During this very exciting and potentially dangerous time in your lives there is much to rejoice in and some things to beware. If each of you has a strong testimony of living for Christ and your lives bear fruit of genuine saving faith, then this is cause for massive rejoicing. But the world, the flesh, and the devil are not interested in pleasing God, so there are dangers to avoid as well. In light of this, today I will begin an 8-part series for courting or engaged couples that I hope will be encouraging and helpful. Each blog post will contain the application of one biblical principle.
1) Show yourselves to be an example to other believers. Your courtship is not only pleasant and exciting for you, but incredibly important and instrumental to the life and health of your local church in the present as well as instrumental to the establishment of patterns for future generations. Let me explain. Most youth today follow the world's practice of "recreational dating" and, unfortunately, many of them end up with marriages that are less than exemplary. In fact, many times spiritually mixed marriages occur against the clear teaching of the Word of God (2 Cor. 6:14-7:1).
Undoubtedly your church contains at least some young people who are quickly approaching the "dating and courtship" ("dortship," if you will) season of life. This affords you an incredible ministry opportunity. Without even trying to lift yourselves up as examples, an untold number of young people will begin to formulate their convictions concerning boy-girl relationships and marriage by what they quietly observe in you. I don't say this to put an unnecessarily heavy burden of pressure on you, but to point out how God has sovereignly worked in your lives in order to multiply your ministry to others and influence the direction of many young people in your church. Therefore, it is incredibly important that you help your pastors to disciple the younger crowd in your church by serving as an example of what spiritual maturity looks like. Press on in this pursuit. You won't regret it.
Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but rather in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity, show yourself an example of those who believe (1 Timothy 4:12).