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heyrainbows:

by BeataCervin

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markmuldez:

Few days ago I got an Anonymous question on the issue about couples praying together. I’m retyping/re-blogging this again and making it an actual post.

So praying together. Is it advisable? Doesn’t praying together promote inappropriate intimacy between a couple? 

Men and women were created to be attracted to one another. We desire for relationships. We need community, connection, and companionship with the opposite sex. It is part of who we are as humans. If you go back to Genesis, God made Adam first and then made Eve to be his ‘HELPER’. We are not meant to be alone. We are meant to be in relationships.

We’ve been taught in the church that desire towards intimacy was anything but good — unless you’re married — and a couple should refrain from anything that might promote such intimacy (sex is obviously out of the picture if you’re not married to the person you’re dating), but things like holding hands, hug, kiss and prayer included. Let me say this, there is nothing wrong with being intimate with your partner.

Intimacy isn’t the problem, SIN is.

When a couple starved themselves from intimacy and function like robots during the process of their dating/engagement, guess what their honeymoon would look like? AWKWARD. You can’t just switch the ‘intimacy button’ and be intimate. it’s a process and it develops and grows but it needs to be guided by God along with His Scriptures.

Many Christians couples who desire to avoid the effects of sin and idolatry in their dating relationship, they set up all kinds of boundaries and when those rules and boundaries fails, they change it up over and over again while meeting a similar fate.

NEWSFLASH: man-made rules are not sufficient for our battle against sin.

Paul says in Colossians 2:23 not to put your trust in any man made rules because they may appear with such wisdom but they don’t really stop the indulgence of flesh.

External rules don’t kill the internal roots of our sins.

We convince ourselves that if we just do these rules and modify our behaviors, everything will fall into the right place. The real danger, the real battle isn’t from the outside, it’s from the inside.

Guard your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life (Prov. 4:23)

We don’t need those ‘man-made legalistic’ rules. We need new hearts. We need the gospel of Jesus Christ to help us grow deeper in that.

So how exactly does a couple set themselves on a God-honoring trajectory with respect to intimacy in their dating relationship? Paul gives us a great example on that.

For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision is anything, but only faith working through love (Gal. 5:6)

This verse means, ‘Faith working through Love.’

As we focus on the gospel of Jesus Christ, we center all our relationships on Christ and we follow His example of what real love looks like. That overflowing love filled with faith is meant to lead the other person to Christ, not to ourselves. So everything we do with our partners, we count the cost. We are mindful if what we’re doing brings that person more to God, or to ourselves.

So Fill in the blanks:

For in Christ Jesus neither [praying] or [not praying] is anything, but only faith working through love (Gal. 5:6)

According to Romans 14.23 ‘everything that does not come from faith is sin.’

So get this, sin isn’t only seen in the “bad” things we do, but all the “good” things we do with bad motives, bad hearts — including praying or not praying in a dating relationship. 

I’m not against RULES or BOUNDARIES. Just not as ends-in-themselves. If they aren’t leading you to Jesus, then they are simply “self-made religion.” as what Apostle Paul would say.

In conclusion: how far is too far when it comes to kissing and hugging? When should they pull back? When a couple prays, when should they pray and where? there’s tons of questions that needs to be considered. But to make this simple, I believe that there’s always a right moment to KISS, HUG, PRAY and be intimate in a God-Honoring way. It doesn’t mean you’re a dating you own each other and you’re free to do wahtever you want. NO. Use wisdom and right discernment and always put God in the center of every decisions that’s being made.

Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. -Romans 12:10

In Christ,
Mark Muldez

markmuldez:

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markmuldez:

 

Date a guy who aims to be a Job 29 Man.  Do you know the characteristics of a Job 29 Man? Well.. Let me tell you.

He is the kind of guy who would rather stay at home reading his bible and spending time with God worshiping Him than to be out partying with a group of friends on a Friday night.

He is the kind of guy who constantly longs for God’s presence and who walks closely with Him. He desires for his heart to be transformed into His. Even if life gets tough, he knows that The Mighty One is holding his every moment and nothing seemed to be too difficult for him.

