First Annual Singles Conference

As I approach this subject today, I want you to think about something at the outset of what we're going to say. I know that Bro. Reynolds conveyed this message to you, and Bro. Holbrook has. The number one thing that I want you to think about is that God loves His children. The Bible teaches that, and that song "For God So Loved", that is such a wonderful song. John 3:16 is in the Bible. People try to explain it away, and they try to do away with it. But, it's in the Bible, it's the Word of God. God loves His own. He loves His children, His sheep, His elect, He loves us. I thank God for that. He doesn't love sin, He doesn't love the sinner, and all that kind of stuff. But, He loves us, and I thank God for that.

Number two is that your parents love you. Now, I know that's hard for you to understand. Growing up as a teenager, and I was a teenager believe it or not, way back when, but it took me a lot of years to realize that my parents really did care. They really did care about me. That's why they gave me a curfew, that's why they gave me a time to be in, you know why? They didn't want me to get in trouble. I've told this before, but Ray was in our home until he was married at the age of 21. When he was a teenager in high school, we set his curfew at 11:00pm. When he got married, you know what his curfew was? It was 11:00pm. Now, why did it stay 11:00pm? Because he never asked to change it. And I'm not going to volunteer to change it, right? I mean, that's a good time, that's a good time for you to be in really. And that's because parents love their children, they have some restrictions for you. Thank God you have some parents that put some restrictions on you. I watched a program here not too long ago, and that might be five years ago, you know, but it was recent in my memory. I remember them interviewing these young people that had been in foster homes, that had been adopted, that were out on the street, that were in homes for runaways, and all this kind of stuff. They were interviewing these young people, and they would ask them, "What did you want as a child growing up?" And every last one of them said, "I wanted a parent."...they did say "parents" they said "a parent," one at least, "that loved me and cared enough about me, to make me do right, and to put restrictions on me, and to have me home when I should have been home." And they didn't have that, and that's exactly what they wanted.

You know my wife has a dog, a lasa opso, and my son, Daren, has a pikanese dog, and especially the puppy, my wife's dog, we have a little cage I guess that you would call it, a little dog place that they'd go in and you can shut the door and all that kind of stuff. Well, when it was a small puppy, there were times that we would shut the door and keep it in there. But now it's a bigger dog, it's a little older. And we don't shut the door, we let it kind of roam, you know there are times when we restrict it in a hallway area, and that kind of thing, but we don't restrict it. But, there are a lot of times when we'll go down into our family room to sit down there and relax and recline, you know, and you know where that dog will be? It'll be in that cage. Not only that, it'll have the door pulled to. Now the dog's smart, it pulls that door to. You know why? Because it feels secure in that framework, in that situation, because it grew up like that. And I know that in your life, you feel more secure when there are restrictions.

Don't you like to say to somebody if they ask you to do something you don't want to do, "My dad won't let me." Isn't that good? Or "My mom won't let me." Now, a guy will say, "Uh, I can't I'm busy, uh, you know." And that's because your parents love you and they give you restrictions, and that makes it better for you. But, I remember one time, my dad was pastoring a small church down in Arkansas. Carlisle, Arkansas was the place. And I remember I was running around with some kids, I was involved with sports in school, and played the different sports, everything they had I tried to participate in. And I had a girlfriend. And so one time we were going to go on this hayride or something, and it started raining. And, this was just a bunch of kids from school, it was a church activity. And so all the kids decided they were going to go to the movie theatre downtown, they were going to the movies. And, I knew I wasn't allowed to go to the movies. I knew that. I was a Christian, I was in church all the time, and I knew my parents would have a fit and all that kind of stuff. So, I said, "Well, I don't have any money. So, just drop me off by my house, and I'll just meet you there." Well, I knew I wasn't going...I knew I couldn't go. I knew I wasn't going to get any money, but I just told them that so I wouldn't feel embarrassed, you know. It wasn't because I was a super Christian; it wasn't because I was better than them, but I knew that my parents wouldn't allow me to do that. At the time, I didn't understand it. But, today I understand it.

