Chapel panel talks relationships

By Caleb Summers | February 13, 2020

What is the key part of a relationship? What makes it work?

Questions like these filled in from the audience via text message at this week’s CSU Chapel. The relationship panel, moderated by Campus Minister Jon Davis, focused on relationships from a biblical, Christ-centered perspective.

A popular panel discussion was how long a dating relationship should last before marriage. Dr. Dondi Costin, Nick Salley, Dr. Nina Grant, Paige Moore, Dr. William Librizzi and Katie Miller collectively provided answers.

“The model for a husband to love his wife is how Christ loves the church,” said Dr. Costin, referencing Ephesians 5:25. “[A person should date] only as long as it takes you to figure out that the person you’re about to get hitched with for the next 50 years is not going to mess up your life.” The crowd exploded with applause and shouts of agreement.

Grant warned about stringing one another along in relationships. She said that the situation should be brought to God in prayer and that, “if God doesn’t reveal potential in the prospective spouse, the questioning person should move on.”

Librizzi, director of the Master of Science and Clinical Counseling program, spoke about the importance of being intentionally focused on Christ when evaluating the situation. “Six months of Christ-centered dating can really give you a sense of what’s going on,” said Librizzi. “Not all dating is the same dating.”

A common theme in the panel discussion was that people should be intentionally seeking God’s will for their lives – whether that means that they should be looking for someone to date, marry, or none of the above.