Wednesday, 23 November 2011
-
How Do I Bring my Boyfriend to Christ?
By AlyMy boyfriend and I have been together for over 11 months now. Please don't degrade my relationship because of the fact we are in high school, because that's not what my post is about. Thanks in advance for everything.
My boyfriend wasn't raised one way or another. His mother believes in God, but that's it. She never enforced it or took him to church. So he's basically just not educated about it. He says he doesn't really have a religion. I see him more as Agnostic, because he once said he 'doesn't care either way'. He's agreed to go to church with me a few times, and this past weekend we talked about saying a prayer together. Not that he just believes in God now, but he wants to give it a chance and try to see the world through my eyes, and I think that's beautiful. I'm going to get with him sometime this week and do exactly that.Religion has always been a a big deal for me, and God is the number one man in my life. I just want to share him with the other man in my life, you know? And if he's open minded about trying it, I'm not pushing it on him. Any tips or ideas?
Have you ever been in a similar situation? How do you approach the subject of faith with your significant other? What was the outcome?
RecommendRelated Posts
Post a Comment
- Back to revelife's Revelife Site!
- Note: your comment will appear in revelife's local time zone: GMT -05:00 (Eastern Standard - US, Canada)
Comments (114)
Share your world with him and let him take it on or not, depending on how he feels about what he sees. Be honest without being pushy. I'm not religious in the slightest but I've been reading a bit about it in relationships lately and if my boyfriend were religious I would let him share it with me. I doubt I would change my mind, so if it were something necessary to him we probably wouldn't be meant to be in a relationship together... but at the very least it's worth a shot since it's probably an important part of your life.
I'm curious how this didn't come up sooner. I always feel like people who find religion really important might bring up the subject at the start of the relationship, not after so long. Not a judgement just an observation.
You may not like some of this comment but I ask that you give it a solid reading. I won't degrade your relationship because you're in high school. You're old enough to be treated as an adult in this regard. So let's talk scripture, relationships, and evangelism.
First thing's fist: Your worship matters. Your obedience to Christ and relationship with him is important (as you said, he's number one in your life). It sounds like you're in a relationship with someone who is not equally yolked with you (you're not headed in the same direction with your lives since you're not headed in the same direction with your worship). I'd encourage you to evaluate your relationship with this guy and ask yourself if he brings you closer to Christ, helps you seek your purpose in Christ, and all that. Do you serve God in this world better with him than without? If he doesn't measure up to that then the relationship isn't worth staying in. With that said, what is also very important is your boyfriend's seeking of truth and how you can be a help for him.
Personally, I think bringing someone into the midst of the church (the social body) is a big help! Seeing love exist in a unique way among people is always good. After all, people know we belong to Christ by the way we love one another. Having discussions about faith, struggles, and worldview are good as well. Reading scripture is good (you could even write him notes of encouragement that include scriptures in them). Most of all, as you live as a witness to Christ by imitating him, pray for your boyfriend. Pray for him to draw close to Jesus. Peace be with you and may God give you the wisdom you need to be love and worship well.
I've had a girlfriend before who was Catholic. She wanted me to experience God with her, though I am Buddhist. And while she wasn't being pushy, I politely declined. I did, however, feel a little bad that I didn't at least give it a try. So, in the following relationship with the next girlfriend, I went to church with her. It was an okay experience, but probably something that I just don't see myself getting into.
What you'll have to do is just bring it up to your boyfriend and ask if maybe he would like to come with you to church one day? Don't be pushy or force him to, because otherwise, that would end in automatic failure. Instead, offer him that opportunity and if he is interested, you can start sharing with him some of your experiences. Otherwise, just let it be and continue enjoying the relationship with other things to experience together.
I have the same problem. He believes in God but he doesn't really care too much.
You are in disobedience by dating a nonbeliever. Christians are commanded to not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. In particular, that means no dating or marrying them. I see nothing wrong with a high school relationship, but being that he isn't Christian, there is no reason to be in the relationship and it can be harmful to both of you.
But, as far as sharing the faith goes, he needs to hear the Law and the Gospel. Like all of us, he has sinned and falls short of God's glory and is under God's wrath and if that isn't changed he will be condemned to hell. From there, you can share the Gospel with him. That is, tell him how much God loves us, so much so that He gave Jesus to die in our place that we could be forgiven and be reconciled to Him through Jesus if we repent of sin and place our trust in Him. @xoxocaylyn@xanga -
ugh, i feel sorry for your boyfriend. who'd want to date someone who believes you're going to Hell?
