Every Christian Woman Should Marry a FAITHFUL Man

Recently, I read this article on the 10 types of men that a Christian women should never marry. It hit the nail on the head, and clearly defining the types of men a Christian woman should not marry. Marriage, aside from asking Jesus Christ to be the Lord of your life, is one of life's most important decisions, and will either "make or break" a person. So we must choose carefully when selecting a life partner. Ladies, I definitely recommend reading this article! And Gentlemen, try to avoid being that type of a man. I'm grateful for a father and older brother who give wise counsel and insight into the true character of the men around me, and who will help to filter out the guys that I would never want to marry.

But what kind of man should a woman be looking for? This article is mostly intended for my fellow single ladies, who are holding out for God's best in their life. But, if you are a man, and reading this blog post, then I exhort you to live to be this kind of a man.

My Dad recently gave me a list of characteristics that he will look for in any possible suitors in the future. They are easy for me to remember, and watch for myself, because the acronym of the character qualities is FAITHFUL.
They are:
Frugal
Attentive
Industrious
Teachable
Humble
Focused
Unselfish
Loving

If you are interested in knowing more about each of these qualities, I will now elaborate.

Frugal

How does he handle his money? Does he just spend it without a thought of what he is spending it on? A frugal man will be cautious with how he spends his money. This does not mean that he does not spend his money on fun things, but rather that he carefully allots each dollar. He is wise with his money, and spends with the future in mind, rather than throwing his money away for the pleasures currently at hand.

Attentive

The dictionary definition of Attentive is: Assiduously attending to the comfort or wishes of others; very polite or courteous. This kind of a man is thoughtful, kind, gallant, and chivalrous. He notices the small details in a conversation. He notices when others are in need of something, and finds some way to aid in fulfilling that need. This is the man that opens doors for ladies. You know he is paying attention to a conversation if in a later conversation, he mentions something you previously said.
When you are talking, he is focused on you, will make eye contact, and does not look every which way while you are talking. This is an attentive man.

Industrious

This man is diligent in all his work, and does all he can to earn a living. This does not mean that it would be wrong for the wife to work. But if the man is sitting at home, playing video games, and not out trying to find some job, ANY job, he is not industrious. This man would be content to stay at home and let his wife work and be the bread-winner.
1 Timothy 5:8 says, "But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel." This is not the kind of man you should want to marry. Marry an industrious man.

Teachable

This one is huge ladies! Marry a man who is open to receiving teaching from God's Word. If he thinks that he "knows it all," watch out. This is a pride issue (which we'll talk over more in the next point), and means that he will never be open to your point of view. If someone points out a blind spot, or a character flaw, in his life, he should be willing to learn from this, and use it as a means of the Lord teaching him. This man will be seeking counsel from godly mentors, and will constantly search God's Word to learn more about how to live the Christian life.

Humble

Yes, everyone will struggle with pride at times, as pride is the root cause of just about every sin. But there is a difference between a humble Christian, who being human struggles with pride and admits His struggle before God, and a man who is just full of himself. If a man thinks that he knows everything, and thinks of himself as better than others, run the other direction! This is not the kind of man you want to marry. Also, avoid the extreme opposite, the man with false humility. This man puts himself down so that he can gain attention for himself, and have others say good things about him.
Instead, find a man who knows that he is nothing in and of himself. Find a man who sincerely praises God for everything in his life. He sees himself as low importance, and Christ as the greatest importance.

Focused

This man has a goal in mind, and he is focused on achieving it. He does not wander from one kind of job to the next, but rather uses each job as a preparation for his ultimate goal. When he sets his mind on something, he strives for that goal.
I want to take a minute to brag on my dad and older brother, Richard. They are some of the most focused men I have met. They know what their end goal is, and they strive to reach that goal. I am privileged to have such great men in my family. :)

Unselfish

Really, a man who is humble will not be selfish. But an unselfish man will think of others' needs before his own. He will be looking for ways to serve others. He is willing and interested in putting the needs of others before his own needs.

Loving

Not much needs to be said for this one. But does the man love you unconditionally? Or does he love you only when you do something for him? (which would be selfish) What are his reasons for loving others? Does he love others despite how they may treat him? How does he respond under criticism? Does he continue to love them, or does he lash out irrationally?

A man with these characteristics is truly a FAITHFUL man, and following Christ wholly.

So now that I have laid out these characteristics to look for in a husband, let me say a few things.

