Nicolandria in 5
what Love Island is teaching me about faith, perseverance, and corporate prayer.
1 Corinthians 13:13 (NIV)
13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
My screen time averaged 12 hours last week. Most of those hours were spent watching Love Island, reading Reddit and Twitter discourse on every episode, and rewatching my favorite scenes on the Peacock app. The direct correlation between the rise of my interest in Love Island and my disinterest in anything else is palpable. My screen time has significantly increased and my own life has taken a backseat. I’m okay with it though, for now.
The catalyst of this deep interest in this season, was watching one TikTok edit of Nicolandria—the ship name of 24-year-old Nicolas Vansteenberghe and 27-year-old Olandria Carthen.
His glances from across the villa and perpetual gaze on her no matter where they are, his instant chivalry towards her, both them visibly lighting up when they’re with each other, I mean, he put her foot in his mouth at one point. These two have been dancing around each other all season, and it came headfirst in a beautiful re-coupling last night. Spoiler alert: they are finally together. It was the perfect case of right person wrong time, until it was finally time. Even Shonda Rhimes couldn’t write this.
As a Christian, I can’t help but point out the overt lust (and other questionable things) displayed on the show, and if this proves a stumbling block for you, I believe it is necessary to guard your eyes, ears, and your heart, and stay away from it. However, I am a lover at heart, and I see God in everything. So instead of beating myself up about this guilty pleasure of mine, I’m going to use this moment to talk about 5 things I’m taking away from this season / Nicolandria (no matter how the story may end—there’s a week left of the show).
What Love Island is teaching me about faith, perseverance, and corporate prayer:
Perseverance: From day one, many viewers picked up on the chemistry these two strangers had, and immediately started shipping them. However, because neither of them were willing to let go of their initial couples, out of fear of rejection or scrutiny, they chose to play it safe by remaining friends. This led a lot of people off the ship, because, if he wanted to he would, right? But the shippers persevered. Coming up with different scenarios in which their relationship could transform from platonic to romantic, and finding new ways to solidify their theories episode after episode. And they were right. It was love all along. Perseverance pays off!
Delusion is faith in action: Many naysayers were adamant that Nicolandria stans were delusional, that we were imagining a connection that was not there, and that it would never happen. But isn’t delulu the solulu? Doesn’t the Bible say ‘as a man thinketh, so is he’? Last night’s episode of Love Island presented the unimaginable: a world where there are no other factors preventing Nic and Olandria from exploring their connection. It’s been proven time and time again that the sheer combination of vision and steadfastness towards an outcome, brings that outcome to reality. Apply this combination wisely.
a comment on a Nicolandria fan edit A lot can happen when people come together for one cause: There are about 56,000 posts on TikTok with a #Nicolandria hashtag (5 of them are from me). This ship has significantly dominated my entire feed, revealing people from all over the country, and all over the world, rooting for this connection that seemed like it was never going to happen. Corporate prayer (and manifestation) works. I am typically very shy about asking for prayer or letting my friends in on a problem I’m facing, but this was my sign that there is power in numbers. A sign to continue to ask for help, for prayer, and for encouragement within your community and those around you. You don’t have to do it all alone.
What’s meant to be will be anyway: What I—and other Nicolandria fans—admire the most is just how ‘meant to be’ this whole thing feels. Their connection is truly something that transcends beyond our iPhone and TV screens, and that’s what makes it so special. There were many times where I wanted to throw in the towel and give up, agree with the doubters that yes, we were delusional. Two completely different people, one in a “closed off” couple and the other, hung up on her past partner. In what world were they going to let go and fall deep? It just didn’t make sense. But what’s meant to be will be, just sit back and hold onto faith.
‘And the greatest of these is love.’: Aside from the whole Nicolandria stuff, this episode was significantly more peaceful, joyful and overall a breath of fresh air. What changed? The producers finally started to show the audience the genuine love that these couples have for each other. The season shifted dramatically with this change in perspective. A once loveless island, with people who disliked each other and episodes that drained the public emotionally, is starting to turn into an enjoyable watch. By highlighting the love and showing us apologies, redemption arcs, picnic dates, and love confessions, the producers are providing us as an audience, a much needed deep exhale. “Love is what holds everything together in perfect unity” - Colossians 3:14. This is facts.
If you take away one thing from this, it’s that nothing is impossible, and if you ever feel like like throwing in the towel on a dream of yours, just remember, Nicolandria happened.