Faith

I just finished taking part in a 22-day praise challenge, which involved praising and worshipping God for an hour at midnight. What I loved most about this was that the focus was mainly on worshipping God, with singing and dancing. As human beings we all have our issues and we often come to God with problems each time we pray. For example, as a single person, getting married someday might be at the top of your prayer list (as it was, mine, for many years). There is nothing wrong with that, of course, but how often do we just worship God for who He is or for what He has done? Here are three great reasons to worship God this Easter…

My Grandfather remarried in his 70s after my grandmother died. His new wife was an enthusiastic, sunny Californian who would regularly smile at me across the dinner table and say how happy she was to have found my Grandpa, because “the greatest blessing of marriage was having someone to pray with”. As I grew up I started to question what you’re supposed to do if you’re not married with a built-in prayer partner to spur you on. The truth is your prayer life can be as full and exciting whether you’re single or married – you just have to be more intentional.

Love has many forms in the Bible. We know of ‘Agape’, (God’s divine love), ‘Philia’ (brotherly love), and ‘Eros’ (erotic love), for example. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 is probably the most popular scripture reading at weddings but its instructions can be used for all of these types of love, and more. You can also turn to these verses when you are looking for a romantic relationship and apply them to dating too.

Sometimes life can deal you some really difficult cards – dealing with a long term sickness and believing God for healing, praying for a loved one to come to know Christ and change their ways and it seems nothing is happening, or maybe you’ve been praying for the right person to come along to share your life with and it seems God is not listening to your prayers. Recently I’ve been reflecting on Easter and the significance that it holds for Christians. Easter is the bedrock of our faith; if Jesus didn’t rise from the dead, then we are with no hope, and to be pitied above all people, as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:19.

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.

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.

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.

Taking the first step to join a dating site can feel intimidating. Couples who’ve met on Christian Connection often describe how they felt ‘prompted’ to become members, and overcame their reluctance to do so! Here are some of their stories – including the surprising results.