First, ladies, if you want to marry someone like this, then he will be looking for a wife with these same character qualities. Work on developing these own characteristics in your life!

Second, you will never find a man who fulfills all these things perfectly. The only perfect man to ever walk the face of this earth is Jesus. Don't expect perfection, because then you will NEVER get married. Instead, look for a man who is striving towards these character traits in his life. He will never follow them perfectly, but he will be striving through the strength of Jesus to follow Him wholly. I do not expect a husband who is perfect, because then he would expect me to be perfect, and I am far from ever obtaining perfection. But these character traits, or lack thereof, are easily seen a man upon better acquaintance.

Third, to the men out there who may happen to read this blog post, I want to encourage you to live to be this kind of a man. No, you will never obtain perfection, as no woman will ever obtain perfection. Christ is the only sinless human. But yield your life to Jesus Christ, and seek to follow him and develop these character traits in your life. My hope is that this will not discourage you, but rather give you encouragement as to the kind of man that Christ wants you to be.

It all boils down to this: Find a man who seeks to put Christ first, others second, and self last in all his ways. Seek this, become this. Follow Christ wholly. Live for Him and Him alone!

I pray that these words may be an encouragement to at least one reader, and that Christ can use it to make a difference in your life!

Praying blessings over you, dear reader! Go with Jesus!
Because of Jesus' Blood and by His Grace,
Faith Christine
Galatians 2:20; 1 Corinthians 15:10

He Asked if I Would be His Forever ---- I said YES!!!

Today is such a special day for me. Why? Because I said yes to the Love of my life. After pursuing me for several years, and asking me if I would be His forever...I finally said yes. I could not be happier with my decision to commit myself to such an amazing man!

He is the most perfect man I could ever ask for. And I know people tell me that no man can ever be completely perfect, but believe me, this man is!! He has no flaw whatsoever! He has rescued me from distress so many times. He comforted me when I was discouraged. He was there for me to lean upon when I was so weak.

He is my true "Knight in Shining Armor," my "Prince."

He is patient, joyful, kind, gentle, gracious, faithful. He has the most amazing self-control, goodness, and meekness. He is slow to anger, and quick to hear. He is the most loving man you will ever meet. I know I can count on him to be there for me for anything. He is sacrificial, always putting others' needs before His own. He has experienced many trials in his own life, yet become better through them all.

Sound to good to be true? Well all this is absolutely true!!

And his name? His name is Jesus.

Jesus....such a wonderful and magnificent name above all names! At his name, every knee shall bow, of things in heaven and things on earth. Every tongue shall confess that He is Lord, to the glory of God the Father!!

Fifteen years ago today, after being pursued by the Lover of my soul, I said yes to Jesus, and invited Him to live in my heart, and be the Lord of my life. I have learned so much the last fifteen years, and have grown to love Jesus more day by day.

As a single young lady, not knowing what my future holds, it is comforting to know Who holds my future. The Bible in many places describes Jesus as the Husband, and the church as the Bride of Christ. I know that Jesus is my true lover, and that He is everything I could ever dream of having in a husband, yet He is the absolute perfect version.

The Lord has taught me that I can only find my complete satisfaction in Him, and will never be completely satisfied if I am looking for it in a man. It is so wonderful to think that Jesus is the perfect Husband, and that I can find my complete fulfillment in Him right now. I can enjoy a great intimacy with Him, right now!

The last fifteen years have been full of trials, battles, lessons, mistakes, and regrets. But I would not trade a single thing for the lessons I have learned, and the intimacy I have experienced with my Savior through all the trials over the last fifteen years.

Jesus is my true lover, and He has asked me if I will be His forever. And when I say forever, I mean for eternity. I am a part of the Bride of Christ! He loved me with an everlasting love. He left His throne and His majesty, and took on the lowly form of a human and died for me. That is true love. To die for those who hated you and persecuted you.

Here I was in sin, living with a dirty heart. Jesus came along and told me that He could make me clean: white as snow. He promises me a place with Him in glory after this life is over. Because I said "Yes" to the Lover of my soul, I have many blessings in this life, much joy, and an assurance of where I will be spending eternity.

Do you know Jesus? Have you said "Yes" to your pursuer? Jesus is at the door of every heart, just asking to come in. Will you open the door? Will you say yes? Jesus died for you! He paid the price for your sins. He loves you with an everlasting love. He wants you to be His forever more. All you have to do is say a simple "Yes." "Yes Jesus, I want to be yours forever."

