Search the Community

By: Dale Partridge Nobody starts their marriage intending to have an affair. Yet 50% of all married couples in the United States experience an affair during their lifetime. But here’s the shocker… 85% of those affairs begin at work. Infidelity: The action or state of being unfaithful to a spouse. Adultery: Voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and a person who is not his or her spouse. 1. Don’t Underestimate The F-Word I’ve seen far too many women say, “Well… he’s just got a flirtatious personality.” B.S. I don’t buy that. Any married man who flirts with another woman is a man who doesn’t love his wife. 2. Get A Divorce If you’re married and involved in a relationship titled “work wife” or “work husband” you’re crossing the line. These relationships typically imply a special public bond between two people that almost always lead to inappropriate intimacy. Clinical psychologist Willard F. Harley Jr. says, “If you work with someone daily, watching each other’s backs, helping each other with the problems of life, and on top of that give that person a special title… I wouldn’t say a romantic relationship is inevitable, but it sure is highly probable.” 3. Bring A Third Party I don’t know about you, but I value my wife. I value the thousands of hours we’ve invested in each other. And because of that, I am not naive to the many threats looking to plant seeds of destruction in our marriage. Last year, my wife and I made an agreement to never intentionally be left alone with another person of the opposite sex. That means if I have a work meeting with a woman, I bring someone with me. If I’m working from home on a day we have a female babysitter; I work from a coffee shop. 4. Drop It Like It’s Hot. If you’ve already crossed the line, stop. Not tomorrow, not after you discuss it with them, not after one last fling. Stop now. Stop completely. I understand your marriage may be in a difficult space. Your mind might be fighting to do the right thing. But statistics have proven time and time again that people regret affairs. https://startupcamp.com/protect-workplace-affair/

Jeremiah 17:9- The heart is more treacherous than anything else and is desperate. Who can know it? Proverbs 6:27-Can a man take fire to his chest and not burn his garments?The heart can cause us to make unwise decisions when it comes to dating. It can also cause us to develop feelings for more than one person. Our heart may even convince us that we are just being kind to those of the opposite sex when in reality we may actually be flirting with others and leading them on. Thus causing them to develop feelings toward us that we have no intention of reciprocating. It can happen to anyone ( even those with privileges) and without us even noticing it. It's important we identify where to draw the line. Also it requires honest self examination as to our feelings and relationships with others. (Check out the article "Are We Just Friends-or more?, Parts 1 and 2" g 6/12 pp.15-167)

Exactly what is flirting? Why do some people do it? Are there any dangers?