No, I’m not engaged.

Now that we’ve cleared that up, I want to share the story behind my “purity” ring. Because, it’s not really a purity ring, as in a ring I wear until I’m married to show that I refuse to have sex.

Nope.

In fact, I plan on wearing this ring even after I get married (and have sex).

Instead, my ring is a reminder.

…A reminder of what?

Glad you asked :)

The Story of My Not-Purity Ring

But first, some background info:

I was never a fan of rings when I was younger. When I was ten, my best friend and I had matching BFF rings… and I lost mine shortly after we exchanged them. (Mickey, if you’re reading this, I did eventually find it and know where it is right now.)

When I was older, the “True Love Waits” craze was going on; I never was interested in getting a purity ring. I didn’t want to buy something I would most likely misplace. So, instead, I bought a purity bracelet. (Yup, you read that right, a purity bracelet. It said “True Love Waits.” How cool is that? *Rolls eyes*) I wore the bracelet on occasion, and then one day it broke.

And that was that.

Then I attended youth camp.

And this wasn’t any old youth camp either. In fact, I rate this camp as one of the most influential times of my life.

One night, the speaker debunked the common view of “the line”. You know, the line marking the separation of sin and righteousness that believers commonly refer to? Especially in issues of physical affection: “How far can we go without ‘crossing the line’?” but the line can refer to other issues as well.

The speaker explained that we cannot simply get closer and closer to this imaginary line. We can’t almost sin by getting as close to the side of unrighteousness as possible. Nor can we run away from the line all together and somehow become more holy.

Instead, he presented us with the idea of a hula hoop.

Yes, a hula hoop.

The speaker picked up a hula hoop and stood inside of it. “This is representing being inside of God’s will,” he stated. (I’m paraphrasing from memory.) “I’m standing in the middle of his will. I can walk around inside of the hula hoop, like I am now, or outside of the hula hoop.” He got out of the hoop. “If I straddle the hula hoop and am half in and half out, that’s the same as being out all together. You are either all in or all out.”

(Such as Revelation 3:15-16 explains.)

“Obedience to God isn’t a line that divides sides. It isn’t a list of do’s or don’t’s. It is a ring. You stay in the center of God’s will, and your life will naturally follow Him.”

He encouraged us to remain in the middle of God’s will, and to remind ourselves of this by getting a hula hoop, or a ring, or just drawing some sort of circle and placing it where we can see it every day.

Thus, my ring.

I saved up and bought my ring from James Avery the next March. My mom and I drove to the closest James Avery store to order the ring with the engraving in person. I bought the Forever Band with the engraving “Stay in the Ring.”

It has really helped me. I play with it a lot, so when I do I can look down and immediately have a reminder to love Jesus.

My ring is not a purity ring.

It’s a reminder to love Jesus and to stay in the middle of God’s will. Sure, remaining pure is a part of that, but it isn’t the whole.

Thus, I plan on wearing this ring even after I get married, because loving Jesus doesn’t end when loving my husband begins.


To be clear, I’m not hating on purity rings. Many of my friends have purity rings and I think it is a great idea. My intention in writing this post is to share the true story behind my ring, because so often when people ask me what it is, I chicken out and just say “A purity ring.” –Which is true, but it isn’t the whole truth.


I’m curious, do you have any physical reminders to love Jesus?

One thought on “The Story of The Ring

  1. Amanda Marie

    Thanks for sharing! What a great perspective of the whole “line” thing! I believe when it all comes down to it we are all made righteous by Jesus and even if we sin, we are forgiven…regardless! A ring is a great reminder of what Jesus did for us and how much GOD loves us! It is important to keep him on our minds to live by faith as best as we can! Thanks!

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