When the people of the land come before the LORD at the appointed festivals, whoever enters by the north gate to worship is to go out the south gate; and whoever enters by the south gate is to go out the north gate. No one is to return through the gate by which they entered, but each is to go out the opposite gate. Ezekiel 46:9

When we go to the Lord, we never come out the same way we went in. My changed heart is a prime example:

If you know my story, you know where I have come from and although freed from some of that bondage, I still struggle with the many lies associated with them. The very truth I try to minister to those who share a similar past as mine, I often don’t believe it to be true for me: The Lord can fully restore and provide the desires of your heart despite your past! I felt like Moses in a sense; I can lead the Israelites to the Promised Land, but never get to fully experience it myself. As the Lord changes my heart, I can see that, unlike Moses, I will see my Promised Land one day!

I can be candid and say that I have never (I mean never) been in a relationship and been so in love with my Savior. Never did I think I could continue to strive to be the Godly woman God created me to be and still remain pure in heart, mind, body and soul. I often associated this with the men I dated. Yes, they did nothing to bring me closer to God, but I was the one who allowed them into my life in the first place. So, by choosing to date men that were not walking with the Lord (some may say “equally yoked”), the Lord was never front and center as He should be.

However, when you date someone who loves the Lord and encourages and supports your love for the Lord, not only do you grow closer to the Lord, but dating becomes a completely different experience. You are not a different person, but in many ways, it enhances who you are and the degree of love you have for the Lord. You experience God’s love through this person’s words and actions! If you haven’t noticed, I recently began dating someone and, no, I am not hearing wedding bells, but I am experiencing God’s love for me in such tangible ways that only a person who loves the Lord as much (if not more) could ever communicate.

As we walk in obedience and look to the Lord more and more, our hearts change. We begin to see how God sees us. This changes our behaviors and the people we allow into our lives; people (dating or not) who bring us closer to our True Love, not distract us from Him. As a result, we ALL will reach the Promised Land, whether it involves a wedding dress or not!!