How often do we find that we are losing track of friends without enough time to spend together? It seems easy to say “maybe next month,” “when I get that promotion,” “when the kids are out of school,” or any other myriad of excuses. The bottom line is if we don’t make the time to celebrate our friends we won’t have the time ever. It is all about committing to connect, and creating opportunities to make that happen. Be sure to involve everyone in the fun by asking them to bring a dish or other element. No one likes to show up at a party empty handed and it is easier if you specify what to bring.

Here are just a few ways you can celebrate your friends!

Savory Supper Club

This works well with couples or singles but is usually a kid free event. This can be a great way to get to know neighbors or other residents in a subdivision. Often it’s location is rotated monthly between different homes in a neighborhood. A supper club can be very simply created with each couple or person bringing a dish each time, categories are designated to avoid duplicate dishes or too many salads or appetizers. It is a chance for comradery and fellowship particularly amongst those that live nearby.

The food preparation duties and expense are shared by all, as are the benefits of original recipes and home cooking. Clean up is usually light work with many hands, and everyone relaxes and has a good time.

Super Sporting Event

Make it a real mixed event with singles, couples, and kids if desired. It can be live or on TV. If live, plan a festive tailgate is to bring everyone together before the game. If televised set up a buffet for noshing during the game and it can be pot luck, with everyone bringing a dish. Stick with paper plates and plastic cups and flatware and clean up is a breeze.

Just Girl’s/Guy’s Night Out

This is Mars and Venus’s chance to have some time to themselves with friends. Often a once a month regular event, sometimes once a week, this is a chance to connect with close gal pals or guy buddies and gossip, dish dirt, high five on successes, and commiserate on losses. It can be as easy as establishing a place to meet and regular date and time and everyone just shows up. Or it can rotate at private homes but needs to be understood that it is for just the girls or just the guys. We all share a little differently in mixed company! What is said with this crowd stays with this crowd.

Burning O’ Your Troubles Bash

Usually I throw this one just after New Year’s it is a great way to get the New Year off to a truly beneficial beginning. Again who you invite is up to you, generally this is reserved for adults only. You can make it potluck or provide the food yourself. Each person is to bring a listing of their last year’s trials, tribulations, losses, and challenges. You have a fireplace or preferably an outdoor fire (bonfire or chimenaya works really well) and each gets a few minutes alone to literally burn their troubles. Then each party goer gets a New Year’s cracker and that includes a paper crown which they then fill (some write these on the crown itself) proverbially with their hopes for the New Year and burn that as a toast to universal energy. I usually end the festivities with sparklers for everyone to have one last sizzle!

Oscar Party

This falls in early March so it is a great chance to catch up and celebrate with friends between New Year’s and Memorial Day. It is a dressy function with costumes optional. You can download the ballot forms online and I encourage ordering party favors and prizes with a Hollywood theme, again online sources abound. Be sure to start it a little early so everyone can get comfortable mingle a bit and get a bite. Decorate with Oscar statuettes and lots of gold, silver and black. Go glam!

You’ll usually have a handful of die hard movie fans that will be so intent on watching the awards that they won’t really socialize and will shush folks that talk during the show! Having a friend play emcee if you don’t want to do it can keep the party going with trivia questions and prizes. Everyone wants to win!

Be sure to check out Part II of this article for more great ways to celebrate your friends, including a Halloween Fright Night!

Copyright 2008/2009 Melissa Galt

Inevitably, when the topic of dating comes up among Christian teens, the question that always seems to come up is, “Can I date a non-Christian?”

Most of the time, the typical verse that is used to answer their question is 2 Corinthians 6:14-15, which says, “Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever?”

Knowing that you aren’t supposed to date non Christians is one thing, but actually understanding why the Lord doesn’t want you to date and marry a non Christian is another matter, so let’s look some of the reasons why you aren’t supposed to date an unbeliever.