After you say "Yes" to the Lover who has pursued you since the day you were born, then seek to please your Lover! Any newly engaged/married couple seeks to do whatever is possible to please their partner. Should we not strive for the same with the Lover of our soul, who gave His own life for us, so that we could be His? There is this great book that tells exactly how we can please Jesus. It's called "The Bible." We were created to please Him (Rev. 4), so should we not seek to please Him in every area of our life?

I am praising Jesus for an amazing fifteen years! I am looking forward to seeing what the next fifteen years hold as He continues to draw me nearer to Himself. Would you pray for me? Pray that I will become infatuated with Jesus? That my love for Him will exponentially multiply within this next year? Would you pray that I would come to know Jesus in a new and real way this next year?

And I am praying for each person that reads this, that if you don't know Jesus as your Savior, that you will not hesitate a moment to accept His love and forgiveness into your life. For each of you who have taken the step of saying "Yes" to your true Lover, I am praying that you will make every effort to learn more about Jesus and to seek to please Him in every area of your life.

May the Lord Jesus bless you and keep you, and cause His face to shine upon you!!

Because of Jesus' Blood,
Faith Christine
Galatians 2:20; 1 Corinthians 15:10

Waiting on God

A soon-to-be cousin of mine posted a link to this blog. I don't know if I can fully endorse the whole blog, but I definitely agree with everything in this one post.

I know girls who sadly throw themselves at the first guy that comes along. They don't think about the long-term consequences of marriage. As this article states, aside from salvation, marriage is one thing that will change your life forever. But many people don't go into marriage with that mindset. Girls, it is really important to wait upon the Lord and His timing. I love this quote that I read:

"When God has called you to wait, it is because what He is doing during the waiting time is necessary for the best outcome."

That is so true. Girls, if God has you single right now, it is because He is preparing you, and/or He is preparing your future husband for you. If you are trusting God with your future, God has a special reason for you being single. 

Last weekend, I attended the Radiant Purity conference, taught by Sarah Mally. While I "knew" everything they were teaching, since I attended the conference last year, it was good to be reminded and encouraged to wait on God's perfect timing. I loved what Sarah Mally had to say about the purpose of our lives.

"The purpose of our lives is not to get married. The purpose of our lives is to glorify God."

So important for me to remember. Now that I'm 20, I can't help but wonder even more than before when God is going to bring "that guy" for me. But, I have to remember that my purpose in life is NOT to get married. My purpose in life is to glorify my Creator and Redeemer. He gave His life for me, so why should I not give my life to Him for His glory?
Before this conference, I had already determined that I didn't want to get married unless I could serve God better married than I could single. To hear Sarah, who is 34 and still single, say that was a huge impact on me. This is not to say that I want to wait until I'm in my 30's to get married. If the Lord wills, I would like to be married within the next five years. But I don't know that that is in God's plan for me, and if that doesn't bring the most glory to God, and if God can use me better as a single young woman, then I would rather stay single. This heart attitude has definitely been very difficult for me to come to. But I know that it is better to be single, serving the Lord, and happy, than to be married and miserable.
Something else Sarah said really stuck out to me:

"God is not going to keep us single one day longer than we are supposed to be single."

How true that statement is! God knows better what His plan is for us than we do! As long as I am single, God has a plan for my life! I have only to submit to His beautiful plan for my life, and He will fulfill it.
I am to be a waitress. A waitress does not stand around doing nothing. She walks around finding ways that she can serve, because that is what her employer wants her to do. The idea of "wait on the Lord" (as in Psalm 27:14) means that while I am waiting for God to bring the next phase of my life, I am serving Him, and serving others. I love this mindset of being a waitress, and pray that the Lord continues to remind me that this is my calling for right now.
So I write all of this mainly to encourage other young ladies. But, it can most definitely apply to young men. If we are following God's call for us right now, and keep walking down the path that He has for our lives, eventually our paths will cross with the person we are supposed to spend the rest of our life with. Our paths will join, and we will continue down the path together, running for the prize of the high calling in Christ Jesus.