There were times when I played all the sports in school; I was a lot slimmer than, I was faster. And I played the sports in school, and there were times that there were ballgames on Wednesday night. Baseball games, and my parents wouldn't let me go. We had a track meet one time during a church revival. Now, revivals in Arkansas, we still had those several times a year. So, why couldn't I go? The deacons let their kids go. Why couldn't I go? Because my parents said I ought to be in church when the doors are open. Now, I'll guarantee you when I was a young person, I didn't understand all that. But today I do, and I thank God that my parents had me in church. That's where you ought to be when we're having church. That's more important to you than any sporting activity.

So, your parents love you...listen to this. Your grandparents love you. They care about you. Some of you this week have had your grandparents here, may have your grandparents here today. And they do care about you. I think if there is anyone in the world that loves you under God, it is your grandparents; because they care what happens to you, they're concerned about you, they don't want anybody hurting you, they don't want anybody hurting your feelings, they don't want anybody talking rough to you. My granddaughter came home the other day. She's seven years old and in the second grade. She came home, and she's talking about how some boy at school had told her she was stupid. So, I overheard the conversation. I said, "Who was this boy?" It was Ricky Flowers. I said, "I will be talking to him." (laughter) I'm the administrator of the school, you know, and I have some authority. I will be talking to him, I haven't yet, but I'm going to scare him. (laughter) But, that's the way grandparents are.

And your church, listen to this, I know it's hard for you to understand this, but your church really cares about you. This church here cares about ya'll, you know that? That's why they had this conference. That's exactly why they had this conference, because your pastor and the people care about what happens to you.

So, we come this week and we know that we're here, the pastors here that are visiting. because we care about you. We care about what happens to you. And I know that you won't remember everything that we have said. And I want you to write some things down, and Bro. Reynolds does, and Bro. Holbrook does. But you will forget a lot of these things. But the things that you will remember are the things that you've heard over and over again. Probably, the things we've said this week, you've heard all of them. Your parents have talked to you, your pastor has preached to you. You've heard all of this stuff. But, you know what it does when you hear people from different places that you've never met before and don't know, and they're saying the same things, you say, "You know, my parents are not so dumb after all. You know, they're pretty smart people."

I remember when I was 16...I didn't think my parents knew anything. I thought, "Man alive, how long have they been on this earth, and they know nothing. Nothing." (laughter) But, when I turned 21, it was amazing what they had learned in five years. They were the smartest people that ever walked the face of the earth. (laughter) My dad was 78 just recently in September, and a few years back I was talking to him. He and I haven't always dotted every "i" and crossed every "t", you know, just about some things. We have doctrinally, but other things. And I said to him, "Do you know the thing that upsets me so much about disagreeing with you?" And he said, "What?" And I said, "You always turn out to be right." That really, doesn't that get to you? That really gets to you. And I said, "I will never talk to my children like they talk to me." Guess what? I'd say something to my children when they were growing up, and I'd look around and say, "My dad is here. He's talking, he's saying these things. It can't be me," you know. Same thing in preaching.

Well, you're wanting to get to Christian Dating Ethics, right? Ok, I've got news for you. Dating is not in the Bible, so it's unscriptural. Whoa! Courting, I can't find courting in the Bible. So, it must be unscriptural right, if it's not in the Bible, it can't be right. Correct?

Now, I want you turn, we're going to read some Scripture, and I'm going to give you some pointers. And I know that dating's not in the Bible and courting's not in the Bible. But young people are going to be together no matter what you say. So, we're going to deal with your togetherness. We're going to deal with that today. But look at I. Timothy 4:11-12. This is a passage of Scripture that you know real well, but we to mark it, we need to underline it, we need to think about it, we need to consider these things. Paul is, of course, the writer and he's teaching a young man by the name of Timothy, but it's admonition for all of us, and especially the days we're talking about...youth.

I. Timothy 4:11-12 - "These things command and teach. Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity."

That's to you. Why would he say that to young people? Because that's what you need to be; you need to be an example. Do you know this? In our church there are a lot of people who have told me this. They came visiting our church. They sat on the back, and you know what they told me later? They said, "We watched your young people." They didn't say, "We watched the preacher, we watched the other people in the church, we wanted to see how friendly they were." I've had I don't know how many people tell me they came and sat in the back visiting our church, and they said, "We watched your young people."

We had a youth director from a large Baptist church in Cleveland, Ohio, and he had gone to church camp with our young people. And he had been there, and one Sunday morning, I didn't know he was coming, but his whole family showed up at our church. Now, they were on vacation, they were not just skipping church. But, they were on vacation, they had a rented a motel and done some activities, and they came and that night I had him preach. And when he got up to preach, here's what he said. "Our people and our staff were so impressed with your young people here that we wanted to come and visit a church that had the kind of young people that your church has." See, it is important that you be an example of the believers in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, and in purity.

