Single at Valentine's
As a single individual I have often been asked, "What is your type?" I don't like this question. It tends to throw individuals into a single category without admiring the many other wonderful qualities which they certainly possess. Now, at Valentine’s Day it may be worth evaluating this idea of “preferring a type”.
If I prefer a certain “type”, this can box others into a certain stereotype which leaves no room for uniqueness in personality, leaves no time to know the contents of their character, and may leave me with wrong assumptions. Consider these stereotypes: poor black male = brainless thug; rich black male = famous rapper; rich white male = racist; poor latino woman = uneducated; Christian = judgmental; Muslim = terrorist; Refugee = terrorist; Middle Eastern = terrorist; Democrat = crazy liberal; Republican = heartless conservative.
If we label individuals based on the one fact that we know about them, it inhibits us from reaching out to get to know the people around us.
If we label individuals in every aspect of life based on the one fact that we know about them, it inhibits us from reaching out to get to know the people around us. We automatically assume we already know everything there is to know about that person. Types and labels build psychological walls that make us incapable to get to know someone, incapable to break past their walls and to get to know their heart.
With that being said, I don't have a “type” because no one person is the same. I will not limit myself to a perfect stereotype of what a "man" should be, because I would never want someone to place me in a box based on one thing that may or may not be true about me. I myself have broken stereotypes. (i.e. I am Mexican-American, but not fluent in Spanish. I grew up poor, but was not confined by the statistic of the ghettos. I am studious, but have mild ADD. I am athletic, but do well in school. I love rap; and I love classical.)
God does not confine people, he frees them.
No person should be confined to a stereotype based off the color of their skin, their religion, their economic status, their political views, their past, their present, or their future. God does not confine people, he frees them. That is why I refuse to have a "type." But, I do pray for a man who loves God more than he loves me. I pray for a man who has the same compassion for people that Jesus had. I pray for a man who is willing to give his life for the cause of Christ.
What is that cause you may ask? That cause is to witness to others what Christ has done for each and everyone of us. To live to die for others. To live out the Kingdom of Heaven as Christ prayed for us to do. I pray for a man who is as crazy about Jesus as I am. I love Jesus - that man died for me, that man loves me, that man gave everything--for me. My one condition for dating someone is this: he must be constantly searching for Christ. If not, it’s a no-go for me. It's all about Jesus.
At time of this writingYesenia Sosa was a student at Southern Adventist University