Deraj: Yasmin and I know that [it] is a very real temptation, so what we try to do is have mentors who keep us accountable. Since we live so far apart, we have to be very intentional with our time so we can’t have too much idle time. Watching how we communicate with each other as well. As we learn [about] each other, we learn ways on how to not stir one another on.
Yasmin: That’s pretty much it. Try to be intentional with our time and keep our mentors in the loop of what’s going on.
JTH: How does Deraj’s career as a musician affect your relationship?
Yasmin: It has been a great thing. I love music and have grown up loving music. My brothers are all hip-hop heads. Deraj, being a hip-hop head, loving music, loving rap, [and] having a passion for it gives us something else in common. We have a mutual interest that we love. It does effect our relationship in a really cool way.
Deraj: It’s really encouraging to be able to share my gifts and my passions for music and art with the person that I will be spending the rest of my life with.
JTH: Yasmin, what is your career and how does it affect your relationship?
Yasmin: I am still in school and will apply for my Bachelor’s Degree in the Nursing Program in May, so I do not have a career yet. I am pursuing education in the medical field. Deraj is awesome! He has been one of the best supports that I have ever had, just dating. He has pushed me in so many ways and helped bring out the most in me. I feel like I can do so much. Like “I can and I’m capable.” Him being in my life, especially during my academic career has been a tremendous blessing. I believe that God is using him to develop and shape me into the woman that God needs me to be.
JTH: Which one of you is more artsy?
Deraj: I’ll say it like this. I’m more active in my art and Yasmin is very talented and creative as well, but I don’t think she has the same opportunities right now to showcase it because she is in school and has different priorities. She has a lot of gifts inside of her. I won’t say that either one of us is more artsy. We are both creative and very unique.
JTH: What kind of advice would you have for dating couples seeking to take steps towards engagement?
Some great advice in this. It’s beautiful to see a godly relationship, especially considering our society’s hook-up culture.
Thank you JTH for doing this. As a man in a relationship it means a lot to me to see what the other Christians are saying about tough subjects.