Faith Dates: Building an app for gospel-centered relationships

What inspired me

I got the idea for Faith Dates while shopping for date ideas to celebrate my 5th anniversary with my wife. Most of what I found was either cheesy, surface-level, or entirely disconnected from our faith. I didn’t want another night of Netflix or a list of “cute couple activities.” I wanted something that would help us reflect on grace, talk deeply, pray honestly, and enjoy each other in light of the gospel.

But it didn’t exist.

So I decided to build it—something reformed, intentional, and actually helpful for couples who want to grow spiritually together.

What I learned

Building Faith Dates taught me how much hunger there is for spiritually grounded, theologically faithful tools that don’t feel like lectures. I spent time studying Scripture, reformed catechisms, and relationship resources to craft something that felt true, beautiful, and useful.

I also learned that spiritual formation in a romantic context requires more creativity than rules—couples don’t just need instruction, they need invitation and direction.

How I built the project

I began with a detailed product requirements document (PRD) covering:

• Core features: guided gospel-centered conversation packs, a randomizer for creative date challenges, milestone tracking, and spiritual rhythms
  
• Theological backbone: rooted in reformed theology with Scripture driving every prompt and activity
  
• Content system: seasonal challenge packs, tags for filtering (like low-budget, outdoor, creative, devotional), and a surprise feature inspired by The Adventure Challenge
  
• User experience: gamified but reverent, clean UI, peaceful tone, with no ads or distractions

Each challenge card is built to be theologically meaningful but delightfully practical—like cooking a meal and reflecting on Titus 2, or going on a hike and journaling what creation reveals about God’s faithfulness.

Challenges I faced

• Theological precision vs. user accessibility: Keeping content aligned with reformed convictions while remaining simple and relational took constant editorial care
  
• Designing experiences, not checklists: The goal isn’t task completion—it’s intimacy, repentance, grace. That shifted how I wrote and structured everything
  
• Balancing reverence with fun: I didn’t want to trivialize sacred practices, but also didn’t want the app to feel like seminary homework
  
• Creating genuine mystery: For the “surprise me” feature to feel exciting, the challenges needed to be both diverse and unpredictable while remaining gospel-aligned

What’s next

• Build MVP in React Native or Flutter with Firebase backend
  
• Test with engaged and married couples through user feedback loops
  
• Expand content packs for Advent, Lent, summer rhythms, and conflict resolution
  
• Develop printable formats or small-group bundles for churches and marriage ministries

Built With

• bolt
• expo.io