Now, turn back just a little bit to I. Thessalonians 5:22. We're talking about Christian Dating Ethics.

I. Thessalonians 5:22 - "Abstain from all appearance of evil."

Now, I think that includes a multitude of things, but I think it would include what we're talking about today. Abstain from all appearance of evil. My parents always told me and they taught me this. "Never be in a home with a girl when her parents are not there." Now, I didn't understand that. You know, I really didn't understand that, and I thought, hey, what's the big deal? And, so I had a buddy that had a sister, and she and I were not interested in each other, she was a lot younger and so forth. But, one day I went over there to meet him, and she was there in the home alone. And she opened the door and said, "Come on in." And these words came to me. "Don't ever go in a house with a girl when the parents are not there." And I said, "Are your parents here?" And she said, "No." I said, "Well, I'll come back later," and I did. And you know what happened? Later, that girl was caught in sin with another person, a boy, you know what I'm saying? So, the same thing could have been told on me. So, we're to abstain from all appearance of evil. Then, turn over to I. Corinthians 10:31. These are not new Scriptures, but these are things that you need to think about and we all need to think about concerning this matter.

I. Corinthians 10:31 - Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.

So, whatever it is that you're doing, it ought to be for the honor and glory of God. Now, this would solve the problems that we have in our society today. As I said, dating is actually not in the Bible, courting is not in the Bible. Bro. Clint and Bro. Reynolds and different ones have talked about the marriages that we find in the Bible. And, actually, the marriages that were scriptural marriages were arranged for that person. Now you say, "I just can't even imagine my parents, who in the world would they pick out for me?" Well, you might be surprised, you might really be surprised. It would take a lot of pressure off of you. And you say, "Well, I'd have to see her first." (laughter) Right? "I mean after all, I am one handsome dude, and I can't just settle for anybody, you know what I'm saying?" (laughter) All you guys down deep, whether you're responding or not, you feel like that. (laughter) My wife said she read recently that when a lady that has been around for a little while looks in the mirror, she sees every line and every wrinkle, and you know just everything that's happened in her life over the years. But it said, no matter what age a man is, when he walks up to the mirror, he looks in the mirror and says, "I still got it." (laughter) He sees that big handsome dude that he always was. I like those kind of mirrors. (laughter)

We talked about the other night that marriage is honorable in all things. And I mentioned this the other night, that every potential person that you become interested in, and if you do date or you do court, every person that you have Christian fellowship with, maybe that is a potential mate for your life, especially when you get out of high school and so forth, and you think about all those things. I've written this down, here's the way it starts. It usually starts with seeing someone. Then, they become an acquaintance, you know, if it goes any further. And then after becoming an acquaintance, they become a friend, right? Kinda become friends, you know, you're at a gathering and you're playing different games together and those kind of things, you kinda become friends. And then it progresses to the point that you become a good friend, right? A good friend, you have a little more in common. And then after becoming a good friend, you become a close friend, right? Oh, we're just friends, hey, that's good, we're just friends. Then after becoming close friends, you become closer friends. And then, "Dum dum de dum, dum dum de dum", you become the closest of friends. I'll tell you what, let me say this. Now, we're talking about courting or dating, but my wife and I have had a lot of experiences, and I want to talk to you about this. But, before I say that, there is nothing more beautiful than a pure, holy young lady in a white dress that walks the aisle of a church to be married. I mean, everybody, listen, when you get married, everybody ought to be happy about that marriage...really happy, and they can be if you keep yourself pure, and you keep yourself holy. Well, my wife and I, as I started to mention, my wife and I have been youth directors in churches at Michigan, Cincinatti, Ohio, maybe some other places that we've worked with the young people. But our experiences and our Bible studies and the situations that we've dealt with and just some God has given us, and over the years we have a little wisdom, it's taught us some things that I'm going to give you this morning, that I think will help you in this area. I'm certainly endorsing dating or courting or whatever, but let's just face the facts. No matter what we say, or no matter what the Bible says sometimes, there are going to be young people who are going to find each other and you're going to want to be together. So, I'm going to give you some things that I think will encourage you and help you, and yet will give you some together that can be Christian, you can abstain the appearance of evil, and you can be an example to other believers. That's what I want to give you today.

