You have gotten a lot of good advice on here and I am not sure I can add to it, but will try. I have been thinking about this for a few days, wondering how best to answer your question.Obviously, you have a boyfriend and think a lot of him and perhaps hope to marry some day? And I suppose like all starry eyed females, hope to be married till death do you part. Now what can you do to assure you this is what can/will happen? It may help to understand the female response to touch. We females love to be touched by people we love. We love to cuddle kittens, puppies, babies, our dolls, etc. The desire to cuddle is part of what we are, how we are made. God made us so and called it good. When we become moms we love to cuddle our babies, kiss their hurts away when injured. When we see anyone/anything injured our hearts go out to that creature. We are emotional: God made us so and called it good. When it comes to the female/male relationship, the issue becomes a tad bit more complex. When you were young you loved to have your dad carry you, you loved to have him hold your hand when you walked together because when you have your hands in his you felt protected and loved and secure. When you get older, and become a woman, you still feel that sense of protection and love when you hold your beloveds' (a male) hands. And not only that you also experience a thrill rip through your body when you do so for the first time. This is totally different what you felt when your father carried you or held your hands. So now you hold hands a lot because of the thrill it gives you, but soon the thrill is no longer as intense as it was at first and so you will now want to progress to the next thrill. From there on it becomes a part of the love-making process that ends in the sexual act. These thrills are necessary to ensure the repopulation of the planet and God called it good EXCEPT He designed it to only occur with in the context of a marriage relationship.Now let us focus on your relationship with your boyfriend. I am sure you want to make an excellent choice here, one in tune wih God's will. In the meantime, you are learning to know him through your social interactions. There is one thing you do NOT want to happen and that is to become so emotionally involved with him you can not think with your brains....God did give female brains, too, you know. :-D So you will need to use 'em!!! When you become so physical with your guy, you are allowing the physical to blind your capacity to objectively evaluate him. You will need to determine how he thinks, that process, and the conclusions he arrives at. Now do you approve of that process? Could you live with it for the rest of your life? You cannot allow yourself to think that you will marry and that if it doesn not work out, you can divorce and get another. Won't work. Another thing about the differences between males and females. Males are turned on by sight which means that when a female dresses provocatively, it can really turn a guy on. Now the same thing happens when a female is touched by a beloved male. The sparks fly...you want more and more and this can take you where only married people are to go. And let me promise you, that if you are healthy, these feelings will not leave you, even after you get a little old, like me. If you preserve what God has called good for only the context within He designed it to be exercised, you will be in for a wonderful treat. If you keep you feelings in check, guard your body and impulses, when you get to the wedding night you will have some glorious experiences for which you will thank God for and know it was all worth it! And you will be so in awe at how wonderful God has made the human body and how it responds to the opposite sex! I promise! Been there!:-) So why would you ever want to take the risk and mess it up??!!!In conclusion, while holding hands will not get you into trouble immediately, it can lead you where you do not want to go. It will also interfer with your ability to think rationally about the fellow who is courting you. Hope this helps....ginnyrose BTW, if your guy dumps you because you refused to get physical with him, consider that a blessing! And good riddance for bad rubbish!