To imbue ClosetCalvinist's comment with some potency, here's the Bible verses he's considering, which I myself was going to bring up.
2 Corinthians 6:14-18
Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.”
“Therefore come out from them
and be separate,
says the Lord.
Touch no unclean thing,
and I will receive you.”
“I will be a Father to you,
and you will be my sons and daughters,
says the Lord Almighty.”
Likewise, Paul addresses marriage and relationship matters in 1 Corinthians 7. The whole chapter is good, but I'll only give you verses :32-35, 39
I would like you to be free from concern. An unmarried man is concerned about the Lord’s affairs—how he can please the Lord. But a married man is concerned about the affairs of this world—how he can please his wife— and his interests are divided. An unmarried woman or virgin is concerned about the Lord’s affairs: Her aim is to be devoted to the Lord in both body and spirit. But a married woman is concerned about the affairs of this world—how she can please her husband. I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but that you may live in a right way in undivided devotion to the Lord.
A woman is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to marry anyone she wishes, but he must belong to the Lord.
We're not called to missionary dating -- that's a game we like to play which in reality is our doubting that He will provide for us. Let me ask you a point blank question -- what if he NEVER comes to know the Lord? What then? Are you going to spend the rest of your life in a one-sided relationship? Are you going to spend the rest of your life in sorrow, because you sinned and did not listen to God's Word? I have known women at my church who's hearts are so filled with grief, sorrow and pain --- because they chose to disobey scripture and marry a non-believer... and find that life with them isn't what the whole dating scene made it seem it would be. While they would love to have someone to worship with --- instead they find someone who worships idols of Self, Lust, Football or Pride. In the worst case scenario, one woman found that she'd married a wife-beater. Her pain and sorrow were as real as it comes.
I waited 10 years for my wife to come along. Along the way I got side-tracked once by the same issue --- it nearly derailed my faith. In the end I came to understand that God does indeed know best, and that if I had simply waited (as I did wind up doing --- another 4 years) His timing would find the perfect person for me and lead to a much more fulfilling relationship.
That 10 year wait led me to a Taiwanese Pastor's Daughter --- and moved me to become a missionary to Taiwan, something I had never previously considered in my life. God's plans really do have purpose --- even when those plans call for us to "WAIT" upon the Lord.
God's timing really is best.
My now husband grew up Methodist. I grew up Lutheran. However, his father was a minister, so he some very negative and really altogether appalling experiences all in the name of the church....so he hasn't really attended church in years.
My advice...don't push it. Encourage and love him for who he is--someone whom God has placed in your path. :)
Also, I'd like to point out to the "BE YE NOT UNEQUALLY YOKED" crowd that the pharisee's had some of the same thoughts about Jesus when he was dining with tax collectors and making conversation with whores.
@Xbeautifully_broken_downX@xanga - while I definitely agree that endlessly crying "UNEQUALLY YOKED" isn't very convincing, and likelier to alienate both people involved in such relationships (..thus, not-so Christ-like), I do think there's a difference between how Jesus related to the tax collectors and whores, and how a person relates to their partner in a romantic relationship.
To Aly-- it's wonderful that your boyfriend isn't hostile to Christianity, and willing to learn more about it. I can really identify with what you mentioned, about how beautiful it is that he wants to try and see the world as a Christian does.
There's more than one, but one thing in particular I really want to remind you of: be careful that his interest in Jesus doesn't only depend on you(/your relationship as boyfriend and girlfriend). I have a very close friend who had been dating a guy for 4-5 years, from freshman year of high school through the first year and a half of college. At the start, he hadn't been Christian, but because she was, under her influence, he eventually decided to be one, too, and was even baptized. When they broke up (on my friend's initiative, under amicable terms, and after very long and serious consideration), he very soon after quit attending any church-related activities at all (we were all part of the same fellowship), and didn't seek out another church. I'm not saying that this is absolute proof that he was never serious about Jesus, or that only people who go to church qualify as Christians; it just so happens that one, significant former indicator of his professed faith disappeared after he was no longer directly connected to my friend, the person who'd been the most invested in his belief. Another very close friend also recently saw her (now ex-)boyfriend very quickly lose interest in learning more about Christianity once they were no longer together. I personally went through something similar earlier this year.