1. Young people need to wait before they get interested in one person.

Now, why? Because when you become interested in one person, that one person will take up all of your time, they will take up all of your thoughts, they will take up all of your activities and so forth. Now, society today has started children at a younger age being interested in the opposite sex. And let me say this. You ought to be interested in the opposite sex, right? It was Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve, right? But biblically, if you have a relationship with someone in marriage, it ought to be someone of the opposite sex, right? And you know that, and I don't have to go into all that. Our society has just all perverted that. But, when you become interested in one person, and I hear little girls in a Christian school talking about their boyfriends. I've heard little girls say, "Well, we're going steady." Well, what does that mean? I've heard them say, "We're going together." I don't ever see them anywhere together, I don't see ever see them go any places together. What are they doing, they're going together, what does that mean? I don't know. But, our society says that you ought to get interested in somebody at a very early age, but there is no rush. Take your time. You know, I think like Bro. Reynolds said, back when we were young , boys were interested in sports and activities and things like that. And you know girls, they were fine and they were pretty and everything else, but if it came between a girl and playing football, you know where we'd be on Friday night, right? But, it's happened that people get interested in one person too early. It's happened to a lot of us.

2. Group activities are the best at any age.

No matter what age you are, group activities are the best. I'll explain that a little further as we go along. You can still have a good time. You can still enjoy yourself. We've had group activities this week. I've had a good time, haven't you? I think ya'll have had a good time. I've seen you laugh, play games and just enjoy yourself and all that. You can have fun as a group. And let me say, that is much safer than being alone for a long period of time. Now as I said before, you should never be in the house with a boy or girl like that without your parents being there...you should be out there where everybody can tell what you're doing and see what you're doing.

3. The best activities are family and church activities.

The best activities for you to be involved in are family and church activities. Now, your church here, they evidently have a lot of you that are younger, and they have a lot of things for you. And, I think churches ought to. You know, I remember my dad saying this many times. I remember we always tell our children, "No no, you can't do this, you can't do that." But, they ought to have something for you, because you have time on your hands, and you're going to be doing something. And, the best and the safest and the best for your future is that you're involved in your family activities and in your church activities as a group. You can still like somebody. You can still look at them, and they can still look at you and so forth, whatever, but is best in family and church activities.

4. Boys and girls should not be putting their arms around each other or kissing.

Do you know what that leads to? It leads to other things. When you become too familiar, then that leads to other things. What do you do after that? That's what our society has geared us to, but those things will not lead to anything other than problems before marriage. I see kids in the mall all the time, and I'm telling you what, you can't tell if there's one person or two persons. That shouldn't be true of Christians, right? I get so disgusted when I see a boy and a girl walking along, and she's got her hand in his back pocket. Christians shouldn't do that. I mean, that just gives the wrong appearance. You want people to be saved, you want people to come to church, you want people to respect you, and yet you get out and act like that. My thought pattern is always this. If they're doing that in public, what are they doing in private?

5. No matter what age group you're in, temptation is powerful.

I don't care if you're 12 years old, 15 years old, 18 years old, 21 years old and not married, 25 years old and not married, temptation is very powerful. Now, who causes us to be tempted to sin? Not God...it's of the devil. John 8:44 says he's the father of all lies, he's a liar himself, and he's the father of all lies. So, he says there's nothing wrong with it, everybody else is doing it, so we should do it, and nothing will ever happen. Don't kid yourself. You're a human being. I don't care what age group you're in, I don't care how long you've been a Christian, I don't care how much strong you feel like you're in the faith, I don't care if you're a preacher or wanting to marry a preacher, or whatever the case may be, temptation in your life is powerful. It is powerful. And you know what, here's the clincher. You are weak, W-E-A-K, you are weak. How do I know? I was weak. Temptation's powerful, I was weak. We're still weak. If we get to thinking that we can overcome this because we're a preacher, a pastor, or super Christian, you know yourself that many times pastors succomb to temptation.

Now, here's what you want to think about. When you are married, I want you to think about this. Is there anybody that's worth giving up everything that you've ever wanted in life, is it worth giving that up for her? I'll tell our church this. I've never met anybody that was worth giving up my wife, my children, my grandchildren, my church and my ministry. You know, if you're just thinking, people who do that aren't thinking. But young people, you can in a moment, in a temptation, in a crisis, in a pressure situation, and you get pressure from without and from within and so forth, and you can give in to temptation, and forever your life will be different and be changed.

