When You Commit for a Lifetime... ~ A Guest Post by Melanie Joy

Here we are, already on Day Four~! I can't believe how fast this week is going... but I believe, thanks to my Abba, it is going well- far better than I imagined=)

Our next guest-poster is Miss Melanie. Melanie is one of those bloggers whom I have never met; but doesn't the L-rd just bless us with sisters (even we never have met?)? Her writings are definitely some of my favorite out there in the world of blogger;) She is a lovely, sweet girl, with a beautiful heart and spirit- and I am super thankful she accepted the idea of guest-posting this week. To read more about Melanie and visit her blog, it's all at the bottom of the post=)

Thanks, Melanie!

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When dear Sierra invited me to write a guest post during her purity week, I consented eagerly.  Yet, I was unsure what aspect of purity I wanted to write on.  In the midst of my indecision, the Lord quietly answered my question; so, thus this article.  I pray that the Lord encourages your heart and draws you to Him through it—may He be glorified!



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Monogamy means having one spouse at a time.  Serial monogamy, which involves marriage, divorce, followed by remarriage, has become less of the exception and more the rule in America. (REA Sociology CLEP book)

            I shook my head sadly as my eyes passed over the above text during school. But it didn’t surprise me.

            I wonder what has become of the wedding vows we all know once existed: “Till death do us part.” Many people are rewriting the vows these days; I desire (with my future husband) to script the vows that will be said at my future wedding, but not so that I can take out “to love, honor, and cherish” or “until death do us part.” Rather, I desire to do so in order to strengthen and point to the Lord concerning our commitment to one another, but most importantly our commitment to Him.

            Friends, ponder the above quote I shared.  Divorce is becoming the norm in America. Marriage is not taken seriously; nor is the marriage covenant. Recently I was reading some responses to a young girl who asked the question “what is considered cheating on someone/flirting” and one girl’s response was the following:

As for flirting, I think you have to define it. One of my coworkers, who has a beautiful relationship with her husband, still "flirts" with many of the customers. However, it's more "joking around" or "being cute" than flirting. She has no interest in having any contact with them outside of work, nor do they have any interest in her; however, they joke and goof off, and it is such that it really should be called "flirting"...but it's no problem. (And she'll do the same with her husband there, and he'll join in the teasing. "Sorry [Husband] - [Wife] is too busy talking to her boyfriend to even realize you're here..." Wife (joking tone): "Shh now don't go telling him about the 'other' guy!!" Husband: "Eh it's OK. At the end of the day, I'm the one she's coming home to.") So, I think that in some situations, where the couple very clearly knows that they're totally committed to each other, one can "flirt", and be OK….

So yeah. A lot of it is individual. But if it makes you or your love uncomfortable, best reconsider!

The young lady above does not seem to exactly approve of what her co-worker is doing, but at the same time, as I was reading it, I would like to go a bit further. I wrote the following in response to the above:

Though it may not bother husband or wife, I can't help but wonder if it glorifies the Lord? Granted, I cannot read their hearts. But I just have to say the Lord emphasizes how when two people are married they are joined together as "one flesh," and are commanded to love one another. The husband is to love the wife as Christ loved the church, and the wife is to love/serve/submit to her husband as the church submits and serves Christ. If we take this analogy and apply it to [the above situation], it is as if the church were to joke about being unfaithful to the Lord. Part of my heart wonders if it does not grieve Him when we joke about sin in a "goofy way" (see Ephesians 5:1-7, namely vs 4). I believe we would all think it horrible if someone was married and had a boyfriend also...

Though, one might argue what the one, married woman was doing wasn’t “bad” since she and her husband have a “beautiful relationship,” I don’t think it’s something to joke about. Too many people really do have this attitude; too many homes are broken; too many spouses are cheated on or unfaithful themselves.  This is not something to laugh over.  This is something to get on our knees and plead for grace and strength to avoid. As I wrote above, I do not think our Lord would laugh if we, as the church, joked about being unfaithful to Him.  He tells us to “flee” the things that are not of Him. He loves us with a love incomprehensible.

The way Christ relates to the church is a picture of what the marriage covenant ought to be. Just as Christ loved the church, so should the husband love his wife. Just as the church serves the Lord and loves Him dearly, so should the wife relate to her husband. It’s a beautiful relationship that is being corrupted by the enemy as he seeks to destroy the unity of beautiful, God-created relationships.

            So you’re all staring at this and thinking, “Okay, great. But, well, we’re not married.” J

            Maybe not, but it is still a crucial point that you should begin instilling within your heart now.  The Proverbs 31 woman does her husband good and not evil “all the days of her life.” This means your commitment starts now.  You have made a commitment to the Lord to serve Him; you are a member of the church. In this commitment to honor Jesus, He asks us to be pure, pure in heart and mind. We are to love Him above all else, and if we do so, we will wait for the one He has chosen for us. We will realize that when we commit for a lifetime, that means forever. For our Heavenly Lover, that means eternity. For our earthly lover, that means until we take our last, dying breath.

            So friends, take some time to consider where your heart lies.  To whom have you made a commitment? Whom do you love above all else?

            May the Lord instill within us the realization that we have committed to Him for a lifetime.

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“…Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.” ~Ephesians 5:25b-27

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Melanie is a young lady who is seeking to serve her Savior and King with everything in her.  She enjoys worshipping through music, writing, capturing God's creations through photography, and reading good books.  Her favorite moments are spent sitting at the feet of her Maker --and her ultimate desire is to bring glory to Him!

To read more from Melanie, visit her blog Forever His Servant, and be blessed~!