Dear Youngsters,
I've noticed a good bit of social media posts involving, "I love you"s. Can I be open and honest? Just hear me out for a second. I'd like to share another perspective. And know this is written out of a genuine care for you all.
You don't really love him/her, not the way you think. Please be careful that you aren't just throwing those words around. They are special words with a beautiful meaning and when you use them to describe the boyfriend or girlfriend of the month, sometimes week, they lose all beauty.
Believe it or not, I've been a teenager. I know! Hard to imagine with all the white hairs I'm sporting these days. But, it's the truth. Teenage brains worked the same way back then as they do now. Only now, instead of writing each other "love" notes, the same info is put out on social media for all the world to see. You are either saying, "I love you" because you want something, want to give something, or because you think that's what the other person wants to hear. Instead, try saying, "I like you. You're pretty cool."
Even if you marry the one you are dating now, the one you have been with for years and years, saying, "I like you. You're pretty cool" is a-okay! I love you is filled with layer upon layer of meaning and is meant for the one the LORD has set aside for you. You are stealing from your future spouse when you give those three words to anyone willing to claim the title of boyfriend/girlfriend. Hold on to those precious words. Make them mean what they are intended to mean and present them to your spouse, not to some 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 year old who is here today and gone tomorrow. (Here today and gone tomorrow is literal and figurative.)
Be careful, dear ones. God willing, if you are to get married, you will. In the meantime, remain strong in the LORD. Pray for your spouse, even though you have no idea who he/she is. Pray for your spouse's salvation, growth in the LORD, health, upcoming tests, siblings, friends, purity, safety, job, career path, college choice, etc. Pray for your spouse's parents as they raise the man or woman you will one day marry. Pray for yourself as God prunes you as well. Marriage preparation is just as important as the marriage itself. And you are never too young to prepare through prayer. This is how you show and tell your future spouse, "I love you."
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. ~Galatians 5:22
A P.S. about love ... yes, we are to love others and should show it with our words and actions. That's a different kind of love <3:
Love your neighbor as yourself. ~Galatians 5:14
Thanks for stopping by! ;)
I've noticed a good bit of social media posts involving, "I love you"s. Can I be open and honest? Just hear me out for a second. I'd like to share another perspective. And know this is written out of a genuine care for you all.
You don't really love him/her, not the way you think. Please be careful that you aren't just throwing those words around. They are special words with a beautiful meaning and when you use them to describe the boyfriend or girlfriend of the month, sometimes week, they lose all beauty.
Believe it or not, I've been a teenager. I know! Hard to imagine with all the white hairs I'm sporting these days. But, it's the truth. Teenage brains worked the same way back then as they do now. Only now, instead of writing each other "love" notes, the same info is put out on social media for all the world to see. You are either saying, "I love you" because you want something, want to give something, or because you think that's what the other person wants to hear. Instead, try saying, "I like you. You're pretty cool."
Even if you marry the one you are dating now, the one you have been with for years and years, saying, "I like you. You're pretty cool" is a-okay! I love you is filled with layer upon layer of meaning and is meant for the one the LORD has set aside for you. You are stealing from your future spouse when you give those three words to anyone willing to claim the title of boyfriend/girlfriend. Hold on to those precious words. Make them mean what they are intended to mean and present them to your spouse, not to some 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 year old who is here today and gone tomorrow. (Here today and gone tomorrow is literal and figurative.)
Be careful, dear ones. God willing, if you are to get married, you will. In the meantime, remain strong in the LORD. Pray for your spouse, even though you have no idea who he/she is. Pray for your spouse's salvation, growth in the LORD, health, upcoming tests, siblings, friends, purity, safety, job, career path, college choice, etc. Pray for your spouse's parents as they raise the man or woman you will one day marry. Pray for yourself as God prunes you as well. Marriage preparation is just as important as the marriage itself. And you are never too young to prepare through prayer. This is how you show and tell your future spouse, "I love you."
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. ~Galatians 5:22
A P.S. about love ... yes, we are to love others and should show it with our words and actions. That's a different kind of love <3:
Love your neighbor as yourself. ~Galatians 5:14
Thanks for stopping by! ;)