His name was Nathan. He was just around my age, he lived in Missouri, and I was pretty confidant that we were going to run away together and be each other’s soul mates. That was, until he mailed me his picture.
At 12, one can hardly argue that finding love on the Internet is not a real good idea. But is it a good idea at age 19? How about 27? 60?
I know that there are so many success stories for people who found their spouse by clicking, scrolling, and instant messaging, but I wonder how many more times internet romance left people discouraged, broken hearted, and worst of all, confused as to what “love” and romance are supposed to look like.
As I check my email I am bombarded with advertisements for different Internet dating sites. Some take the scientific approach and guarantee you someone who will fit your personality, while others just push sex in order to get you interested. Some of the ads are appalling, further deceiving people into believing that sex equals love.
There is also something to be said about the negative affects that looking through files of photos for a soul mate can do to your perception of people. As you flip through profiles for “future mates” judging them on looks and what they say are their best qualities, you’d have to be careful that you didn’t equate finding a mate to shopping for a good shampoo.
Another problem that I find with online mate-searching is what it says about how much (or little) time needs to be invested in order to find your soul mate. In this to-busy-to-eat-dinner-with-the-family culture, a place where you can embark on a romantic quest without even leaving your home seems to be perfect solution to our lack of free time. But is it really a solution?
I don’t need to answer that. My opinion is that nothing can replace a first look, an awkward silence, and a good long stare. Trust God to bring someone into your life (if it’s his will) and he will lead you to experience all that he has for a relationship between two people…not profiles.