What to DO While You Wait???

Many times, I have heard girls ask what they are supposed to do while they are waiting for the Lord to bring the right young man into their lives. Questions like "But what will I do, spending all day at home? What are you supposed to do, if you choose to not go to College? Can't I better serve God by getting a degree? But what if _________________ happens???" So many times I have heard phrases like "You must have a lot of free time, right???" haha! I wish!!! ;) People, just don't have a clue, do they?

My advice is this: use this time of singleness to actively prepare for your future. Stay at home. Serve your parents & siblings. Learn everything you can, from home. Read profusely (non-fiction, of course!), on all beneficial subjects. Do the mundane, everyday, so- called "boring" tasks that no one else wants to do. Learn a new skill, that will bless your family. Serve your family, Church body & the community. Learn more than just how to cook, clean, budget, balance a checkbook, decorate, teach school, do laundry, garden & sew. That is the bare minimum. Walk with integrity. Strengthen your faith. Ask God to purify your character. Go above & beyond what is expected or required (Do Hard Things #2). Do everything you can now to learn how to be a good wife & mother. And above all, do it with a happy heart.

"A joyful heart is good medicine,
    but a crushed spirit dries up the bones."

- Proverbs 17:22

I say this, speaking from experience. I am to be married to the man of my dreams in 5 short months & there is SO much to do, learn & prepare. I feel ill- prepared. If I could go back & do things over, there is SO much I would change & do differently, to be more prepared to better serve my husband! Speaking from experience, do NOT waste this time of singleness. Because you can't get back this season of your life!

I am reminded of the Apostle Paul's advice in 1 Corinthians 7 (especially verses 32-34), about how a single person is able to use this time to serve the Lord & her or her family, while a married person is primarily preoccupied with serving his or her spouse. Use this time of singleness to best serve the Lord & your family, to learn & to prepare!

Another thing us girls can do is to pray for our future husbands now, even if you might not know who he is yet. Ask the Lord to bless him mightily, to increase his faith, to strengthen his character, to teach him how to lead your family, that God would give him a multi-generational Vision, that He would teach you how to be a good helpmate & wife to him, that the two of you might raise a godly family, walking in His Ways.

"I continually bring to mind the fact that I will not be single
forever & I do not want to waste this time as a single! There is no
other season in life like it, when it's just me & the Lord!...
Another thing I do is to pray & ask the Lord what specifically my
future husband needs me to pray for right now, in this moment.
Even though I don't know him, God does, & I want to pray very
intentionally for him. Sometimes I hear very specific things &
sometimes I don't, so I just pray about more general things for him.
Either way, mountains get moved in the spirit."

- When God Writes Your Love Story, testimony by Lauren (age 24)

You can also use this time of singleness to practice being a wife & mother, by serving your parents & siblings. "The habits you form now & how you treat your family now will have a direct impact on how you will treat your own husband & children someday." That can be a scary thought!

You can also serve your future husband now by closely watching how you interact with other men, whether they be fathers, brothers, friends, your Pastor, strangers or acquaintances. You do not want to cultivate habits of flirtatiousness, immodesty, disrespect, dishonor, flightiness etc now (& thus gaining that kind of reputation), if you do not plan on acting like that once you are married.

Faithfulness is a discipline that is refined & honed through years of practice. It is developing a habit of loving your future husband through patiently waiting, consistently hoping & living by the high standard to which you've been Called. It is strength learned through persevering; integrity gained through waiting.

I am reminded of the Proverbs 31 woman, who "does her husband good ALL the days of her life," (verse 12), not just after she has met him, or once they are married. There are good habits, character traits etc to be cultivated & practiced now, in preparation for the "someday," when we are married, the good Lord willing.

And, we must remember that not all people are Called to marry. Some strong Christians remain single their entire lives, married to their Eternal, Heavenly Bridegroom, instead of an earthly husband. Marriage is not the end- all goal of life. The goal of life is Christ-likeness. Marriage is just one of the means of achieving that.