I encourage you all, "Wait on the Lord, be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord." (Psalm 27:14). God has a beautiful plan for each of us, if only we will trust Him and submit to Him. If we try to write our own story, or if we jump at the first person that takes an interest in us, or we are interested in, then we could mess up the beautiful plan that God has for our life. Not to say that God is not sovereign over everything, because He will even use our mistakes to fulfill His ultimate plan. But we do have a free will, and we must submit that will to the Will of God for our lives, and allow Him to write our story for us. Relinquish the pen to the great Author. He will write a story for you more beautiful than you could imagine.

Just some thoughts for tonight. I pray that you will take them to heart, and allow God to work His beautiful plan in your life. Stay strong in Jesus! Trust always in Him, and He will direct your path.

Because of Jesus' Blood,
Faith Christine
Galatians 2:20; 1 Corinthians 15:10

20 years

20 years....

Out to dinner for my 20th birthday

God has allowed me to live on this earth for 20 years now. Each new year that the Lord grants me, I know is a huge blessing.
Last Wednesday, July 3rd, I turned 20 years old. It's such a surreal feeling. I know some of you who have come to and left this point already probably think I'm silly, but to me it just seems so unreal.
I have been thinking back over the last 20 years (okay, so as many as I can actually remember), and thinking of all the lessons God has taught me, with the last six years being the most significant. Six years ago, I attended the Journey to the Heart, and it changed my life forever. And out of the last six years, this last year especially has been a time of huge change in my life, and in my walk with the Lord.
I remember last summer having feelings of discontentment and anxiousness: anxious to get married (yes, at only 19). Not completely content where God had placed me. I had so many things that I was holding on to, of which I needed to let go. I am amazed at the work that God has done in my life just since last summer, and that He continues to do.
This last year, He has taught me...

Surrender
Trust
Patience
Contentment

I have definitely not perfected these things, but I find myself perfectly content where I am right now. I have surrendered my future into God's hands, and I trust Him completely with my future. Recent circumstances showed me that trying to write my own story was not worth it, and that I'd only end up making a disaster of my life. So who better to let write my story than Someone who is perfect?
I am also finding myself falling deeply in-love with Jesus. Wow...He continues to amaze me more and more every day, and I find myself falling deeper and deeper into an intimate relationship with Him. He has become my true source of joy. He is my contentment. He has provided for all of my needs. It is because of Jesus that I am the woman that I am today.
Because I have found such a deep love for Jesus, I'm not anxious anymore about getting married. I only want that to come if it will further deepen my love for the Lord, and if I can serve Him better married than I can single. I have learned that life is all about Him. It's all about bringing glory to Christ. Now when tempted to sin, I think to myself "but I love Jesus too much to do something like that." Oh that the whole world could know of Jesus' deep love for them, and fall completely and madly in-love with Jesus themselves!
I wish I could fully express my love to Him, and fully explain to everyone how much I truly love Jesus, and how much I want everyone to love Him the same way.
I am thankful that the Lord is teaching me to love Him and to delight in Him. I am looking forward to another 20 years of truly loving and serving Jesus, if He decides to grant me with those 20 years. I know the next 20 years will be filled with MANY changes in my life (as I do hope to marry and have kids within the next 20 years). As my brother said, "The next 20 years will be harder and more expensive."

No matter what the future may bring, I am resting in the knowledge that my Father has a beautiful story for my life, if I will only leave the pen in His hands. I am thankful for even the mistakes I've made in the last 20 years, as they have taught me many beautiful lessons.

Sorry if this post has seemed like kind of a ramble. But I'm excited to see how God will work in my life and use me in the next 20 years, and am thankful for these past 20 years. I encourage you all to let God write your story, especially if you're still young, and unmarried. Give Him the pen to your life, and He will write a more beautiful story than you could ever have imagined for yourself. Stay strong in Jesus! Cling to Him, and give Him your whole heart!

Because of Jesus' Blood,
Faith Christine
Galatians 2:20; 1 Corinthians 15:10

Purity 101

Recently, I have had several young ladies talking to me about what it means to be pure. I mean, yes you can save sex for marriage, not date until God brings the right person, but is that enough? I started thinking about what Purity means to me, and what I do to keep myself pure. I knew that I did those things, but then I started thinking about why I did those things. What does the Bible have to say about the things I do to keep myself pure?
As I am asking myself these questions, God continues to bring Scripture to my attention that helps to place my conviction on a solid foundation, rather than just saying "I don't do that" or "I do this"..."just because". "Just because" does not seem to be a good enough answer for some people. What ground do you have to stand on to support what you do? That is something I have been doing lately. Re-evaluating every single one of my convictions, and seeing what the Bible has to say about them.
I am going to do a couple of blog posts about what I do to keep myself completely pure, and the Scriptures that God has shown me to strengthen my conviction. I know that most people who read this will probably not agree with what I have to say, and that is fine. Each and every person needs to come to their own personal conviction about any subject. I just want to share what the Lord has shown me, in hopes to get you to also re-evaluate your convictions and standards.