He is also a genuine follower of Christ. He knows that in order to be a great leader, he needs to learn how to be a genuine follower. Don’t be surprise if this guy is well respected and everyone greets him & honors him. That’s because whenever he speaks, he speaks with love and grace. And when he walks, he walks with confidence and boldness Just like King David, he knows that his identity isn’t based on his height or stature, but on Christ alone.

With that said, he is also very passionate about Jesus and His Gospel. You’ll know that he is because he will find a way to always help other people. He will help that blind lady cross the street and become her eyes, or even help that lame old man to stand up and be his feet. He will also stand up for those who are being mocked and persecuted. Even if it means him getting hurt, he will not fight back just like how Jesus did not fight back when He was being brutally tortured and beaten to death. That’s when you’ll know he is a solid follower of Christ.

Also don’t forget, if ever you get to sit next to him during worship, watch and observe him how he worships God. . I’m talking about eyes closed, hands raised or perhaps you’ll see him open His bible and even read and then next thing you know, he’s on his knees crying. It’s contagious! So you want to make sure you sit next to him during worship coz man, He knows how to worship Jesus with such reverence and awe

One of the coolest things about a Job 29 Man is that he knows that he’s not perfect. He acknowledges his flaws and mistakes. But that doesn’t bother him because he knows that he is constantly being renewed everyday by His perfect Savior Christ. So it’s normal for him to be prideful sometimes, but whenever that happens, he immediately repents and turns his eyes to God.

Another thing about a Job 29 Man is that unlike any other guys, he has made a covenant with his eyes to not look at any woman lustfully. He knows that your beauty is far more than what you look like on the outside, it’s about letting Jesus shine from the inside. So for him, what matters is your heart, not any of your body ‘parts’

He’s not the kind of guy who jumps from one girl to the other. No, he is patient and he waits upon the LORD and His perfect timing. He’s a hard worker and he knows not only he understands hard labor, but he understand what it means to work out his salvation by keeping God’s command and living out the gospel. He embraces Matthew 6:33 ‘to seek Him first and His kingdom and let the other things be given at the right time’

So if you’re a Proverbs 31 Woman & If you end up dating a Job 29 Man, consider yourself blessed because it’s hard to find these kind of guys nowadays. Realize that if you have this kind of guy, the LORD has specifically hand picked him just for you and prepared the both of you for each other and for the gift of marriage and the ministry that He will set for both of you. That is to honor God and glorify Him by showing the world what a ‘real love’ should look like. You both are pretty much going to be the ‘power couple’

So Ladies, if you’re single and not married and you have the desire to be married one day, this is probably the right time to for you to pray for your Job 29 Man. Why? Because this man is going to be the man who will love you, lead you, help you, defend you, cherish you, adore you, provide for you and raise your future kids and teach them the way of Jesus.

So yeah, date a guy who has all these God-given characteristics. Someone who is a Job 29 Man. Or better yet, 

.. Marry a guy who loves Jesus.. period.

In Christ,

Mark Muldez (markmuldez.tumblr.com)

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itlogko:

ianysus:

Girls, You don’t need to listen to the others that boys should always do everything that the boys should always be the one to tell you that he’s sorry, you don’t need to wait for them to hug you from behind and whisper into your ear that he loves you and all the more you don’t need to wait for them to make a move just to make you feel that he misses you.

It’s different now, if you want to tell him that you love him though he’s busy and he could barely text you because he’s so engaged in working, grab your phone and text him that you love him and that he should take care, if you want to see him and you know that he could be busy at work or at school, go to him instead and surprise him on the way and give him a big hug and kiss him. 

Grow up. Don’t wait for him if he doesn’t have the means to do it. Follow your heart and do what you need to do. In this world that we live in, this generation should learn that we must do our part in being a partner though sometimes it might mean that you have to be the one who makes the first move instead of the guy because maybe he can’t at the moment.

True!

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