I knew a young lady that was an outstanding Christian girl. She was a girl that was outstanding in the Christian school, she was outstanding in the church, she was the one that you could depend on for everything. But, she got interested in a church boy that was not what he ought to be. Now someone asked that, and I think he's going to address that. How do you know if people are really what they say they are? Well, you've got to give it a lot of time. You know, there's a fella that asked me about a girl in our church, and he said his son was interested in this girl. The dad wanted to know about the girl. What kind of girl is she? Is she faithful in church, does she love the Lord, does she serve the Lord, is she interested in the things of God, and all these kind of things? And not only did he ask these questions to me, but he asked them to her dad. And the boy asked her dad and asked me about her. That's a good place to start. If someone were to ask you out, and your parents were to allow you to go out, you know what ought to happen? That young man ought to ask your dad if he can go somewhere with you. Do you agree with that? I think that's the way it ought to be. I think he ought to ask your dad, get your dad's approval, and that will cut out a lot of foolishness, won't it? But anyway, this young lady was what I would call a great Christian young lady. She got interested in a young man in our church that was not what he ought to be, and you know what happened? They spent a lot of time together. And she made this statement. I want him for my husband, and I'll do whatever it takes. And she did what it took, and she was pregnant, and she had an abortion, and it ruined their lives. We didn't know about it. They thought, "Well, we'll have an abortion, and nobody will ever know because society accepts that." And you know what, everybody found out about it. God will see to it.

You know that's how your parents find out. You say, "Well, how in the world do they know?" When I was home, and my brother and I lived upstairs in the parsonage, and I'd come home and my curfew was 11:00, if it was 11:05, I'd just barely open the door, and I'd take my shoes off, and I'd just sneak up the stairs, and I'd get in bed, boy, nobody heard me. The next morning Dad said, "I heard you come in after 11:00 last night." Mother would get up, "I heard you come in after 11:00 last night." But, I could come in at 10:30, that was rare, but I'd come in 10:30 or 10:45, I'd go in the front door, I'd make all kinds of noise. I'd go the refrigerator, open it and I'm eating everything, turn the TV on real loud and it's right next to their room. I'd get up the next morning, and you know what they'd say? "I never heard you come in last night." (laughter) I never understood that.

And so this girl changed her whole life. Now, she's serving the Lord today, I thank God for that. She has several children. But, she changed her whole life. Her husband who was an oustanding young man that could have been really something for God, I mean, when he was a teenager, he could give a devotional, he could teach a lesson, he could sing, he could direct singing, the Lord could have really used him. But, he got into sin, he's never recovered from it. He's been on drugs, he looks twice his age today. And he's probably about 40, but he just looks terrible. And that's what sin can do to you. Your parents, your church, your family, your pastor, they don't want that for you. That's why we have these things that we're talking to you about, and like I said, your parents have already talked to you about these things.

6. Those that you should be interested in.

     A. They should be saved.

You shouldn't even think about having a relationship with them unless they're saved. Now, as he said, there are exceptions to this rule, but I can give you case after case after case where it didn't work out, and they're living with a lost person and they have all kinds of problems.

     B. They should be of the same faith.

Oh, well, you know, I know all the kids at church, we're just like brother and sister, it'll never work out. We serve a great God. And if you're faithful, if there's not somebody in your church for you, He'll send somebody. They should be saved, and they should be of the same faith. You should never pursue a relationship with somebody who's not saved. If you don't get interested in them, you won't fall in love with them, and you won't marry them. The same faith, the same thing we're talking about. And not just a Baptist, but someone who believes doctrinally like you do, or at least is willing and open to the Scriptures. My youngest son was taking this girl out, and he's 25 years old, and had finished college and all that kind of stuff, and they went out to eat or something like that. He was talking to her about what our church believed doctrinally. Now, she was a member of our church, but people have to be taught. She was a member of our church, and she didn't understand a lot of things about the doctrines of grace. So, my son says to her, "Let's go by the bookstore and get a Bible." So, here they go to the bookstore, they get a Bible, he just tells her to check this scripture out. He didn't preach to her. He just gave her a scripture to read that and think about. Then, he'd give her another one to read and think about. Do you know what she said? She said, "I've never been out with a young man that took me by a bookstore and showed me scripture in the Bible. Huh, what's wrong with that? I've heard young people say that when they went out together, they put the Bible between them. And they had prayer before they left and when they came home. Hey, that's a good idea, isn't it? What's wrong with that? Are you ashamed of your Christianity? Well, nobody does that. Well, why not? Why don't you start it? That would be good wouldn't it, to be starting it. Same faith.

