The Christmas season is a time for connection, reconnection and new connections. For most of us, it’s a time for being together, for meaningful conversations, and surrounding yourself with the people you love, whether family or friends. A very famous Christmas film opens with clips of connection: people coming home to arrivals at an airport, with joyful connections, hugs, kisses, handshakes, seeing old friends, new friends, loved ones, which fills the viewer with warmth. If you’re wondering how to connect this Christmas, here are some simple ways.

As we enter the Advent season, what should our focus be? According to modern Christian thought, Advent is the season of reflective preparation for Christ’s nativity at Christmas and Christ’s expected return in the Second coming. Whilst we may now see Advent as a season that serves as an anticipation of Christ’s birth, originally there was little connection between Advent and Christmas. By the 6th century, Roman Christians had tied Advent to the coming of Christ, but the coming they had in mind was his second coming in the clouds, as judge of the world. The Advent season was not explicitly linked to Christ’s first coming at Christmas until the Middle Ages. So, how does this history lesson relate to you, as a single Christian today and what could hopeful waiting look like?

Deep down, we all want to be loved. But sometimes our desire for a romantic relationship is so strong that it leads us to show up as less than our full selves in our digital conversations. This then leads to a relationship that isn’t based on the whole truth – and that kind of relationship cannot last. Honesty is the best policy. We all know that. But when it comes to exchanging messages with prospective dates, it can be tempting to censor ourselves or present ourselves less than completely in a slightly different light in the hope of finding that elusive connection. At the root of inauthentic communication is fear.

Making the first move can feel like a big deal. Whether you’re new to Christian Connection or been a member before, there’s now a new way to show your interest and start a conversation. Once you’ve uploaded your photos and spent some time perfecting your profile it’s time to take the next step and reach out to someone you like. If hitting that message button feels daunting, don’t worry! Our new profile and photo reactions make it easy and stress free to make that first connection and let someone know you’d like to get to know them.

Today, having a deep, meaningful and strong connection with someone is a rare thing. We have so many distractions around us – social media, work, various screens and a never ending ‘to do list’. Our strongest connection can sometimes be with our smartphone rather than with God or with actual people. This doesn’t have to be the case. An early connection after meeting online can be nurtured and cultivated into something precious right from when you first start dating and as your relationship develops.

From overcoming scepticism about online dating to the restrictions of long distance connections, even the greatest love stories can get off to a bumpy start! When #MetOnCC couples share their stories, they start from the first nervous wave, like or message through to proposals, weddings and their changed lives together. Be encouraged by their honesty, openness and faithfulness as each unique couple relives the journey from strangers who share a faith to spouses who share a future.

Building spiritual practice and growing in faith together is important in every Christian relationship, however, the timing and priority will be different for each couple. It can be difficult to know when or how to introduce this when you first meet someone, or a relationship starts to get serious. If you’re dating someone, ideally you should both have a similar mindset when it comes to spiritual activities, to avoid strife in your relationship. So where should you start?

Control can scupper our dating journey and our chances of forming healthy relationships. I know this from experience. So how can we start letting go of control and looking for love from a place of trust? Let’s begin by exploring how control can sabotage our love life, so that we have an incentive to loosen the reins a little bit.