Dating & Relationships

Dating during this past year has had unique challenges. We’ve all had to cope with isolation, whether single, newly dating or in a relationship. When I was single and waiting impatiently for God to show me the right man, I found I had many moments of loneliness, impatience, frustration and despair. Christmas accentuated it. Every Christmas, I would say “This is the year I meet my husband,” and for many years I was disappointed. But every year gave me time to prepare, reflect and grow closer to God.

When dating, there are a few things you need to bear in mind to make the process enjoyable and productive as possible. Ultimately, you want to give yourself the best chance of success and achieving what you desire. It can be easy to feel discouraged or give up if things are not going exactly how you want, but don’t lose hope. If you stay the course, you will hopefully reap the rewards and make the most of dating – and enjoy it! Here are 5 tips for doing just that.

The importance of a shared spiritual connection is vital to lots of single Christians, and going to church together is often a great way to start learning what you have in common. Whether you can meet in person at the moment, or attend an online service or group, getting to know each other in a faith setting can make a big difference. Many Christian Connection members tell us how important church is to them. It’s the place where they find community, support and like-minded people to worship with. It’s also the place they’ve found very helpful as they date and build relationships.

The acting life can easily become all-consuming. Emotions flying everywhere – nerves before auditions and shows, not knowing if I’ll get the job or not, excitement on opening night, heartbreak when I’ve worked so hard for a job and then find out someone else got it! Having performed in shows like ‘The Phantom of the Opera’ on the London stage and ‘Mary Poppins’ internationally, I know it’s a rollercoaster, unpredictable, a whirlwind, and a joy.

The dating world can be very daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. Preparing yourself and having the right mindset can be the difference between success and failure when it comes to dating, especially if you’re starting dating again. There have been inspiring stories of people finding love even during lockdown, so if you’re one of the many people looking for love after you haven’t dated for a while, here are a few things to consider.

Rejection is God’s protection, as the saying goes, but when we’re on the receiving end of rejection, it feels anything but heaven-sent. Rejection can be painful and if we’ve been rejected before, we can become fearful of it happening again. So how do we overcome our fear so that we can enjoy the dating process?

“Our number one tip to be successful is to be honest with each other,” Alexandra and Carl, who got engaged after meeting on Christian Connection, told us. Telling the truth about yourself and your hopes for a relationship can feel risky. Yet, many of the couples who’ve found love on CC tell us how important it was to them to keep honesty at the centre their dating and relationships, from the very first step to their happy-ever-afters. Here are some of their stories.

Whenever I prepared for a date, I was nervous (of course) and excited (sometimes!) but I would get very anxious about certain areas of how the date would go. Would I run out of conversation? Would it be awkward? What if he tried to kiss me? My brain would go on overdrive and I would often consider backing out so I wouldn’t have to deal with the uncertainty.