     C. They should be of the same church.

There are churches here of like faith and order, but eventually, you'd have to be in the same church. You know what I'm saying, if the relationship continued and you get married.

     D. They should have the same standards.

The same dress standards. The same standards of places you will go and won't go all those kind of things. You don't say, "Well, we'll take care of that later." Those are things that will cause some problems in your marriage. If you don't believe the same, if you don't have the same standards, if you don't have the same goals. You ought to like the same things, and I'm talking about spiritually. These other things you can work out, and you just can't be opposed to everything. But I'm saying your goals spiritually. What are your goals spiritually? I hear young ladies say, "I'd like to marry a preacher. I'd like to marry a missionary. I'd like to marry somebody who's really involved in the church." And that's what it ought to be. That will bring you a happy marriage. God will bless you when you do right.

     E. They should have the same interests.

You should have a lot of things in common, and as you get married, you'll find out that some things you thought were important were not really important. But the things that are important should and will become very important in your marriage about your service to the Lord. I believe that the person you become interested in and involved with, or have a relationship of any kind with, ought to be a person of character. I believe they ought to be consecrated and dedicated to the Lord. I believe they ought to be a caring person. And, I believe they ought to be a consistent person. What do I mean by that? They ought to be consistent in their service to the Lord. They ought not to just all the time be up and down and moody and inconsistent in their life.

Let me read this to you, and I want to close with this. I want all of you young people to think about this today. Do not undermine your worth by comparing yourself with others. It is because we are different that each of us is special. Do not set your goals by what other people deem important. Only you know and God what is best for you. Do not take for granted the things closest to your heart. Cling to them as you would your life. For without them, life is meaningless. If you have to give up your teaching in your church and your relationship with the Lord for somebody, then your life will become meaningless. Do not let your life slip through your fingers by living in the past, nor for the future. By living your life one day at a time, you live all the days of your life. Do not give up when you still have something to give. Nothing is really over until the moment you stop trying. It's a fragile that thread that binds us to each other. Do not be afraid to encounter risks. It is by taking opportunities that we learn how to be brave. Do not shut love out of your life by saying it is impossible to find. The quickest way to receive love is to give love. The fastest way to lose love is to hold it too tightly. Do not dismiss your dreams. To be without dreams is to be without hope. To be without hope is to be without purpose. Do not run through life so fast that you forget not only where you've been, but also where you're going. Life is not a race, but it is a journey to be savored each step of the way.

(Side one of the tape ended...picked up where side two began)

None of us are exactly alike. God didn't intend for all of us to look exactly alike, to be exactly alike...we're all different. And God made us that way. And in the Psalm, it says that we are wonderfully made and beautifully made...God has made us. And so to somebody, you're important. And to some people, you have worth. And listen...Don't get down on yourself, and don't pity yourself. Don't get discouraged and think, "Well, everybody else has somebody but me." Our youngest son, there were times when he had friends that were young men that he had good friendships with, and then they would get interested in a girl. Well, you know what happens? The third person's left out. And so, he and some other guys would run around. And then he'd meet a girl and get married and things like that. And so, you kinda get under pressure. Here I am a certain age, and I'm not married, and what's wrong with me, and what have I done, and all my friends are getting married, and what's going to happen? You wait. You wait on the person God has for you. Do all of you believe that God has somebody for you? He does. But don't get ahead of God...wait on God. I tell our young ladies, "Don't just take the first guy that comes along. You wait and make sure that's who God wants you to have." And when you have the one God wants you to have, it will all work out. Will there never be a fuss? Should I ask these married people? (laughter) Will life just be a life of roses, and everybody just be happy ever after? There will be problems. But, if you will go by the things we have talked about this week, there will be less problems. There's enough problems in life and in marriage without having these things to be problems. These things that we talked about are things that we're interested in giving to you.