#1: Physical Touch

This has been quite a big discussion among my single girlfriends and I. What is okay between yourself and a guy friend (not someone that you intend to marry)? Is it okay to give them a casual side hug? Is it okay to put your arm around their waist for pictures? What is okay?
As for me, I refrain from any physical contact with a young man. I don't want to give a young man (especially a young man who is not going to be my husband) any wrong thoughts about me. And yes, even a side hug sometimes could cause a guy to have a wrong thought for a split-second. So as for me, I don't hug guys, hold hands with them, anything of the sort. Yes, I have shaken hands with a young man when first introduced, but that is as far as it ever goes. The first young man I ever intend on a hugging is my husband.

I was reading 1 Corinthians 7 this last week, and God gave me a few verses to help strengthen my convictions.

v. 1 "Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman."

I looked up the words "to touch" in the Greek, and it refers to such handling of an object as to exert a modifying influence upon it or upon oneself. Could also mean touching for the purpose of manipulating.
So to me, if I were to hug or touch a young man in such a way that would cause him to have a wrong thought, or that would cause me to have a feeling I'm not supposed to have about that young man, this is not right. I do not want to be the cause of my brother in Christ stumbling.

v. 4 "The wife hath not power of her own body, but the husband: and likewise also the husband hath not power of his own body, but the wife."

A main reason to remain completely pure is because I don't have power over my own body. It belongs to my future husband. And until I know who that man is, and that man is my husband, I have to save it completely for him. Just think about it. Would you want your future spouse going around and hugging people of the opposite gender? Girls, would you want your future husband to be having wrong thoughts about another girl? Then don't do that to other girls' future husbands. If you want your future spouse to save themselves completely for you, then you need to save yourselves completely for them.

Here is another passage to consider from 1 Thessalonians 4:3-7.

"For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication: That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour; Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God: That no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter: because that the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also have forewarned you and testified. For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness."

We are to treat our bodies as vessels of honor. We are to be separate, pure, consecrated. Girls, you are like a beautiful rose. You are precious, and you are worth waiting for, and it is completely worth saving all of your body. We are not to treat our bodies like those who do not know God. We are not to defraud our brothers/sisters in Christ, because the Lord will avenge them. God has called us to be different from the world. He has called us to be holy.

I think the rest of it comes down to these two verses.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 "What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's."

Our body is not our own. Christ shed His blood to purchase us. Our body is the temple of the Holy Ghost! Examine your actions towards your brother/sister in Christ, and think about if your motives are completely pure, your thoughts are pure when doing that thing, and if it is something that the temple of Christ should do. If they do cause your brother/sister in Christ to have a wrong thought, or cause you to have a feeling you should not have, then you should refrain from those actions.
I am not by any means trying to shove any of my beliefs on anyone, but I just wanted to give you something to consider. Ultimately, whatever you do, you have to do it out of love for your brothers/sisters in Christ, and because you love Jesus. That is most important thing. Remaining pure because you love Jesus, and want to honor Him! For me, since I do not know what a young man is going to think, I just will refrain from giving a guy a hug. Period. I want to save all that I am completely for my future husband. And if I never get married, then I have left my body completely pure, un-scarred, holy, sacred, all for Jesus Christ, which should be our ultimate goal.
Well, there was my first, and rather lengthy post on purity. I'd love hear any of your thoughts on what the Lord has shown you. Have a blessed week! Stay strong in Jesus! He's got you! His death covers everything!

Because of His blood,
Faith Christine
Galatians 2:20; 1 Corinthians 15:10

Marriage...Worth Waiting For

I read this quote from Matt Chandler today:
"Can I say something to young ladies here? I'm trying to pick my words carefully here. Your husband, whoever he is, single ladies, will have an unbelievable amount of influence over your sons and daughters in regards to spiritual things. If you want your children to love Jesus deeply, hold out for a man that is godly. And let me tell you this: I am well aware that Godly men are rare. Lots of neat Christian boys, not a lot of Godly men. And we're working our tails off for you to try to develop some into that. But don't settle, because it's better that you be lonely now than you be married and lonely later. Are you tracking with me? It is better that you be lonely now than for you to get married to a man that will teach your kids everything but the way of Jesus."
This post is mostly aimed towards my single young lady readers. However, I do have a few words to say to the men reading this post.

