(South Africa) — What is a wedding proposal? It is when a man desires a woman to be his bride, his wife, and his life partner. As set out in the word of God written in Genesis 2:24, The Lord created man and woman in His image to be one, Adam and Eve.

The intention of the man should be to love her, to cherish her, to be his other half, his equal. He takes time to do this right, for marriage is a very sacred bond for God, as is written in Proverbs 18:22, and thus can’t be taken lightly.

Once the bridegroom-to-be comes to the point of asking his bride-to-be, he is committed to wanting to spend a life together, and he undertakes to love her for what she is and to take care of her every need.

When asked, she now has the choice to either accept or decline his proposal. She might feel that she is not yet ready for such a commitment, she wants to explore other oceans, or she wants to be her own person by answering only to herself, taking care of her own needs, not sharing herself or answering to anyone else.

She must understand that even if the man loves her with all his heart, he might not wait forever, and she might not get the opportunity again.

Should she say yes, she then commits herself by wearing a ring to show that she is no longer eligible. She now belongs to one man only.

Now a date is set for this big occasion. The man now has to go and prepare a place for his bride-to-be. She also prepares herself to look her best on that special occasion.

Have you ever witnessed a woman during this period, which can be months or even years? All they can talk about is their wedding; it is as if nothing else matters.

Eventually, the big day arrives, the waiting is over, and the man is eager to see his bride. She arrives in pure white linen, and his breath is taken away by her beauty. They are united in marriage, and the feast begins, which generally lasts for more or less seven hours.

Now, there is another proposal has been made, but this one is a bit different than the one just mentioned.

God the Father, like most earthly fathers, wants His son also to have a bride. So Jesus Christ has proposed to His bride-to-be, also known as the church.

Not like with an earthly proposal where parents want to know who the bride is, where she comes from, what school she attended, what her father does, how much money he has, etc. All God wants is that she believe that Jesus is the son of the living God. He loves her so much that He gave His only begotten son for her to be united with Him in marriage.

We now have the choice to either accept or decline. Do we first want to explore other beliefs? Do we want to be our own and take care of ourselves by being our own god?

Should we accept, we then should commit fully by figuratively putting on our engagement ring to show the world that we are taken. We now must commit ourselves to our bridegroom-to-be by preparing ourselves to be perfect for the wedding ceremony.

Looking at the world today, we notice so many people that call themselves Christians or believers that aren’t fully committed. Those that have doubt emerging, even if they once were dedicated and eager, now ask, is He going to come as is written in John 14:3?

Instead of diving into the word of God to learn more about our bridegroom-to-be, we are so caught up with me, this world, spending time working to enrich our earthly living and impressing others. This now is called the great falling away, as is written in 1 Timothy 4:1.

Looking at world events, it is visible that the time is at hand, even if, as in Matthew 24:36, no one knows the day nor the hour. Will we be ready to meet our bridegroom, Lord, and Saviour in the clouds?

Have you made your choice? If not, do it now. You don’t know if there will be a tomorrow. The time is up; make your choice today!