I realize that many of my Devotionals deal with
husbands and wives, parents and children. I also realize that many of you
are not married at the present time. In our society, you are almost looked
down on if you are not married or involved in a relationship with someone.
Many people feel like something is wrong with them if they are single.
Being single is OK. Whether you are single because of a divorce, your
spouse has died, or you have never married, IT IS OK. The point I want to
share with you today is to be patient. I can assure you, 99% of the
relationship problems I deal with each and every day can be traced back to
people who were inpatient...good people who jumped into relationships
outside of God's timing and ended up paying a big price. I realize that
loneliness will cause you to make poor decisions, but you have got to
understand the consequences of those decisions.
The number one problem in relationships is that there is no spiritual base.
While money, communication, and other issues are the most popular reasons
for problems, I assure you the lack of a spiritual base in the relationship
is the reason these other problems exist. Not having a secure spiritual
base is why God said to not be unequally yoked. He knew without that base,
the relationship could never survive. The base starts with the personal
walk each person has with the Lord. It is then solidified by both people
bringing their faith together as one. The Bible talks of the man being the
spiritual head of his home. It is important for a man to take this job
seriously, and be the priest in his home. It is his responsibility to help
merge his faith and that of his potential wife. Praying together. Reading
the Word together. Serving the Lord together. These are all ways for two
people to lay a solid and secure spiritual base. Let me tell you this.
WITHOUT A SPIRITUAL BASE, NO RELATIONSHIP WILL LAST OR HAVE ANY LONG-TERM
SIGNIFICANCE.
While I realize finding someone physically attractive, someone with a nice
personality, someone with a good job, may all be criteria in finding a mate,
if you do not focus first on the spiritual side of the relationship, it is
doomed. I want to tell you now, without hesitation, the reason for the
high divorce rate amongst the people of God is because there is NO spiritual
base in the relationship. This is why patience is critical. While the
downside to being single is loneliness, the upside is it allows you to grow
and develop a real walk with Christ. It also gives you the power over what
relationships you will enter into. There is a power in the fact you have
choices you can make. Be picky. Be patient. You do not have to find
someone today. This is where your faith and trust in God becomes important
as well. He knows your needs and desires. Trust Him. Have faith in Him
that He is going to bring the right person into your life.
I love you and care about you. It hurts me to know many of you are hurting
from the loneliness of being single. I pray that today you will refocus on
your walk with the Lord. I pray you will realize there is nothing wrong
with being single. I pray you will know that God understands your needs and
desires, and He will bring the right person into your life. I will add,
that like everything, it is a combination of God's sovereign will and our
responsibility. You cannot expect to sit in the house and wait for the
Lord to send the right person knocking at your door. Like all battles, you
need a game plan, and you need to be faithfully executing the plan each day
to see victory. My emphasis today, though, is that as you are out looking for
a mate, remember that unless your relationship has a spiritual base to it,
it will not last. Being single is OK. Use the time to solidify your walk
with Christ. Be patient. Never forget that the Lord loves you and will
bring the right person into your life. Trust Him and wait on His timing.
