Dating and Courtship

 Hello everyone! Hope everything is going well for you all. Today I'm going to talk about a pretty relevant subject, especially concerning the younger generation. I wanted to talk a bit about dating. Now, I admit, I don't have the most expertise in this area; however, there's a lot that I learned this week which I would like you share with you. 

It's interesting how blind we tend to be while in a relationship. There are different explanations for why it might be that way. One of the explanations if that someone might have a Misattribution of Arousal, where they mistake the feeling of adrenaline or the feeling of having their heart pumping, as a sign that they are attracted to someone. A study showed this where they surveyed people just after they had gotten done with a rollercoaster; and on a scale from one to ten, it was polled that people rated the person two points higher after they had ridden on the rollercoaster. There are other explanations as well for why people may be misguided in their relationships, and studies do show that their families are actually more likely to accurately determine how long a marriage will last than the spouses. Something also that is interesting to note is that one could be able to predict their marriage quality based on how they dated each other.

It's a very interesting idea, and that's also why it's important to make sure that we are dating the one that we eventually want to marry. It all starts there, with dating. Then, it leads to courting. And then to being engaged; until eventually, marriage. A lot of people that we see solely limit themselves to one person and choose to date exclusively. They skip the whole dating process and jump straight to courtship. Doing so can be a bit dangerous as well. Dating is about developing skills and different perspectives. It also allows you to experience what you truly want in a relationship, while exclusively dating closes a lot of doors with other people. 

There are specific roles assigned for the men that are listed in the Family Proclamation. Three of them are to preside, provide, and to protect. The reasoning behind why remembering these roles is important when it comes to dating, is that dates are opportunities for men to practice their roles as husbands. This is why it is not that hard to tell how long a marriage will last based on how the dating happened. Were they applying their roles as future husbands to their dating life? The funny difference between men and women is that women tend to expect a lot of problems to go away with their spouse once they're married, while men tend to think the exact opposite, that they won't need to change once they're married and that they can just stay the same. 

So how can you tell? When will you know when the right time is to jump from dating to courtship? It's a tough question, and it's different for everybody. One thing that will really help with that lifechanging decision is to always involve the Lord in your life. He's the one who will know what the best decision will be for you, and who you should marry. It doesn't mean that you can just go up to God in prayer and ask which of all these girls should you start dating. God expects us to also be willing to put in the work. Oliver Cowdry learned this principle when the Lord told him that he should ask him if it be right. And if it was right, then his bosom should burn within him. The Lord is not going to give us all of the answers. It is our responsibility to find a girl or boy who we could picture a future with and ask the Lord in prayer if this be right. It is not something that we should wait on right before engagement, but something to be had through the whole dating and courtship process. 

But yeah, thank you everyone for reading this blog post! I'll talk to you again next week!