So this is a hot topic issue for all Christian teens out there! So I am going to give you my opinion that you may or may not find valuable since I myself am a teen. Well, maybe you will but not your parents. So you can't tell them "Hey I can do that because Counter Cultural Teen does!" I do not want my comment boxes filled with angry parents. Although I think everything I say is things most parents would agree with. I am not a crazy out there kind of person. At least not in my beliefs. Just in my personality.
Dating is where you hang out with guys, get to like them, go out alone with them, watch moves and do all that cutesy couple stuff! And depending on who you are and how long you date you will most likely sleep together. Not to say that everyone who dates has sex, but it is more common in the dating world than in the courting world. I will save purity for another post.
Courting is where you start to like a guy, you get to know and like them, you know you really like them and most likely are going to spend the rest of your life with them before you court(some only court if they know they are going to marry that person), you do not spend anytime alone no matter the atmosphere, many refrain from kissing, and sex is saved for marriage.
So both have pros and cons! I truthfully don't agree with either of those completely. I think you should save sex for marriage. That is that! I agree totally with that and my opinion is ever still. People make mistakes and people chose to stay pure and then they mess up. Life happens. That's why I think you should stay out of situations where that could happen! But you should still spend time one on one.
Sounds like they contradict each other. right? Well not really.
to build any relationship you need time one on one. There are things you might tell or talk about when you are with just one friend that you would not talk about with a group of people! And if you are thinking about marriage it is even more important! He might want to know before the honeymoon that you are deathly scared of even the idea of robots! But you would never say that to a group of people because you would look crazy! (I am deathly afraid of robots but please keep that to yourself! ;))
The thing to do is to not hang out in places totally alone. Don't go to his house when no one is home. Don't have him over to your house when no one is home. Do not take long road trips with just the two of you! Use common sense! But go get coffee at a coffee shop, go to a fair, walk around town, all cutesy couple stuff, sounds great! Just maybe don't drive there together if its far away ;)
Careful talking about marriage if you have only been dating a short while. And courting relationships do not always lead to marriage. He may have asked you to court him but not to marry him. He probably did not even think of marriage. Just wait on talking about the M word.
My last point, don't just date because a guy asked you out. A guy has to be a good guy. Not sleazy and trying to come on to you. But a good honest (and cute or hot always helps) guy! If he is a good guy then go for it. But still, no matter how cute or how sweet, stick to the stuff above.
So that is my very long and very opinionated first post to In The World Not Of It. About living in the world and in the time God put us in but not being like everyone else. We live above the worlds standards! We get to live for an awesome, amazing, powerful, and relational God who made the heavens and the earth and yet still wants to be a part or our small insignificant lives! Oh how he loves us! It just blows me away sometimes!
PS All this applies to guys too! Y'all can read over and just pretend that everywhere it says guys it really says gals! :)
