Okutandika 2:24

Whenever someone asks us if we believe in premarital sex we respond by saying “yes and no.” It’s a confusing answer at first, but it gives us an opportunity to make an important point. God affirms our sexuality as human beings and we ­can’t suddenly become asexual. For this reason, we believe in premarital sexuality. We are quick to follow up, however, by saying that having genital sex before marriage is clearly not in line with God’s principles. 

Search for #RelationshipGoals on social media, and you’ll find seemingly perfect images of couples in love. But what if the vision of relationship that our society is selling is a mirage? Pastor Michael Todd has written Relationship Goals: How to Win at Dating, Marriage, and Sex about having relationship goals that come from God and align with who He has made us to be.

婚姻是從「我」到「我們」的發展與連結過程。正因這是一段漫長的關係旅程以及共同生活的經歷，尤其是在轉折處，例如生小孩、青少年、空巢期、健康、工作改變等等階段，最會考驗到彼此的關係。這個過程也最能迫使基督徒夫妻思考關於神如何守約愛人，及主耶穌如何付出捨己的愛的教導。 要明白為什麼要守住婚姻的盟約，我們不僅需要聖經的知識，還需要更新我們的心。如大衛在詩篇23:3所說「祂使我的靈魂甦醒。」若沒有神，我們的愛就會被有限的看法及感受所限制，我們實在需要閱讀神的話語、反思及禱告，才有能力在屬靈方面有長進。這五天的靈修計畫將幫助你從聖經的角度來思考婚姻的盟約關係。

As New York pastor Rich Villodas defines it, a deeply formed life is a life marked by integration, intersection, intertwining, and interweaving, holding together multiple layers of spiritual formation. This kind of life calls us to be people who cultivate lives with God in prayer, move toward reconciliation, work for justice, have healthy inner lives, and see our bodies and sexuality as gifts to steward.