1) Being unequally yoked (dating a non Christian) can create a constant source of problems and arguments. A believer and an unbeliever are total opposites spiritually, which can result in some major differences in the values that you hold and the things that you believe. This has the potential to produce an atmosphere of strife, instead of love which will have you agreeing with Proverbs 21:19, which says that it is, “Better to live in a desert than with a quarrelsome and ill-tempered wife.”

2) We are told to guard our hearts above all else (Proverbs 4:23). Simply put, unbelievers don’t have the same moral standards that we as Christians are supposed to have. If you get involved in a relationship with a non Christian, you could open yourself up to a lot of heartache, as their intentions may be less than pure.

3) In 1 Corinthians 15:23, we are told that bad company corrupts good character. Just look at how Solomon’s wives turned his heart from the Lord in 1 Kings 11:4.

4) The Lord has a specific person for you. In 1John 4:16, we read that God is love and from James 1:17 we know that God gives us good and perfect gifts, and Ephesians 3:20 says that we know God is able to do above and beyond all that we can ask or even think. If we apply those verses to our dating and relationships, we will come to understand that the Lord loves us, and because of His love for us, He will give us a good and perfect partner (who is spiritually compatible with us), and will go above and beyond all that we can ask or even think in this area.

If you found this article helpful, visit David’s website at www.christcentereddating.com for more information on finding the woman of your dreams.

My wife wants a divorce, for many men, this is a revelation that takes them completely by surprise.? It is very easy to become consumed with the tasks involved in everyday living and become rather complacent when it comes to our marriages.? Saving a marriage when you are the only one with the desire to save it may not be easy, however very often this can be quite successful, even better than before.? Notice! this is not a time to always do what you’ve always done because chances are this will always produce what has already been produced and has positioned you, a husband who truly does love his wife on the edge of divorce.? This also is not a time for panic but it is a time for determination, discovery and implementation.

I have found that there are universal relationship principles that when applied will build a relationship as well as rekindle love, desire and fellowship.? For example, take an honest look at the memories that have been created between you and your wife, especially the more recent.? Now associate these memories with the feelings that have probably been generated as a result of this association with yourself.? What percentage of memories would generate feelings of joy, pleasure, fun? What percentage of memories are associated with pain, discomfort, stress and anger?? What percentage of memories are associated with boring, ho hum all work and no play type of living?



The point of this exercise is to discover areas of root cause that has led to a rather predictable outcome.? If your wife is considering a divorce, chances are the percentages of recent memories are mostly assosiated with pain, discomfort ect. If the recent memories associated with you were good your wife’s feelings likely would be good as well. Since a divorce is being considered by your wife it is reasonably safe to say the memories and feelings are not pleasant.

It has been my experience that the emotions we associate with how we feel, are simply neutral messengers sent from the heart to inform the head what the heart is feeling.? People tend to make decisions based upon how they feel and use logic and reason to justify their decisions.? This is good news as it is important to understand that the feeling we call love didn’t just happen by accident.? Love was created in connection with pleasant memories associated with something(hopefully that’s something or someone is you).

So let’s look at ways that your marriage can be salvaged, repaired, made strong even if your wife has told you that she wants or is considering a divorce.? This is not a time for panic and clingy behavior as this tends to drive your wife farther away from you emotionally.? Fear and desperation are not very attractive and associates a negative memory of you with negative feelings within your spouse.? This is the very opposite of what is needed to stimulate feelings of love and desire.? Simply following the urge for multiple text messaging or phone contact in an attempt to close the distance between you and your wife tend to separate rather than attract, my advice, don’t do it!

Positives Attract, Negatives Separate

Pushing negative buttons within your wife obviously will get a reaction and may make you feel like you are doing something, but is it worth the price?? The attention you receive from your spouse is separating her? farther from you rather than creating desire to stay.? Better to surprise your wife with behavior that will stimulate positive feelings.? Let’s get a little creative here, let’s not do something that you want to do but rather something that she wants to do, something that will bring pleasure to her heart.? Remember pleasant memories associated with you equals a positive deposit stimulating desire.? People tend to do exactly what they want to do, therefore you must stimulate positive memories and feelings in order to prevent a divorce.

