Last week, I shared a little about my story and encouraged my readers to evaluate and reflect on the influence their family had on them. It’s hard to date in a Christlike manner when it wasn’t modeled in your family and you weren’t aware of that negative influence. Today, I have more to share and…
Were one or both of your parents toxic? (It really only takes one messed up parent to ruin your whole family for generations.) Did your parents have a lousy marriage? (Mine did, too.) Did you have family secrets that had to be hidden from outsiders? (We sure did!) If you said Yes to any of…
Have you heard any of those horror stories of people marrying someone they thought was God’s perfect gift for them, only to find out they’d married a monster? I’ve seen and heard enough horror stories to keep me and a hundred others single till the rapture. Yet the promises of marriage whisper to us from…
Most of us Christian singles would call ourselves true followers of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Whatever differences we may have in the finer points of our theology, we would say that we trust God. We trust Him for our salvation, the forgiveness of sin, an eternity in heaven, and that He will always…
Reasons to stay single?! Whaaa…NO. That’s the attitude many singles have toward singleness: “That’s ridiculous! Though I’m not dating at the moment, I actually do want to get married. I don’t want to stay single forever!” We’re told—by no other than the church—to only focus on being content, not look for a mate, and pretend…
“A hamburger without the bun? They call it a wrap?” A hamburger wrapped in lettuce instead of the traditional bun was a new thing years ago at one of my favorite old hangouts, In-and-Out Burger. They called it Protein Style. Incredible. I was a bit skeptical. I wasn’t convinced that healthy lettuce leaves could replace…
My Beloved Child, Before you hear Me say anything else to you, please hear this: I love you more than you could ever know. I died to free you from the penalty of sin, and that was all that mattered when Jesus came to earth that first time. I see you moping around because it’s…
Sonya (not her real name) slouched in her seat. She glanced down, ashamed to look me in the eye as she told me she’d gone back to her old “boyfriend” again. He was self-centered and more interested in using her and her car than in caring for her. “You know you have to fix your…
Last week, I talked about how our contemporary Western culture inclines us singles to a severe level of independence and lack of accountability. Not being accountable to anyone can cause problems in relationships. When you don’t answer to anyone, you can keep secrets and harbor addictions that will hurt relationships. Then, after the wedding, big,…
We’re pretty independent in the Western world. I consider myself very independent, sometimes refusing help from someone who offers to carry something for me when they see me hobbling. First-time visitors from eastern cultures are often amazed and shocked at the levels of self-sufficiency which we display. They don’t always think it’s good. Independence is…