Admittedly, in all the cases I mentioned, we broke it off with guys because they were not as committed to Jesus as we were (whether the guy said he was Christian, or in the latter two cases, said he was interested in learning more). (I know I say this casually, that each of us "broke it off"; but
that really doesn't convey just how much heartache, struggle, and
sadness there was as we went through with it.) It's fair to argue that in such a case, the guys then must have become disillusioned with Christianity because, hey, if they're going to get dumped because they don't measure up, then Christians can't be so loving after all. But at least in the first situation, where my friend's ex was Christian, if he were serious about loving God before all others and about trusting God, why was there such a 180 in his apparent attitude towards God after the break-up? And for people genuinely interested in Christianity, if there's something compelling about it, why does one particular Christian's (the girlfriend or boyfriend) actions carry more influence than all other Christians?
As a note of practical advice, I'd echo what @TheGreatBout@xanga said, about bringing your boyfriend into the midst of the church (its social body)--in other words, the community (after all, the church is not a building, or a steeple, but the people!). If you have any solid Christian guy friends, introduce them. If he's going to seriously learn about God, Jesus, sin, and salvation, it'll help him to have those friendships, and to know trustworthy people he can ask questions of and get answers from. The most important thing, after all, is that he comes to know Jesus as Lord and Savior; the more people he knows well who affirm this (in their lives as well as their words), the better.
Ack, this really ended up much longer than I intended...
In any case, whatever happens, I wish you strength, faithfulness, and joy in your walk with Christ.
@Xbeautifully_broken_downX@xanga - Jesus wasn't marrying those tax collectors and whores. He was loving them, being their friend and their redeemer but not their earthly spouse. There's a big difference between he Pharisees not liking Jesus spending time with "unclean" or "unloyal" people and Christians telling siblings that they shouldn't be unequally yolked in romantic relationships according to scripture. I don't know about the other two folks who brought up the teaching but I'm not saying Christians can't interact with those they aren't yolked with, they definitely should interact with them, but Christians shouldn't create binds such as marriage with those folks according to the Apostle Paul. Since dating/going steady type relationships are leading toward marriage it doesn't make much sense to engage in such relationships with someone who doesn't worship God and follow Jesus Christ. Love them, help them to draw near to God, don't marry them. Paul and his words, which became scripture (and are thus breathed by God), are authoritative over us. We'd do well to listen and obey (James 1:22-27). I'm not trying to be legalistic, just biblical while saying that not everything that is permissible is beneficial and we should seek what is wise and beneficial. What do we do with this command in situations like this? Do you think it applies? Why or why not? How?
@wishangel144@xanga - You make some wonderful points. Jesus must be the foundation of our faith. His love must draw us to him. We can not come to the father through our significant others but through Christ and if we come to Christ simply to please others then we're not sincerely loving Christ. I've seen similar instances to the one you mentioned. A significant other can authentically lead their romantic partner to Christ but we only see that call for already married folks who are in a religiously mixed marriage. And that call is in response to married believers asking if they should abandon their nonbelieving spouse. The idea that you'd pursue that type of relationship (or in this case continue one) with a nonbeliever was not at the top of the Corinthian's list. If we're bound to a person then we fight for them as we stay bound. If we're not bound, we fight for them by being unbound. Too often we don't take into account the message that separation sends. It says that this worship we engage in is serious. Sorry. I ranted and all I meant to say was that you made a good point. Jesus as foundation. Love of God as motivation.
"He's agreed to go to church with me a few times, and this past weekend we talked about saying a prayer together" Im sorry but going to church and saying a prayer doesn't make someone a Christian.
I dated guys who did not share my beliefs, and its just not a good idea. Im thankful God blessed me with a strong Christian husband.
Anyway.. you sound very young (Im sorry, but you do.. im just being honest).. Do you go to a youth group at your church? If so, this is something you really need to talk to your youth pastor about.
My youth leaders always discouraged missionary dating. Its just not smart. Its kinda like false advertising. The best thing you can do it pray for him, be an example, and being willing to just be friends if thats the way God shows you.
All the best!
You should be giving lessons to the rest of us! You are so sweet and he is so lucky to have such a sweetie as you.
Whether a relationship works out or not depends on many things. But you are making some great moves for being such a youngster.
