Dating and relationships for adults is a lot like a meal. We have all kinds of meals all the time, simple ones, crappy ones, and very rarely, on exceptionally special occasions (at least for a majority of the western population) we have a really fancy meal with many courses. Few, if any of us, find ourselves having a full, 5 course meal every day- and I'm afraid this idea may be lost on those of you who do.
So the ideal for a Christian relationship is best compared (in my chef mind) to a fabulous 5 course meal- the meal of a lifetime. The 5 courses in my dream meal include an Appetizer course, a Soup &/or Salad course, an "Intermezzo", an Entree, and Finally, a Dessert. There is one other crucial element to EVERY "meal" no matter the size, but I'll touch on that last to build the suspense. Let's start at the beginning:
The Appetizer
An Appetizer in a well planned, super special, fancy-pants dinner will have a few common elements. It will be savory, flavorful, not overly-filling and a little bit meaty- it's sort of a preview of the main part of the meal, to get you invested and excited about the courses that are coming, and if you're really having that once-in-a-lifetime, fancy meal, it won't fill you up to where you have no desire to move on to the next 4 courses. In a relationship, this is that moment at the very beginning, when you first meet that someone and you want to know everything about them. You feel like you could talk for days and you often do talk for hours at a time, you feel like you're telling them all sorts of intimate, savory, hearty details about yourself and that you know them amazingly well for someone you only just met. But there's the trick- you have only just met. No matter how many hours you talk on the phone, or how late into the night you find yourselves talking with coat on and keys out, pretending you're about to get out and go home, remember that you're still on the appetizers! You've only known each other a short time- this is only a taste! It is important to keep a check on your heart and reel in those hormones and emotions a little bit so you can save room for those other (better) courses. Any elegant meal worth eating will take a while to enjoy every taste. I'll come back to touch on this course a bit more once I've introduced the other 4 courses, and explain how they all tie together, and why enjoying them in their proper order is so, so wonderfully important.
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