This stood out to me, being a single young lady myself. Sometimes as girls we can be so anxious to start a relationship, or to be loved by a man, that we throw ourselves at the first "good Christian guy" that comes along. Can I tell you girls, that the term "good Christian guy" is so easy for a guy to obtain? Basically, if he is a Christian, and goes to church, possibly doesn't smoke, drink, or have tattoos, we think that this automatically qualifies him as a "good Christian guy". I'm sorry girls, but if those are the only good things you have to say about a guy, is he really worth it? Is he worth losing pieces of your heart over if the relationship doesn't work out? Is that the kind of man that you want to have an influence on your children's spiritual life?

For me, I want a man who is going to be a strong Spiritual leader. Someone who loves the Lord with all his heart. Someone who loves to spend time talking to the Lord. Someone who loves to spend time reading the Word. Someone who loves to talk about the Lord, and starts up Spiritual conversations. Someone who has a heart for leading others to the Lord. That is the kind of man that you should want to be the father of your children. A man who demonstrates the fruit of the Spirit in his life: love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, meekness, faith, and self-control. Girls, don't throw yourself at the first guy that shows any interest in you. Wait out patiently, and examine the character and the Spiritual life of this young man before even thinking about entering a relationship. And another word of caution: watch for signs of anger in the man. Usually anger and lust are connected. If a man is angry, he probably has problems with lust. If he is a lustful man, he probably has problems with anger.

It is most definitely worth waiting for the right guy to come along. This decision will affect the rest of your life. So this is my word of exhortation to you single young ladies: start praying for your future husband. He's out there. God knows who he is. I think that sometimes men stay in the "good Christian guy" category because we are not doing our job of praying for them to rise up to be a Godly man, and a spiritual leader. And don't just pray for your future husband, but pray for all the Christian guys that you know, because they will also be apart of the next generation of fathers. Proverbs 31:12 says "She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life." She will do her husband good all the days of HER life. Wait a minute, we are obviously not married all the days of our life. So how do we do him good now? By praying for him! I could say much more about how we can do him good, but I'll leave it at that. Pray for him to grow to love the Lord more each day. Pray for him to have discernment between the things of the world, and the things of God. Pray for him to be refined as fine silver. Pray that he will set his eyes on Jesus. Pray that the fruit of the Spirit will be evident in his life. Pray that he will be bold for Jesus, and that God will use him to bring many souls to Jesus. This is our duty.

Guys, if you are reading this, rise up to be a Godly man that will stand in the gap. Set your eyes on Jesus. Run the race that is set before you. Read your Bible. Love your Bible. Delight in the Lord. Go out and win souls for Jesus! He will lead you to just the right woman in His timing. I plead with you, rise up to be Godly men! Oh how few there are now! Let this generation of men be the generation that turns the world upside down for the Gospel of Jesus Christ!!

To those of you young ladies who are waiting, and keeping yourself pure, and praying for your future husband: Well done! Go out and teach other girls to do likewise!

To those of you young men who are pursuing Christ, and seeking to love Him with your whole heart, and waiting for Him to show you just the right woman: Well done! Go out and teach and disciple other young men to do likewise!!

Well, that's all I have to say today! Stay strong in Jesus! He's got you! His death covers everything!!

Because of His blood,
Faith Christine
Galatians 2:20; 1 Corinthians 15:10

Purity? What is that?

In our world today, purity is something that is becoming rare to find. More and more you hear of girls in their teens getting pregnant, or you hear of people living together before marriage. Even just 60 years ago, this was not something that you did, or of which you could be proud. As time goes on, purity becomes less important to the world, and the world actually promotes impurity through telivision shows such as "16 and pregnant", "Teen Mom", "The Secret life of the American Teenager", "Pregnancy Pact", etc. (Just for the record, I have never seen these shows, but I have read reviews on PluggedIn, and please don't ever consider watching these shows.) Why do we not have shows promoting purity?

Yesterday, I read this article. It was so encouraging for me as a young lady who is striving to be pure, and to completely save myself for my husband, to see young men who appreciated and encouraged girls to stay pure, because they were staying pure for them. I encourage you young ladies to go and read this article, and allow it to be an encouragement to you to keep your purity.

