Courtship , what is it??

hey girls!, so today i decided to write about courtship and I'm pretty sure this wont be my first post about it because i am fascinated with this topic! First i just want to say that Courtship is a personal choice and just because your a christian does not mean you have to court.So what is Courtship?? i barley found out about it a year ago,courtship is like an alternative to dating, but there are a lot of differences. These day teenagers date just to have someone, they throw the word LOVE around like they know what it means , and they get the meaning of love from their feelings and not from JESUS, and the love we have from Jesus is the only real love there is. So i have dated in the past, both before and after i got saved and it personally  never worked out for me because God was never the center of my relationship, so about six months i felt on my heart that i should look for a guy that is willing to court instead of date (and that is not easy!)

How is courting different from dating?

well for me the difference is the purpose , usually when people start dating they don't have marriage or an engagement in mind but when you court you do, your looking for someone who you could possibly see yourself marrying one day. There is also a lot more rules.

Courtship rules

1.the couple never goes out alone, or is alone with each other .

As much as you trust yourself and the person your with, you should never take the risk of being alone together.

.2 they get to know each others families

this is a great way to get to have people to be accountable for you and the person you are with.

3.they pray and study Gods word together to see if it is Gods will to spend their lives together

this is probably one of the most important rules! your first priority in a Courtship should be God!

4.No physical stuff, this includes kissing, holding hands and hugging are okay.

5.the male should ask the females father for permission to court her and marry her.

But permission from our heavenly father is more important and he should ask him first!

6. the words "I LOVE YOU" should be taken very seriously

these are my personal rules that i do recommend for anyone wants to pursue a courtship , but these rules can always be somewhat adjusted to meet your own personal needs :)

What a purity ring means to me

So surprisingly not that many Christians i know have purity rings,  When i was younger i always wanted one,but i wanted it to have meaning so i didn't want to just go out and buy one, so this November i will have a purity ceremony, which is a ceremony my church has every year, all the girls take classes before and learn why its important to stay pure until marriage, then the day of the ceremony we all dress up and make a promise and commitment to stay pure until marriage in front of all the church and all our friends and family. I'm so blessed to be a part of this  and i defiantly believe its something God wants we to do.In today's society having sex before marriage is a very common thing sadly , and its easy for someone to feel like an outcast because they don't follow the ways of the world.

Why i chose to get a purity ring

1. Because its what God wants for me

 It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; ⁴ that each of you should learn to control your own body^[a] in a way that is holy and honorable, 

1 Thessalonians 4:3-4

2. Its a constant reminder and statement about what I believe in.

Its so important for me to have everyone know that i constantly strive to NOT be a worldly girl, but i don't "show off" my purity ring for others to praise me, i do it so i can be a light  and an example to those who don't know the importance of purity.

3. For my future husband

One day when i find the man I'm going to marry i want him to know that my purity is something very important and sacred to me, its something that i have saved for him all my life .

why it is important to have christian friends

This past weekend i had a sleepover to celebrate my 18th birthday, all the girls i invited were from my church .Being a teenager (well now I'm an adult :p) its hard to find friends that are a good influence and that can help you with your walk with God. Ive only been a christian since i was sixteen , and "REAL" christian friends that are truly living for Christ  are A LOT different than your average people that you meet. I am so blessed to have the friends that i have for many reasons. I believe that God puts these people in my life to help me with my walk with God, and also so that i can help my friends.The bible talks about being equally yolked, and how believers should not be unequally yolked with unbelievers and i have tried  countless times to be  close friends with people who are completely against what i believe in, and usually one of two things happen, 1. I choose to give up those friends because maintaining a friendship with an unbeliever is very difficult, or 2. getting influenced and sucked into their way of thinking,living,and acting. Now I'm not saying this will happen to you , this is just my experience.

2 Corinthians 6:14

 Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?

  

Quiet time

I love getting into the word of god with my friends,but i think its so importnat to be able to be one on one with the Lord. I find that God speaks to me the most when im in his word all by myself . The reason why its easier for God to speak to me is simply because theres no distractions, even during service its so hard to hear from God because im so busy just trying to take everything in. I have made it a forced habbit to get into the word of God every morning , and its not always easy, but its always worth it.A lot of people including myself ask "how do i hear from God?" and on thing ive learned that so many people dont realize is that Gods word is how he speaks to us, its so simple .

so here are some ideas for quiet time:

1.First thing in the morning

I love reading my bible first thing in the morning because sometimes the negitivity from the day can put me in a mood where i really dont want to read it, so if i read it before my day even starts it prevents most of those negative feelings and its the BEST way to start out the day!

2. In tough situations

Wether its an argument , or just a person whos giving you a bad time, there are certin times when we need to just step back from the situation and go to God .If you give yourself some quiet time with God and give your problems to the Lord he will sustain you.

Psalm 55:22

Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved

3. Before you go to bed
No matter how your day went its always good to end your day with some quiet time with God .
I find that when i talk to God before bed thats when i spill my heat out and tell him EVERYTHING
its usually the easiest time for me too, because by the time i go to bed everyone else is already asleep so its just me and God :)

Sometimes all it takes is a little quiet time to really hear from GOD.

                                 -Ali