@TheGreatBout@xanga - I appreciate your lengthy response and am quite aware of Paul's writings, and the context of the verse, etc. As far as romantic relationships are concerned, I have always been a bit puzzled about why people generally seek such strict guidance from the Bible about it. In the OT, for instance, tradition dictated that a man could have many wives or a concubine and there were many men favored by God that practiced this, however, as of the NT Paul states that "it is not good for a man to marry" but advises him to do so if he wishes to abstain from sexual immorality. My remark wasn't necessarily meant to evoke such a legalistic response, because there are obvious flaws with the logic. My overall point in the comment was to appreciate the person that her boyfriend is and to encourage and love him rather than just abandon him because he is confused or uncertain about his faith. I've been through that with my own husband and I believe it is totally human to feel that way at times (though many disagree with me in that regard).
I think, though, the "religion" debate would definitely be a deal breaker here, realisitcally speaking. If her faith is important and vital to her, I am sure (and hope) that she would realize the likelihood of her marriage being successful without getting any kind of support from him in regards to her faith would be quite slim, unfortunately. This, I think is the more practical side of what Paul was saying. Especially since he goes to use the light/dark analogy. Opposites attract, but do not generally experience longevity (in terms of relationships). It is those couples that have faith, education, morals, values, etc. in common that usually report to experience happy and successful marriages.
Hopefully, that answered your questions? I appreciate your response. :)
I am currently in a very similar situation, if not worse. My boyfriend used to be a Christian, but he has stopped going to church a couple years ago. I recently accepted Christ a little over a year ago. We've began dating last year. My boyfriend feels that my church is too extreme for his liking and sometimes tells me I should go to a different, more conservative one (My denomination is Pentecostal) or stop going to church all together.. I'd like to bring my boyfriend to Christ as well, but at this moment, he tells me he's at the point in his life where he's indifferent about religion and Christianity and won't be going to church, even though he kind of believes in God still. So I'm not sure what to do. :(
@homealivein45@xanga - I'm just postin' my absolute agreement with you here and now. And Aly, you just keep Jesus in focus at all times and let your boyfriend see Him living in you. Everything will fall into place as it should, one way or another; and I perceive you already know that in your spirit!
I was in the same situation as you. In the end, I broke it off because I was tired of waiting for him to accept Christ. He came to church a few times with me and even to fellowship, and almost accepted God. I think I got too impatient (we had been together for 9 months). Maybe it will work out for you though. Keep praying about it! You never know. Just be PATIENT. Unless you know that it won't work out because of other things about him that you can't live with.
Honestly, I think you are kind of trying to push it on him, but that's completely understandable. If you believe that your boyfriend is on the path to Hell right now, why wouldn't you be putting some serious effort towards convincing him he needs Christ? Ultimately, though, it will be his decision. If I were to suggest anything, I'd say just make sure he knows the gospel and his need for what Christ did. If he finds beauty in that, he'll be drawn to it.
Gosh, this is weird. I myself am not even religious anymore, and here I am.
"In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be wonwithout a word by the behavior of their wives," - 1 Peter 3:1
Let the Light shine and if he has a believing heart, he will then be drawn by Christ.
Save your boyfriend the pain and don't continue this relationship with him any longer, -before you really hurt him by expecting him to all of a sudden believe in Jesus through your prodding him to pray and go to church. It's quite obvious he didn't grow up with the same views you did, and it's also obvious to me just by the tone you used while writing this, that he's not about to become particularly smitten with Christ. He doesn't sound like that type of guy.
I had a boyfriend who I was truly falling in love with some time ago that I only found out later was Christian. He waited until about a year before he said that I wasn't yoked "in the triangle of Christ" with him, and therefore we should no longer be in a relationship. I'm STILL a tad bitter over it. Save your boyfriend the pain.
If there's anyone judgmental in this world, it's religious people. Why don't you just learn to accept your boyfriend's spirituality, or lack thereof? If you can't, then you need to go find someone just as judgmental of others as yourself. Because that's exactly how you sound, immediately assuming he's the one to change. Either acclimate to his wants and needs and not just your own, or go be separately yoked.
Just because we're not all Christian doesn't mean we're not all good people who want to do the right thing, too. And in the end, the right thing is all that matters.
