COURTSHIP

Definition of Courtship:
To engage in social activities leading to engagement and marriage (Merrian-Webster)

Courtship is a slightly different view of the modern relationship concept. Whereas dating is often self-serving and self-gratifying and not necessarily pursued with serious intentions, courtship has a bolder vision. In a courtship, the parties are agreeing that they are looking at the relationship with the serious possibility that it might lead to engagement and marriage.

We both were at a point in our lives where we weren't looking to just date someone. We didn't want to waste our time. We were interested in something serious, in finding the person that God had out there waiting for us. This topic even came up during our friendship phase in the Fall.

After spending Christmas with our respective families and thinking that nothing would come about from our friendship, we got together again in the new year.

Timo: "I had to admit to myself that I was seriously interested in Leah. I thought that if I didn't take a risk and share my feelings, I would miss an opportunity, one that I might regret. So, shortly into the new year, when we met again, I finally spoke up and revealed my interest. I was pleasantly surprised to find a warm reception from Leah and, in fact, a similar interest. We both agreed to pray about the idea of courtship and see what God might be saying."

Timo: "Slightly over a week later, I felt peace from God about it all, so I decided to ask Leah to consider courtship. I wanted to start things off right, so when I showed up that evening at her place, I presented her with a dozen long stemmed red roses as I asked her to prayerfully consider if she would agree to a courtship. And wow, she agreed. We prayed together and committed our new relationship to God."

Leah: "It made me really excited to know that God was going to be intimately involved in our relationship. And praying with Timo helped put God at the centre of our courtship from day one."

What does a courtship entail? What makes it different? In the next few months, we spent lots of time together. But we also spent time with each other's friends, so that we got a chance to see what the other person was really like (no masks or hidden personality traits). We had fun times (like when Leah put barrettes in Timo's hair) but also serious discussions on a complete range of topics. This was a time for us to discern whether or not the other person was indeed a potential match, someone we were interested in spending the rest of our lives with.