Last semester there was this girl.<\/p>\n
Well, if my past is any indicator, this means that a lesson was about to come.<\/p>\n
Anyway, there was this girl, and over the course of a few weeks, feelings began to creep in.<\/p>\n
The time came when I decided that I wanted to date her. I liked her, and I had prayed about it, and I felt confident that it was the right thing to do.<\/p>\n
Never follow your feelings.<\/p>\n
I am so glad that one of my good friends stepped in when he did, since my mind was romantically drugged and clear thinking was not something that I could fully do at the time. He told me I was going a little too fast and that I should take a week to fast and pray about what the Lord wanted me to do. I was going to see her the next day, and he told me that I should pray that God would give me a sign as to which direction I should move toward.<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t want to do this. I didn\u2019t want to wait. But I knew in my heart that my friend was speaking truth into my life and that this was the wise thing to do. So I spent some time praying that God would shine a very bright light on the path that I should take. In my heart, however, I really wanted to pursue her, and I was pretty sure that I would.<\/p>\n
When I got together with her the next day, I sort of forgot about my prayer the previous night. We got into a conversation about life goals, and all of a sudden she said something that hit me like a ton of bricks.<\/p>\n
Now, it wasn\u2019t something terribly big. Neither was it something that I would have considered to be so important to me. But as certain words left her lips, I felt a blow to my heart as the previous night\u2019s prayer came rushing back to my mind. God was clearly pricking at my heart that this girl\u2019s passions, although God-honoring, did not match my own.<\/p>\n
When I got back to my dorm room, I sat on the couch and had a fight with God. Why, God, why? Why would You do this to me?<\/em> I really liked this girl, and He was splitting us up. Didn\u2019t He know how much I cared for her?<\/p>\n Then it hit me.<\/p>\n Like two<\/em> tons of bricks.<\/p>\n God shot me the question: If you really care for her, you would desire what I have planned for her. \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n It was as if a wave of truth rose up and washed my clouded mind. I had not been really loving her, but had been selfishly desiring her. I had been lying to myself by saying that I wanted the best for her, but my infatuated heart was telling me that I<\/em> was the best for her.<\/p>\n God told me that if I had really cared for her, my heart’s desire would have been for her to be in God\u2019s will. If it meant that I would not end up in a relationship with her, that would be OK. God desired for me to rest so completely in Him that my heart would be at peace with whatever He had in store.<\/p>\n To truly love someone means that you love and follow after God so much that you are at peace if that person is taken away from you.<\/p>\n She had become my idol.<\/p>\n God wanted me back.<\/p>\n This mindset has really changed how I think about relationships. This week, I have actually begun pursuit of another girl. But this time I have saturated myself in prayer, and God has given me the heart to say that I am OK if I do not \u201cget the girl.\u201d I want what is best for her, and I make sure to pray for her best every day. I surrender myself to the Lord\u2019s will every day, because I could not have this mindset otherwise.<\/p>\n Remember, to truly love someone means that you have surrendered her not to your desires, but to God\u2019s perfect will for her life.<\/p>\n Copyright 2012 James Eldridge. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" God shot me the question: If you really love her, you would want what I have planned for her. It was as if a wave of truth washed my clouded mind.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":34820,"menu_order":0,"template":"","categories":[5,2,15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12157","blog","type-blog","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dating","category-relationships","category-spiritual-growth"],"yoast_head":"\n