care how much your heart goes pitter-patter when they walk by. Jeremiah tells us, “The heart is deceitful above all things” (Jeremiah 17:9). Proverbs says, “Those who trust in themselves are fools” (Proverbs 25:26).

That’s why, rather than trusting your own emotions, you have to see that this person is submitted to God. If God wants to speak to them about their anger, they can hear Him. If God challenges this person on a bad habit, they work toward change. If God wants them to for­give a parent who failed, this person is softhearted enough to accept that word and strong enough to be obedient.

Once you’re married, there are going to be countless issues on which you disagree that you will not see when you’re dat­ing. So, no matter what you agree on or don’t agree on, you want to be with someone who is submitted to Jesus. Someone who is teachable. Correctable. Open to being transformed by God.

If you meet a guy or girl on the bus, at the grocery store, or on a hiking trail, and you don’t know if they have a relation­ship with God, don’t go out with them. Take it slow. Because when you invest enough time, you can fall in love with someone you donotwant to end up with. Don’t assume you’re mature enough to date someone you’re unsure about without catching feels. You’re only fooling yourself.

The psalmist tells us, “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever” (Psalm 73:26). When God is guiding your heart and fulfilling both you and the person you are dating, you will be able to “fall in love” while still walking in wisdom.

What does it mean for God to be the strength of your heart?