Jesus Is Not My Boyfriend

I talked recently about a sense of belonging, about the loss of identity that comes with losing one you love so much. Many people wrote to me to say, “Oh, but yes, Tricia. You do belong. You belong to God. You are his.”

Right. I know this. And I don’t mean to minimize it.

But it’s all too familiar to the words I hear on Valentine’s Day: “Don’t be sad, Tricia. Jesus is your boyfriend.” The thing is, though, he isn’t. He just… isn’t.

Jesus is many things to me. But he is not my boyfriend. And the suggestion that he could be is weird.

The relationships in your life are the hands and feet of Jesus. It’s one we way we can measure him because he created us to belong to each other. So when our relationships are damaged or absent, it can shake our understanding of God and his consistency in our lives.

It’s a slippery slope and a dangerous conclusion, but I’ve been there. Loneliness can prompt the greatest questions of all.

Jesus is many, many things to me, and most honestly he is many things that a boyfriend neither could nor should ever be.  But he is not my boyfriend.  Please, on behalf of all single women, let’s stop saying this.

I’m thinking of designing comfy vintage t-shirts and starting a campaign.  Hashtags notwithstanding.  #JesusIsNotMyBoyfriend.