In the summer of 2004, I went to Ensenada, Mexico with a group of teens from various churches in our conference. The main part of our mission there was to help a local church put on a VBS program. One day, when I had been out playing futbol in the street with some of the boys at the church, one of them, who was probably twelve or thirteen, asked if he could see my Spanish to English dictionary. After flipping through the pages for a few minutes, he asked, "You...love...woman?" I kind of laughed to myself, and replied in my hesitant Spanish, "Only as my sisters in Christ."
"But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Mat. 6:33-34
God has really used these verses over the past year to help me learn to trust Him regarding my situation at school. But believe it or not, they're also related to the first part of this post.
Sometimes it's tempting to start wondering who I'll end up marrying. I mean, what if the girl I'm supposed to marry gets away because I'm not paying attention now? But of course, if God wants me to get married, the right girl will be waiting, seeing as He's in charge. For now, I'm simply not in a position to even think about getting married, and won't be for quite some time. For one thing, I won't come close to being able to support a family for several years. Beyond that, though, I'm simply far too immature. God has years of work to do on me while He can still have my undivided attention. As Paul said in I Cor. 7:32-33: "But I want you to be free from concern. One who is unmarried is concerned about the things of the Lord, how he may please the Lord; but one who is married is concerned about the things of the world, how he may please his wife."
For these reasons, the issue of who (and if) I will marry falls into the realm of tomorrow. God will take care of everything in His own time. Prov. 3:5-6 says, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight."
All this being said, I want to thank all of my hermanas en Cristo for being just that. It's such a blessing to be able to truly be friends with you and love you as my sisters, in all purity.
God bless all of you.
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4 comments:
I suppose so. It just annoys me at times when people say that God will let them know when they're supposed to marry someone. The Lord's counsel is important, but He also "directs a moving car." God expects us to actively seek out and pursue the girl He wants us to marry. Of course, He requires us to wait until we're ready for that journey.
I'm not trying to diss you - this is just something I've thought a bit about, and tend to react to.
Good post, Nathan :). I am very happy to know you as a brother in Christ.
Something that God has encouraged me about as a single is to be content and satisfied in Him, to love others as friends, and to trust His sovereignty over tomorrow :). If He has the hairs of our head numbered, and knows every day of our lives, He's not going to let something this big slip as we actively follow Him.
Josh:
1. I'm not saying that I'm not supposed to actively seek out God's will, just that I'm not supposed to be looking too far down the road. A driver who is being given directions watches the road a little in advance and doesn't try to see miles ahead; that would take his attention off of his immediate course.
2. I didn't mean for this to apply to anyone but myself except in a general sense. God doesn't want me to be concerned about that yet. Other people shouldn't worry about it before God wants them to either, but who am I to say what God's timing for them is?
Regarding the last comment, you probably don't know what God's schedule for you is either, although it's good that you have a sense of direction for how you are to live right now. That's really important.)
On the other hand, if God (emphasis on God) leads you to pursue marriage at a time you did not expect, I'm sure you would follow Him in that just as in any other life change. It would be surprising and unusual, for sure, and a lot of prayer and reflection would be necessary to make sure it isn't just you.
On the other subject, I'm glad we're in a place where we really can love the ladies around us as sisters, and where they also approach friendship in a Godly way.
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