It's the first day of the new year! I've decided that I won't look back at 2014 with regret, but I will look forward with hope to new beginnings and an opportunity for a fresh start in 2015.
Even though I'm still single, I am going to make a New Year's resolution to start preparing for marriage right now. You can too. Here are 10 ways that we can prepare to meet our future spouses:
1. Let it go. Are you holding onto feelings from a past relationship? Let it go and make room in your heart for someone who truly cares about you.
2. Open your heart. Stepping outside your comfort zone will not only give you the confidence you need, but will help you to be more open to God’s surprises.
3. End the dating strike. Smile, flirt, strike up a conversation. Ladies: Let him know you’re available. Men: Ask a woman for her phone number.
4. Don't be selfish. Marriage calls each spouse to abandon any selfish tendencies. Make choices that benefit others.
5. Keep growing. Admit when you’re wrong, apologize quickly, and work on yourself continuously.
6. Don't settle. If there is no future with the person that you are dating, and you know you want a future with someone, then, for Pete’s sake, move on!
7. Talk it out. Married couples that communicate effectively say at least five positive comments for every negative comment and work together to draw out each other in loving, effective discussion.
8. Learn to sacrifice. Remember, marriage is not about you so much as it is about loving and giving to your spouse and kids, even when it’s a sacrifice.
9. Sex can wait. If your relationship is purely based on sex, you become blinded by your emotions, and it is harder to break up with that person, even when you know he or she isn’t right for you. Sex speaks a language, the language of forever, the language of life-long love. This is the language of permanent marital love.
10. Be hopeful. Remember that you are looking for the person you need for a happy marriage, not necessarily the person you think you want. The person you want may not exist or may not be good for you. Be hopeful and pray to understand God's timing for you.