Waiting or pleading for your spouse to have a change of mind without a change of heart, is simply positioning yourself potentially to repeat this process later.? Remember when your first met your wife and were first dating, chances are that both of you lavished a lot of time and attention on each other? and the result was a strong, intense bond which produced intense, positive feelings. Revisit this time in your mind looking for activities and behavior patterns (yours, since you’re the one wanting to save this marriage the most at this time) that you did together that stimulated and created love and desire the first time.? Pay attention to personal hygiene, grooming and clothing as this is also an area that can be easily neglected and can make a difference.? This allows you to re-introduce your wife to the man that she fell in love with the first time.



What attracted your wife to you while you were dating, was it your soft heart, maybe an ability to listen so that she felt that she was heard?? Maybe she felt that she was the center of your world and that this world was important to you or maybe she felt safe in your care and completely understood.? Begin to connect the situations or places that produced these positive memories.? Reproducing the exact memory is not necessary however the general theme surrounding the memory produced love and desire the first time and generally stimulates love and desire a second time around.

Do not tell your spouse your strategy as they may feel that you are simply trying to manipulate things with shallow sincerity (you are being sincere aren’t you?).? The goal here is more than just stopping a divorce but discovering what went wrong and changing behavior patterns that are destroying your marriage.? In this manner you truly can refire the desire in your mate.

Other problems or issues within your marriage can be moved forward to be considered at a later time.? When your marriage is fragile this is not a good time to try to change your spouse, rather work on changing your self more towards the person that she fell in love with.? I have found that it is wise to choose one’s battles carefully.? Why risk the value of a loving relationship with your wife over a petty grievience.? The value of your relationship is much greater than the value of being right.? This is worth remembering as it will go a long way toward building pleasant memories with your wife.

What is the point of holding on so tightly to issues, indignant all the way to divorce court.? Focusing on being “right,” carelessly pushing away what you really want the most, a happy home and marriage, and that my friend is priceless.

Happy is the man who experienced unhappiness in this life but has learned to see through it the unmitigated happiness of eternity. Problems come and go, failure extinguishes itself, but tragedy suddenly comes which seems to have a sole purpose of usurping us of our most cherished treasures.

It oftentimes arrived at the very moment when we learned, through trials and triumphs, how to give the best we have, and when we became selfless, almost lifeless, by giving our all. We cannot help ourselves but ask “Why me?” with tears gently flowing from our hollow eyes.

Unwanted circumstances blind us so much that the corollary of such question escapes from our notice. It begins to rise when we start to focus again on ourselves, the “me” in the question, and forget the significant Other Who is behind the wonder of it all, the “why” in the question.

We tend to bereave ourselves of meaning and direction whenever we are confronted by the clash of nature’s quest and of our unbecoming desire. We forget that we still have the real treasure ready to be uncovered from our heart humbled by such reminiscence which cannot be robbed by any entity.

It is a four-letter word, squarely-built within each of us; no more no less than what we call love. Love creates a fortitude of dream and vision as we find ourselves deeply trapped in the harsh factualities of human existence. It serves as a pair of wings for us to fly beyond the thorns and embers of the unexpected.

Love, then, can turn tragedy into a symphony of melodious interplay of beauty, harmony and necessity. It is the only metaphysical alchemist of paradoxes and juxtapositions.

Blessed is the man who overcomes problem by faith, surpasses failure by hope, and transmutes tragedy by love. Without doubt, love is the key to all things. Through it, you can open the windows of heaven and close the gates of hell.

Love is the essence of prayer. Through it, you can move the farthest gigantic star by simply kissing the awe-inspiring petal of a flower.

It is almost inexpressible if not through our heart in which it is indelibly engraved by the Creator, Sustainer and Redeemer Who lives a life of love. It is the code of codes encoded in all the heart of men which can be decoded alone by the heart who longs for love. It is an elusive impression. Mystery itself cannot hold the sacredness of love.