Well, first, you have to know what it is you're trying to share with him. How strong is your faith, who is Christ to you, and why do you want him to know about this man, Jesus?
You've said he's mentioned "trying" Him, and that he's "open" to checking it out. Does that really fit with what you know about God, the Bible, and the Messiah?
Christ said " Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Coming to Christ is about repentence, and trust. It's not something we can try on to see if we like. It's a total, and unyielding recognition that we are sinners before an Almighty God, that we need His forgiveness, and that asking for it is more than just saying a prayer. It's a change of heart, a pervasive change of heart that causes us to shun the life we lived ignoring God, and causes us to live solely for Him.
As you said, God is the number one man in your life...
If you're going to share Christ with him, you have to remember that his very life depends on it. Often we struggle with how to "soften" the truth so as not to offend someone we care about. But how much of an offense is it if we don't tell them the whole truth?
So before you start, I think you should ask yourself some questions first.
1) Who is Jesus to you?
2) If this boyfriend doesn't accept those beliefs, are you more concerned that he might break up with you or that he might perish without knowing the Savior?
3) Why did Jesus have to die on a cross, and what did that accomplish on your behalf?
The easy answer to how to share Christ with your boyfriend is to study and grow in understanding what really happened at the cross, and then just tell him that. Some reading resources are Ezekiel 36:24-36, Psalm 51, 93 and 95.
Kudos to you for being willing and desiring to share your faith !!
@ClosetCalvinist - Yoked refers more to marriage than dating. Or even courting. She isn't yoked to this person, she's dating him. A hypothetical: She dates him, shares her faith with him in the course of that dating, and as a result he repents, puts his trust in the Messiah, becomes a missionary, they marry and end up spreading the truth of John 6 with the indigenous tribes in Africa, where Christ uses them to call hundreds of an unreached people group to His flock.
Has she still been "in disobedience" ?
If your position is that she shouldn't even date unbelievers, because "the righteous have no place with the wicked", I ask you how is it that you came to repentence? If she had begun dating him solely as a means of evangelism, I would consent there is a problem here. But I'm going to presume she began dating him because of a mutual attraction. Should she marry this person if he doesn't come to Christ? Of course not. Is there a risk that she could end up having her heart broken because she's fallen for him and he refuses to accept the truth? Of course. Is there further risk that she may end up marrying him anyway? Absolutely. Yet, that is her mistake to make.
I don't think someone should start dating an unbeliever. I really don't. It's not wise. However, she's already in a relationship with this person, and as such she may well have the best chance of preaching the truth to him. That's not something she should simply walk away from.
The problem with the Calvinistic mindset is that it all too often forgets grace, and focuses on overly pious works. (Yes, I believe in election, etc.)
show him how awesome Christ is by letting him shine through you. Not as easy as it is said though. My guy and me read the bible together just to see if we can get through it all, then if we have any comments we discuss it afterwards. Don't start with the old testament though, lol. It's good he's open to it. Just pray about it. Remember it is NOT you who will bring him to Christ, it will be Christ working through you or others that will show him the way. Don't take on the burden all yourself. If you go to a church or youth group maybe he could go with you just to see what its like, but that can be a bit scary and confronting to some, so just think about it.
@JulieMillerFan@xanga - It sounds as if you think that marrying a christian man means you will never have to deal with an abusive spouse. I was christian for the first 27 years of my life, and married to a christian man who was verbally, emotionally and sexually abusive. The sexual abuse was brutal. My own father was (and still is) christian and he's conquered his demons now, but while I was growing up he was an abusive alcoholic. My mother took my brother and I and fled, we spent three months in another state while they were separated.
I'd rather not hear the 'no true scotsman' answer. People who attend church, read scripture and consider themselves christian can and will do awful things. The fact that christians think 'no true christian' would ever do rotten things to people makes people of faith look arrogant, as if they see themselves as superior to others. It's a false belief.
I would say share your world with him in LOVE. It is wonderful that he is open to it. As far as dating an unbeliever, that is between you and God, not what all the rest of us think. Grace and Love is what we are to show those around us. Tell him your beliefs and be respectful of his. Realize that you can not make any decision for him.
This is a kind of a tug on my heart strings because I was asking the same question last year about my ex-boyfriend, who I was dating in high school.
