I called one of my sister-friends recently just to catch up on what’s new in her life. We don’t talk often, but when we do, the conversation can last for hours. This time things were different. We would not be chatting up a storm in our usual manner because when I reached her, she immediately told me, “Girl, I’m hanging out with my boo, so I won’t be able to talk long.” Not only was I surprised, but I was very happy for her as well. She’s a lovely woman who loves the Lord and has worn the title of “single” for a very long time. This has not been by choice, but by default. Like many single Christians, she’s wanted to be married but learned from experience that waiting on God’s presentation and greenlight is paramount. It’s truly the only option for partnering with the person that’s the right fit for your life.
Psalm 84:11(NLT) tells us “For the LORD God is our sun and our shield. He gives us grace and glory. The LORD will withhold no good thing from those who do what is right.” Our Heavenly Father is our sun. He shines the light on our path so that we can see the true and right way forward. This is so important for us to know because many of us have tried to light our own way when it comes to the path of marriage. Because of this, we made mistakes that could have been avoided if we had used patience and endurance to wait on the Lord.
God is our shield because through the wisdom of His Word and the guidance of His Spirit, He will protect us and keep our feet from falling into traps. But this is only if we allow Him to do so. Intimacy is deepened in our relationship with God as we lean on Him and trust Him wholeheartedly. This means that we must invest the time to walk with Him and learn what He wants to teach us. It’s a process and it takes time, but many of us are very impatient. We rush into relationships that set us further behind rather than propel us forward.
Many single women have given up on the whole idea of marriage and opted to accept whatever a man is willing to give them. The whole idea of marriage is about trusting God; therefore, we must never give up on it. Marriage is God’s institution, and it helps us learn more about Jesus Christ so that we can express his love to our spouses, and they will in turn express it to us. This creates the bond of unity in Christ that pleases God. If our motivations are wrong, and our desire to be married is more about our own personal agenda, then our motive will need to be overhauled, because the wrong motivation will lead to the wrong results.
Through James, the apostle and son of Alphaeus, God rebuked those with the wrong motivation. James 4:2-3(NIV) says, “2 You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it. 3 And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure.”
To have a man in our lives, some of us will wage war against our own souls and fight against the sanctity of our body temples. We rob God of a pure heart with righteous intent in order to satisfy the flesh. We cannot rightly pray in faith when our hearts are in this condition. Heavenly Father doesn’t punish us for this, He helps us! He opens our eyes to what we’re doing so that He can correct our paths. Then we can love a spouse from a heart filled with the love of Christ. Know that this is God’s desire for you. He desires to see you blessed more than you can ever desire it for yourself.
Our Heavenly Father doesn’t withhold any good things from those who are motivated and are committed to operate out of what is right. We must remember that we do not belong to ourselves, we belong to Him. In John 15:16, Jesus Christ affirms our purpose and the promise attached to it. He said, “You didn’t choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name.” Fruit is produced out of a heart that is overflowing with the love of Christ. Part of the reward for producing fruit is the confidence that God will present the right fit for your life. So, our agenda cannot replace God’s agenda. His Will is that we grow and abound in Christ. When this is our motivation, the change in our lives will be pleasing to God and pleasing to us as well.
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“God’s Desire to See You Blessed” written by Kim Times, edited by Reverend Fran Mack for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2020. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.