Stand Your Ground (Week 4)

I Do!

·         I know this might be a subject most guys, as teenagers, wouldn’t necessarily want to talk about. However, it is something everyone will deal with, so I just ask you to keep an open mind.

1.      Do you ever think about what is going to happen in the future?

2.      Do any of you think about one day getting married and starting a family?

3.      What qualities do you, or will you look for in a boyfriend/girlfriend?

·         Even though you may think about the future, God already has a plan and knows what is going to happen.

Read: Matthew 7: 7-8

Verse 7 “Ask and it will be given to you seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” Verse 8 “For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.”

4.      What does this reading selection mean to you?

5.      Do you think a person is ever too young to think about the idea of marriage? Or do you believe everyone can think about marriage?

·         As I have already said, God has a plan for you and that includes the person you will end up with.

·         Look back at your answers for question 3:

6.      Do you believe, as Christians, we should be looking for people who have certain qualities? If yes, what are those qualities?

·         According to Stand Your Ground, “As Christians there are certain qualities essential to a God-pleasing relationship” (114).

·         I believe this as well, we should be looking for someone who brings out the best in us as a person, but also as a Christian.

7.      Are any of the qualities listed in question 6 some of the ones you listed in question 3?

·         If not, that is fine. However, it is something you need to start thinking about, or when you start dating, pay attention to the qualities we listed and try to find someone that matches those qualities.

·         The best way to do this is by praying, just like it says in Matthew 7:7 “Ask and it will be given to you.”

·         God wants us to be happy and to keep growing in him. Don’t worry, when the time comes, he’ll put the right person in your path.

Read: 2 Corinthians 6:14

Verse 14 “Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?”

·         It may seem like a long time before you start seriously considering marriage, and hopefully it is, but just like with everything else, it will come sooner than you think.

·         As I have said God has the perfect person for you, and it could be a neighbor, friend, or classmate.

·         Only God knows the answer!

·         “You can start praying for them, right now! Hope that they remain pure in the Son, That their journey in faith has just now begun. You can do nothing but wait, hope, and pray, God will show you the one who will stay” (Stand Your Ground 115).

·         God is the way, and even though right now you may not care or you don’t have a clue, who you are going to end up with….

·         “He’ll make you certain before you say, I do” (Stand Your Ground 115)

·         Before we finish this lesson, I would like to share with you one of my favorite Bible verses. It keeps me on track when looking for my “soul mate” as Stand your Ground calls our future someone’s.

Read: 1 Corinthians 13: 4-7

Verse 4 “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.” Verse 5 “it is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.” Verse 6 “Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.” Verse 7 “It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.”

·        As you are looking, or once you start looking for a boyfriend/girlfriend, keep 1 Corinthians 13: 4-7 in your mind.  Those verses, along with God, will help you decide if you have found the right person.