The "What If" Behind Your Fears Posted: Apr 06, 2010 It grips you with a mere thought of what could be. Its goal is to bring you into utter submission to its power until you are at its mercy. It feels like a tightly bound rope—freezing, paralyzing, tormenting its every victim--not willing to yield even an inch. It preys on the vulnerable areas of our lives; you know, the parts that we haven't yielded completely over to God, and little by little conquers our frailties, mastering our every weakness. When it succeeds in one area, it moves on inch by inch, trying to cover as much ground as possible when, in reality, the extent of its power is limited to what we are willing to succumb to. This is how fear takes hold of our thought life.

Commitment in Marriage Posted: Mar 08, 2010 James, my husband, and I became friends while on our way to prison. Yep, I said prison! Not many people can say they met their spouse in such a way. Before you jump to conclusions, let me explain. We were sitting across from each other in the back of a bus that was hauling us, along with approximately 30 other college-age students from our church, to a maximum security prison. He was the drummer in our young adults' worship band that would be performing, and I was on the drama team that would be acting out skits to minister to the prisoners. A very unlikely match, I know. One and a half years later, our friendship went from the prison doors to the church doors in holy matrimony.

Bakery Dating Posted: Feb 01, 2010 I was never one to date around in high school. Instead, I was the shy girl that slipped through barely noticed by the opposite sex. I was fairly attractive, but due to my introverted personality, I wasn't approachable (I later learned from a good friend). Feeling shy and awkward around the opposite sex was an understatement for me. I had no problem being friends with them, but anything more would have made me blush. I'm not sure why, but it I'm sure it kept me from a lot of heartbreak. What We Learned About Relationships As Teenagers Teen dating seems like a normal part of our adolescent years; despite the fact, it is fleeting and, most of all, lacks commitment. In youth group, I learned two things you need before entering a relationship: (1) Only date someone who is likeminded in my Christian beliefs based on 2 Corinthians 6:14 about not being "unequally yoked," and (2) Don't have sex before marriage. As long as you followed those rules, you had the makings of a God-ordained relationship, so I was taught. I'm not saying these are bad principles to live by. How can they, when they are Bible-based?