Hacking Dating: A Dating Guide for ChristiansIsampula

Love God First

​​If you’re a Christian looking for love, you might be feeling a little lost. The modern dating world is tough enough to navigate. Add trying to find someone who shares your faith, values, and life goals; things can get pretty tricky. While there’s still a possibility that you’ll meet your forever person at church this upcoming Sunday, hit it off, and be married within six months, it’s becoming more and more unlikely. So, how do you navigate the dating world without compromising your beliefs or desires to find someone to spend your life with? Fortunately, you serve a God who knows your heart and has a beautiful, adventurous plan for your life. And hacking dating starts with Him.

If you’re not sure where to start when it comes to Christian dating, the Bible makes it relatively easy for you: Love the Lord your God.

You must love God before you can love anyone else fully because God is love. And your relationship with God should be the most important thing in your life, above finding a partner. There are countless ways to focus on your relationship with God (i.e., spending time praying, reading your Bible, and going to church) that can actually help your dating life.

1. Dating Requires Patience and Grace–God Gives You Those

The dating world can be a lot to handle. You meet new people, you go on dates, and you might even end up in a relationship. It can be a lot of fun, but all relationships take work and require patience, grace, and understanding. Patience will help you weather the ups and downs of the dating process, and grace will help you treat people with respect, even when things don't go perfectly. And luckily, these are two things that God is always willing to give us so that we can give them to others.

2. Resisting Temptation Can be Hard–God Gives You Strength

A deep connection with God will give you the strength to resist temptation. It’s not always easy to stay true to your beliefs and respect your boundaries in relationships. However, when you stay connected to God, you’ll be more likely to make wise choices that will benefit you and your partner in the long run.

3. Dating is Full of Decision-Making–God Helps You Make Good Ones

To swipe right or swipe left… that is the question.

To go on a first date or not… that is the question.

To continue to pursue a relationship or leave… that is the question.

To make things official or stay friends… that is the question.

Dating requires a lot of decisions–decisions that will have a significant impact on your life. Sometimes it can feel overwhelming trying to answer all of these questions on your own. Fortunately, you can pray and ask God for guidance, whether that comes through prayer, Biblical revelation, or advice from a wise friend or mentor.

Step one in every life decision is to love the Lord your God first. Everything else is better, including your dating experience when that's the foundation of your life.