Remember Who it is that you are working for. We are working for the Lord, seeking to honor Him (& not man) in our activities, educational pursuits, hobbies, pastimes, decisions about the future, how we use our time etc. We are not required to compete with (nor report to) society, the culture, the world etc as to how we spend our single years. We are Called to something better than that!!! :)

 "And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything
in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father
through Him... Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord & not for men..."
- Colossians 3:17, 23

Do not waste away your life, simply dreaming of & longing for "that blissful state." Instead, be active while you wait! :)

Persevero, my friends!

Read Part I of this series here- "Waiting for God to Write Your Love Story"

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Related blog posts to read-

Don't Waste Your Life (January 2013)
Guard Your Heart (October 2012)
Surrendering Our Precious Dreams to God (September 2012)
Fully Surrendering Our Dreams to God (July 2012)
Walk with the Wise (July 2012)
Are You a Woman That a Man Would Die For? (July 2012)
All For the Glory of God (July 2012)
A Multi-Generational Vision (July 2012)
Why Modesty? Part I (May 2012)
What Is "True Modesty"? Part II (May 2012)
Contentment (May 2012)
Goals (April 2012)
God First! (Priorities) (March 2012)
Do Not Give Up! (March 2012)
The Rubber Meets the Road (February 2012)
Contentment (Waiting on God) (November 2011)
Surrendering Yourself to God (November 2011)
Obeying the Voice of God (November 2011)
Do Hard Things! (October 2011)
Only What's Done For Christ Will Last (September 2011)
The Tragedy of a Wasted Life (August 2011)

Waiting for GOD to Write Your Love Story

Hello dear readers!

I hope y'all are doing well. I want to apologize for the recent silence on this blog. While I have been more faithful in posting on my photography blog, I have sorely neglected writing on here. In fact, in preparing to write this post, I just realized that I haven't written anything on here since January 17th! Wow.

The fact is that I have not had much time at all to read or write recently. Work was very busy over the Christmas celebration. Then the man of my dreams proposed!!! on February 13. Since then we have been feverishly been making plans for the wedding (this September), house & new business.

But, this morning, I was able to do some reading. I finished the book When God Writes Your Love Story by Eric & Leslie Ludy, which I highly recommend. I read it before (two or three years ago, I think), but I definitely learned a lot more from it this time!

The second half of the book really impressed me. Especially the theme of "waiting patiently for God to bring the right person into your life," of letting Him write your "love story."

I feel like every girl dreams of a "fairytale wedding" from the time they are little girls, playing dolls & house & reading fictional novels. This ideal has been much propagated by the Disney Princess movies. Every girl dreams of her "Prince Charming" to come riding into her life & sweeping her off her feet...

But, when these girls become teenagers, too often they say they are waiting for God to bring the right young man into their life. But as time goes on, they get frustrated with the waiting & decide to take life into their own hands. They start to decide what path they will take. They lower their standards to match the ungodly, worldly guys around them. They compromise. They give away parts of their heart, piece by piece, to each different guy they date. They fall into sin. By the time their "knight in shining armor" does come into their life, they have nothing left to give him.

Ladies, there IS another way. We have been Called to SO much more than this!!! I strongly encourage you to wait patiently for God to write your love story. Put the Pen into His hands & leave it there. Trust Him to write your love story- done His way & in HIS perfect Timing.

Some questions we must ask ourselves are, "Are we content with where God has us right now? Is God enough to satisfy us??? What is the greatest desire of your heart? Is it to glorify God, no matter what? Whether he calls you to marriage OR singleness? What if God's Plans for your life don't match yours??? Whose Plan/ Will shall prevail???"

We must not lose sight of the fact that we are living in purity as an act of love for our King, not just so we can reap the reward of a God-written love story. The only way we can be really happy & fulfilled is for God to fill the void in our hearts. Nothing else will satisfy that "God-shaped hole in all of us"! Remember- "A woman's heart should be so lost in God that a man must seek Him in order to find her.":) Focusing solely on Christ & His Path is the only way that you will be absolutely content & fulfilled, single or married.