My ex had a Cuban mother who was Catholic and an Indian father who was Hindu. The root of his lack of faith and discipline in faith was the fact that neither of his parents ever took the initiative to nurture him in either religion because they themselves weren't that concerned with it either. They only went to Catholic services on Christmas, and every few months his father would take him to the Hindu temple for events like dances.
I know they wanted to be "open-minded" parents by letting their kid drift in any direction he chooses. But over the years, I realize that as a Christian with a pastor as a parent, I'm thankful now that my parents took it upon themselves to ensure that I had some sort of foundation in Christianity. Even when I hated being forced to go to church, and I resented religion being "forced down my throat" (I was a rebellious pastor's child -- go figure), I at least had some notion of what it was all about.
Being forced to go to church doesn't mean you're forcing someone to accept a religion. In the end, acceptance of Christ is an individual decision by free will that God let us have. I'd been going to church all my life, but I didn't accept Christ as my Lord and Savior until just 2 years ago. My ex assumed that I was a preachy girl who knew all the answers, but I'd only been on my Christian walk for 2 years, and I've known people who've been on theirs for decades (aka, my mum), and we still don't have all the answers. Because the Christian walk is a process, and it doesn't end until we leave the world.
It was so frustrating because in having a relationship with Christ, you see things in a whole new way, and you learn so much, and I experienced joys that I didn't even know I could --- and I wanted my ex to have that same experience. When you're following Christ, you know He's called you to bring other people to Him, but also you're so excited to share about your testimony because you want someone else -- especially those you love -- to know that what Christ did for you, He can do for them if they let Him. And they can have the same joy.
Christians on a mainstream view from the outside seem quick to tell everybody they're going to hell or that we're all doomed to a fiery pit, but we spend more time preaching a message about the rightfully wrathful side of God, and less on the happiness that we've experienced on allowing ourselves to have a relationship with Him.
That being said, the best thing for you to do is to live by what you preach. When people know that you're a Christian, they will watch you and judge by your behavior and words. Live out the life that God has called you to. And let your boyfriend know from how you carry yourself in public and private life that you have a joy that you derive from having a relationship with Christ, and he might be missing out on something great.
Most importantly though, you need to keep a watch on your own faith. I don't know how well you are doing in this area, but this is probably the most significant thing. I've had family member who married non-Christians and because of that, they fell in their faith because they were influenced by another or lack of, and I've had family members who brought people to Christ and then got married to them -- and became stronger in their faith than ever.
When I was dating my ex, I admit that it was slightly detrimental to my relationship with God, because I was so focused on the other guy in my life, that I forgot about the number one guy in my life. I'm glad that you seem to be able to set that in stone for yourself about God having first priority. After I broke up, of course I was sad (he was my first boyfriend and the first guy I could ever really get close to) -- but I focused on concentrating on my relationship with God, and I realized that I had been compromising a lot of things, and I still had a lot to learn.
I did take my ex to church a few times because he open to the idea. But he still told me firmly that he felt like I was shoving it down his throat and he didn't want to be forced to do anything.
We didn't break up because I forced him to go to church. Even though that was one of the reasons he laid down when he dumped me -- religious differences -- we really broke up because he was frustrated with the fact that I didn't want to do certain things with him, like make out, and it was apparent he wasn't going to get any in our relationship.
All his other friends kept pressuring him, and they were all younger than him (in fact, I made the mistake of dating someone younger than me, even if it's a year difference). I'd shared with my ex that I had been abused and it was hard for me to get into any kind of physical love, and though he said he wouldn't pressure me, I knew he kept comparing himself to his friends who had already made it to third base with all their girlfriends.
But that's another story.
You need to be with someone who puts God priority over you. There has to be three people in the equation if you want a relationship where both of you are growing in faith and love together -- God, you, and your boyfriend.
I'll pray for you and your dilemma, but remember that it is not you who will change him, but God, and only if your boyfriend allows it. The only thing you can do is to find moments in your relationship with your boyfriend to steer him into the opportunity for him to explore his identity in Christ and what it means to have a relationship with God. By living out your life, take every moment to show Christ in your actions and speech, and allow your boyfriend to see what a Christian looks like, where you're coming from, and why it is you do the things you do because of God.
Dating a non-Christian is a shaky road, because it's easy to end up compromising your faith, but if God drew you to your boyfriend and since you're already here, use this opportunity to let God work through you and touch his life.
(phew... I've written quite an essay here :/)
Anyway, God bless :)