Thus, if we will try to look for a good definition of love, it must be, love is love. We do not need to use another word or group of words to make it clear or unambiguous. It is already understandable, its meaning is as clear as crystal, to anyone who has a heart which throbs the beat of infinity with the tune of the heavenly music.

Love is the universal language known by all of God’s creation. It is the principle which governs the origin and destiny of all things. Sin is a cosmic treason but love is the cosmic reason. Love conquers all.

It is the Raison d’etre, the Summum bonum, the Logos, the Tao, the Jen, the Aum, the Rta, the Shabd, the Zen, the Eck, the Five pillars, the Path, the Golden rule, the All.

Satan has tried to deceive man since the beginning by hiding the real meaning of such terms but he tragically failed. For love is at the ultimate center of God’s self-revelation in nature, in man, and in Christ.

The golden letters of the Book of books are deeply anchored on love. Let the light of heaven shine through you on earth. Consume your self with nothing but Divine life.

Dare to walk through the uncharted territory of your fearless enemy and arm your self of the most powerful weapon that a man can have to defeat all enemies: love.

Love knows no harm, insult, or injury. It only knows love. It simply tells the truth without any admixture of euphemism and we all know truth sometimes hurts. It conceives and begets peace and unity. Its outer shell and inner dimension is pure righteousness which is constantly outflowing from the heart of God Who is Himself love.

Love knows no beginning and end for it is infinite. It derives its subsistence from the Greatest Lover of all time Who for His love He gave His life for His enemies like us.

Truly, His miraculous demeanor is lovelier than the multi-splendored ray of the spectrum of light. His glorious countenance is imbued with the fragrance of love. His precious name is JESUS, the sweetest name of all, the Love of loves.

Don’t believe anything and don’t trust anyone unless you first believed and trusted the Holy One Who gave you the heart which have the capacity to love and be loved.

The only incontrovertible, non-loveless proof that there is God is found in the purity of love itself for God is love. Love is the axiom of God. Wherever there is true love, God is there.

If only love was in our heart, then we would need nothing for we would have all things in the sweet consciousness of God’s presence. Love is the reason, the meaning and the goal of our existence.

It alone can explain all mysteries including the mystery of the Trinity and of the Incarnation. It is the basis of the Law and the essence of Grace.

It proves the truth of the Judeo-Christian system for love can only be seen meaningful in the Biblical framework. It will never arise in an atheistic/pantheistic, amoral, neutral, impersonal and evolutionary universe. Love can only exist in the world which is created by the Infinite-Personal Triune God of love Who made man in His image.

Love is relational. Its necessity requires an object to share its selfless purity. It presupposes personal relationship, communion and fellowship. It does not seek its own because its dynamic activity is always toward others. It flows continuously outward to produce unity in diversity within the bond of truth without destroying individual identity. In a seven-letter word: charity.

Love eternally exists in the perfect symmetry of communication of the three Persons of one God. Thus, love proves that God is Trinity for it is His essential nature. The very love which exists in the Trinitarian relationship is the final reality that God willed to become true to all creation through Christ who is the ultimate manifestation of Divine love.

The total expression of love can be clearly seen in the life of Christ when He sacrificed Himself to save us. Thus, love also proved that God incarnated to bring us back to Himself for He loved us so much. He created us out of His heart to share His intimate attribute of love.

Love alone gives form and freedom to all truth for it always rejoices in the truth but never in iniquity. Love is the inner core of the Formula of Truth (the Bible Formula) that solves all problems, answers all questions, and explains all mysteries.

Love is not only the silhouette of the total reality in its pristine beauty perfectly portrayed in the heart of all men but also the ever-growing seed of the new heaven and new earth divinely implanted in the heart of the regenerate man.

The whole universe, past and future, can be found in our heart if the Spirit-shed love dwells in us. This is a profound mystery, mystery of mysteries indeed. Therefore, love is no thing, it is not just a thing, it is everything. “Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things” (1 Cor. 13:7). Love is “the bond of perfectness” (Col.3:14).