After reading this article, I started to think to myself, what exactly is purity? Of course there is the obvious, such as sexual purity, but I personally believe there is a lot more entailed with purity. So if you are interested in how I define purity, and the things I do to keep myself completely pure for my future husband, continue reading.

Purity Defined

Modesty
I don't know if a lot of you girls think about this one as remaining pure, but I certainly do. If we dress in such a way that causes men to lust after us, I believe in some ways, we have let go of purity. Jesus says that lusting after a woman in your heart is the same as committing adultery with her. So if we dress in such a way that causes a man to lust after us, then in God's eyes, it's the same as committing adultery. Have you ever thought about that? So ladies, dress in such a way as to save your body completely for your husband. Ask the men in your family if something you are wearing causes a wrong thought to spring in their head.
Here are a few pointers:

1. Don't show any cleavage please!
2. If you are wearing a skirt, please make sure it covers your knees when sitting down. You have no idea how easily someone can see up your skirt, even if you are careful.
3. If you are wearing pants, please wear pants that are loose fitted, and do not show every outline of your body.
4. Even if you are wearing a top with a modest neckline, make sure it is not tight and clingy to your skin.

If you have to ask yourself the question "Is this too tight, too short, or too low?" then it probably is. I am not saying that we all need to go around in potato sacks. There are ways to dress modestly and stylish at the same time. I know many girls that do so, as well as my sisters and myself. I am not saying to hide your beauty. In fact, dressing modestly adds extra beauty to you. I promise you that if you dress modestly, some day your husband will greatly thank you for saving yourself for him by dressing that way.

Physical Contact
Now, I know everyone is going to feel different about this issue than I am, but I am addressing this because this is something I personally have felt convicted to do to help save myself for my husband. For me, I have no physical contact with young men. I know a lot of girls who give hugs to their guy friends, but I do not. I want to save my body completely for my husband, and to me that means having no physical contact with other young men. After talking to my dad on the subject, I know the kind of thoughts that could go through a young man's mind when you give him a hug, and those are not some thoughts that I want to cause. Talk to your dad about the subject, and pray about what God would have you to do. If you end up in several relationships (which I hope you will not after reading the next paragraph), this will help to lessen pain and attachment when you leave that relationship. But as for me, and my sisters, we avoid physical contact. For me, this also means not having any physical contact with the man I am in a relationship with, until the marriage altar. My first hand-hold will be at the altar. My first kiss will be at the altar. I intend to save the first of everything for my husband. This goes for you too, guys. Help out us young women by avoiding physical contact with us. Don't initiate those hugs. If we are trying to avoid physical contact, we need your help by you avoiding it also.

Dating vs. Courtship
Another way I am saving myself for my husband is by not dating. In my family, we believe in courtship, which to us means not entering into a relationship until God has brought the person into our life with whom we are going to spend the rest of our life. Some people play the dating game, thinking "Oh, if I do not like this person, I can dump them and find someone else". Ask yourself these questions. How will your future spouse feel about you having relationships with other people before them? How would you feel if the person you married had a lot of other relationships before you? Please, wait on God's timing to bring the right person into your life before ever entering into a relationship.

Purity of heart
This is the main thing, and should really come first before anything else. We can not have pure actions if we do not have a pure heart. This means completely giving yourself over to Christ, and keeping your focus on Him. When you keep your focus completely on Him, and make Him the love of your life, everything else will follow. I plead with you to set your focus on Christ, do everything to please Him, and then God will eventually bring along the right kind of person into your life. Because the right person will be looking for someone who is totally in love with Christ. If you want Christ to be first in your life, then you want someone who also wants you to have Christ first in your life, and has Christ first in their life.

This post ended up being a lot longer than I wanted, but this is something that has been weighing on my heart, and I wanted to share it with you all. Please think about what I said, and I encourage you young ladies to save yourselves for your husbands completely, in the ways I have described, and put your focus on Christ. Young men, I encourage you to be doing the same. Set your eyes upon Christ. Make Him first in your life. Keep yourselves pure for your future wife. God will bless that, and will bring along the right person into your life in the right time.

God's blessing upon you all as you strive for purity, and strive to live for Jesus Christ. Because life is all about Him! Stay strong in Jesus!

Because of His blood,
Faith Christine
Galatians 2:20; 1 Corinthians 15:10