Physical and emotional purity is only possible if you do not let your passions alter your principles. God has set principles in His Word to help us navigate through our single years. These principles include not looking at dating as a way to fix our emotional pain; not dating someone who does not share our faith; and not allowing a romantic relationship to become physical. Unfortunately, many in our generation let their physical passions adjust their standards.

Many people say, “I am in love and it does not matter if the other person is of the same sex” or “We are in love and it does not matter if we are from different faiths” or the proverbial “love is love.” It is true that God is love; however, not all love is from God. Do not let your physical urges change your principles; otherwise, it will be impossible to live a pure life.

Dating is like driving, you need a license. There is an appropriate time for dating. Everyone is always asking, “How do I know when I am ready to date?” the reply to this burning question is, “You are only ready to date when you are ready for marriage.” If you are not ready for marriage, then dating is out of the question. Do not fall prey to the lie that you need to date a lot of people, so that you can find the right person. During dating most people are not as genuine as they may appear; they put on a mask, so you are not really getting to know the real person; but the person they want you to see.

Dating is like driving, you need a good car. The car speaks of your emotional wellbeing. If you are broken down emotionally, then going into a relationship will not fix you. It is like believing that driving your vehicle‚ while the car is leaking oil‚ will solve the oil-leak problem. On the contrary, driving your car will not fix whatever problems it may have; but it usually creates additional and more serious problems.

You are truly ready to date when you do not have a need to date. If you are hoping that dating will help you become whole, then you will soon realize that relationships will reveal all the holes that are in you. Only a relationship with the Holy Spirit can makes you whole; however, a romantic relationship will reveal your holes. A relationship with God will truly satisfy us; while a romantic relationship will only magnify what is already inside of us.

Dating is like driving, you need a road. The path to a godly relationship is purity. If you get a license and a car, you still need a road‚ that is fully pavemented and completed‚ to drive on. The nicer the car the better the road you need; you cannot just drive anywhere. Every great and godly relationship will only be as good as it is pure. We need purity in our thoughts, our actions, and our feelings.

Purity is a path; purity is a pursuit; and purity is not a point you arrive at when you stop committing certain sins. Purity is a constant pursuit for God. Even if it happens to be at the right time, with the right person, and for the right reasons‚ yet if you begin to take your relationship on the gravel of lust and compromise‚ there is still the possibility of the wheels falling off and your car being completely wrecked. Only the pure in heart will see God.

Dating is like driving, follow the road signs. There are signs on the path of purity, signs like Yield, Speed Limit, Do Not Enter, and No Texting and Driving. We must YIELD our relationship to the Lord and remain accountable to our mentors. If a relationship is from God, it will not distract you from your love for the Lord. There is also a sign that tells us the SPEED LIMIT; we must have a limit in our relationship, it means we must have self-control in our passions and exercise patience. We must not spend too much time with that person or stay up too late when we are dating; but have restrain so that our marriage can be unlimited.

The slower you go in your dating relationship, the faster you will get to know the other person. The faster you go in your dating relationship, the slower you will get to know the other person. The DO NOT ENTER sign means that we must have “no trespassing” zones in our relationship. Dating is not a trial for marriage; because we do not cohabitate (live together) while we are dating. People who practice cohabitation are the least likely to marry; have a higher probability of divorce; are the most likely to have an unhappy marriage; are the most likely to have extramarital affairs; will hurt their kids more emotionally and psychologically; will have more parental disapprovals; and have more stress then those who are married. I pray for God’s richest blessings as you pursue the Lord and embark on this journey of love that will lead you to marriage.

Break Free book is available now on Amazon, Kindle, and iBooks.

This blog was written by Vladimir Savchuk.

Pastor Vlad is the lead pastor of Hungry Generation Church, an author of “Break Free” and “Single, Ready to Mingle” and a founder of free online school “Vlad’s School.” To download free e-books, sermon series, small group study guides go to vladimirsavchuk.com