A Deeper Look: Emotional Purity

I have recently been challenged in considering the issue of emotional purity. Christians have often focused on physical purity, while neglecting the importance of emotional purity. Physical purity is very important, but there is much more to relationships than only the physical. Should we not strive for emotional purity as well as physical purity?

She does him good, and not harm, 

all the days of her life. Proverbs 31:12 

In that verse the phrase "all the days of her life" really stands out to me. There are many ways we can be honoring and doing our husbands good - even before we meet them! One of the ways is saving our emotional intimacy for him. God created men and women to not only fulfill each other physically but also emotionally. We can easily emotionally attach ourselves to someone, without there being a serious commitment in the relationship. This results in us giving away a part of us that really belongs to our future husband, thus not truly doing him good.  

I think we all know that girls are easily triggered by emotion, and are also major dreamers. Admit it girls; when you meet an amazing Christian guy who you could see yourself with, it's not long before your last name has mentally morphed into his, and you are living "happily ever after." This is not something we should be doing, but rather should be fighting against.

Something to consider when evaluating a close friendship with someone of the opposite sex, is whether it's encouraging us in our walk with the Lord, or if it's causing us to become anxiousness for things that are not ours to have yet. Whether we are single or married, our fulfillment ultimately needs to come from the Lord, not from our spouse or other person/people.

We need to be guarding our mind, and not allow it to wander wherever it wants to take us.
I did not really touch on it much today, but another area we need to be striving for purity is mentally. Maybe that will be the topic for another post.


A book that I highly recommend which goes deeper into the subject is: Emotional Purity An Affair of the Heart by, Heather Arnel Paulsen

If you have any thoughts or comments on the subject, I would love to hear them!

UPdate

I know some of you have been wanting to hear how my training for the Crisis Pregnancy Center has been going, so I'll give you a little update.
I have almost completed the classroom part of my training, which is supposed to be about 20 hours worth. I would actually be done, but one of the sessions was canceled due to winter weather. But anyway...I'll be done next Saturday!

After that I will have 5 weeks of orientation. I'm not sure what all that evolves yet, but I believe I will be sitting in on some of the counseling sessions, finding which of the programs I, or rather God wants to focus on, and just learning how things run at the center.

Then after the 5 weeks or orientation.....I should be able to start counseling!!!!

I can already see that volunteering is going to be a huge growing (and yes, sometimes uncomfortable) experience! I have been so blessed by seeing how God has brought together for His work, different people from various backgrounds/family dynamics. Although we may not all be from the same denomination, I see such a love a passion for Christ and for serving Him! It's such a blessing and excites me, to see people get excited about serving Jesus!

One prayer request that I have, is that God would open the door and lead me into the program that He wants me to be involved in. And by "program" I mean, they have different counseling programs for different needs. For instance, there is post-abortion, abstinence, child care training, ect.

I'll leave you with this little tidbit I heard in training:

"Our lives must first go up, before they go out."

New Year, New Challenge

Many times at the beginning of a New Year, I ask God to give me a special verse for that year.
This year I feel like God has laid on my heart the following passage:

If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. 
Set your affections on things above, not on things on the earth. Col. 3:1&2




My prayer and desire is that through this year, God will continue to teach to apply these verses to my life. I want to keep them at the front of my mind, as a reminder of what I truly should be setting my heart on.

As things in life press in, and try to distract me from my relationship with Christ, I pray that God will remind my of these verses again.


Has God given any of you a special verse for this year?

Love that Waits

While I can't clam these words as my own, I have made them my commitment to my future husband.

I will hold out for real love

I will hold out for intimacy

I will hold out until my heart is ready

I will hold out for God's timing

I will hold out for purity

I will hold out for just one man

I will hold out so I can have butterflies

I will hold out for all that is sacred in God's eyes

I will hold out because I am a peculiar treasure

I will hold out when others around me are giving in

I will hold out as long as it takes

I will hold out my open heart to You, Lord

I will hold out my empty hand and wait