November 25, 2008 | 5:27 pm

Christian dating via text messaging

Posted by Brad A. Greenberg

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When I was graduating high school and entering college, there was a book by Joshua Harris that was gaining traction among evangelical Christians. It was called “I Kissed Dating Goodbye,” and what it meant for a few of my friends was kissing their girlfriend goodbye.

To be fair to Harris, the book’s focus was on growing closer to God by giving up dating—a cause the Apostle Paul, and this lowlier apostle, would support. But the book convinced a good many Christian women I knew—for some reason, never men—that they really shouldn’t date. Period. Instead, they should meet someone and if that someone seemed special, they should court; if the courtship survived, then they should get married. Placing purity at a premium, the model overemphasized precaution as a means of avoiding temptation.

I’ve been out of the dating game for quite a few years now, so I’m not privy to today’s M.O. Several of my friends have met their match online, which would have been unthinkable when I was single. And it appears a few companies, according to an email I received from dating-service BluePont, are hooking Christians up via text messaging:

Most Christians truly believe that God orchestrates our love stories. That might sound romantic but it’s true. At the same time, for many Christians, meeting that special someone in the “typical” places like church groups and events hasn’t worked—whether because they’ve been there, done that, or they simply don’t have the time. And most Christians are not going to be looking for their soulmate in secular places like bars and clubs!

So, what’s a single Christian to do?

Technology of course, has offered additional tools—from Christian dating sites, to Christian singles’ groups and dating services and the latest trends in mobile messaging, it is easier than ever for you to find who you’ve been looking for. Because the reality is that God works in ways we cannot see, and uses means we may not have thought of before. He even works through proximity detecting text messaging.

That’s right, text messaging.

Bars and clubs—yuck! Only sinners spend time there. (Gulp.)

This service isn’t quite as lame as it sounds. And the “dating” doesn’t actually occur via text. BluePont just sends a message to your phone when your GPS signal indicates that you are in the neighborhood of someone who matches your profile. BluePont’s website proclaims:

This is magic When someone right is close
Your phones alert you both.
Private-message and meet right away.
Meet naturally by chance plus defy a little distance.
Give Chance a hand.

God works in mysterious ways, but this isn’t actually God at work. It’s technology—not magic—and I’m pretty sure he’s not manning the satellite.