“Can two people walk together without agreeing on the direction?” (Amos 3:3).

Define the Relationship. A DTR is the conversation in which you and your date ask the tough questions. Do we want to make this official? Where is this relationship heading? It’s a time to communicate expectations, hopes and fears. It’s never an easy conversation to have, but avoiding or putting off the DTR will only hurt your relationship.

If there’s a problem in your relationship, or if you want to date to become more than a friend, the only way to resolve the issue is through communication. Listening to your boyfriend or girlfriend’s concerns and sharing with him or her honestly is the only way to move forward.

It’s the same with God. Before Jesus ascended to heaven, He said God would “give [us] another Advocate, who will never leave us [us]. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth” (John 14:16-17). We can communicate with the Spirit, telling God our hopes, dreams, fears, expectations, concerns, confusion and doubts. We can speak in absolute honesty, trusting that nothing we say would ever separate us from Him or make Him love us any less. In his letter to the Romans, Paul wrote, “I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love” (Romans 8:38). Jesus wants to have a close relationship with you—closer than any boyfriend or girlfriend, closer than any lover, closer than any husband or wife. The Bible is His love letter, calling you into deeper, stronger relationship—a relationship that will satisfy more than any earthly desire. Will you embrace Him today?

Adapted from: Not Another Dating Book© 2012 by Renee Fisher. Published by Harvest House Publishers, Eugene, Oregon. Used by permission.