"Your longing to be with an earthly lover may be overwhelming at times.
But until your heart is consumed with love & longing for your heavenly
Bridegroom, you'll miss out on the greatest love story of all time. Jesus
Christ is not meant to be our stand-in until we meet our spouse. Rather, Jesus
Christ is our spouse- our Bridegroom, our Husband, the Lover of our soul. Earthly
marriage is only meant to give us a small glimpse of a much more important marriage:
our heavenly marriage. Our longing to be with our future spouse should pale in
comparison to our longing to be with our true Bridegroom..."
- Eric & Leslie Ludy, in When God Writes Your Love Story

"Delight yourself in the Lord & He will give you the desires of your heart..."

- Psalm 37:4

" For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

- Luke 12:34

Speaking from experience, it is WELL worth the wait!!! :) If you would have told me 8 months ago, that I would meet the man of my dreams within the month, I wouldn't have believed you. Mark came literally out of nowhere, without any help from me or any other human (except maybe Momma Ritter! hehehe). I was not "looking" for a guy & was finally content with where God had me in life. I had (literally!) just put the Pen back into God's Hands, saying, "God, I don't know what You are doing here, but I am going to trust You with this part of my life, because I know You know what to do, better than I do!" And I am SO glad that I did!!!

God's Plans are WAY better than ours (Isaiah 55:8-9). Speaking from experience, He definitely knows what He is doing!!! :) Trust me, there are still good, godly, strong Christan guys out there. My man is way better than I had ever hoped, expected or dreamed he would be!!! ;) Looking back, I am SO glad that I trusted God with this area of my life. He has blessed me SO much!!! I do not deserve someone as amazing & perfect (yes, I am just a bit biased!!! ;) as Mark in my life!!! God is SO Faithful!

"We serve a big God. It's time to start believing He is capable of bringing a
marriage partner into your life in His own perfect, miraculous way-
and that He doesn't need your help. He doesn't need your fumbling fingers
grabbing the pen back out of His hand & trying to script your own story.

This doesn't mean you remain passive in the process. But your role

is not to frantically search for a spouse & then ask God to bless

your selfishly motivated decisions. Rather, your role is to pray, to
trust, to build your life around Him, to listen to His still, small
voice of guidance... and let Him take care of the rest..."
- Eric & Leslie Ludy, in When God Writes Your Love Story

"Be assured, if you walk with Him,
& look to Him & expect help from Him,
He will never fail you."
- George Mueller

 Obviously this theme of total surrender to Him & dependence on Him applies to all of life (& not just your love life!)

Speaking from experience, believe me, it is well worth the wait!!! :) Press on, to win the prize! 1 Corinthians 9:24-27

Read Part II to this series here- "What to DO While You Wait???"
----------------

Related blog posts to read-

Don't Waste Your Life (January 2013)
Waiting Patiently For the Lord's Timing (October 2012)
Guard Your Heart (October 2012)
Surrendering Our Precious Dreams to God (September 2012)
Walk with the Wise (July 2012)
Are You a Woman That a Man Would Die For? (July 2012)
Fully Surrendering Our Dreams to God (July 2012)
Why Modesty? Part I (May 2012)
What Is "True Modesty"? Part II (May 2012)
Contentment (May 2012)
 Do Not Give Up! (March 2012)
Contentment (Waiting on God) (November 2011)
Surrendering Yourself to God (November 2011)
Obeying the Voice of God (November 2011)
Do Hard Things! (October 2011)

Contentment

We all go through a period of WAITING in our lives. Waiting on people. Waiting on different events to take place. But how do we usually react to these events & circumstances, I wonder?

Oftentimes, I think that us humans think in "if...then" statements. Let me explain. "If I was _________ [insert your definitive here], then I'd be happy." Or "If I had ______________, then I'd be happy."

What are you waiting on? Insert your own word above- Marriage, children, an answer to prayer, healing, more money, a new truck, a bigger home, children moved out (shame!), kids married, grandchildren, retirement, Heaven... whatever it might be.

A couple of weeks ago, I was thinking about contentment ("Am I really content with where God has me right now?") I verbally said, "Yes, Lord, I think I am content." [Like I'd mastered that character trait- Yeah right!!!] It was as if the Lord said "Oh, you really think so, do you? Well, we'll see about that..."

These past 3 weeks have been very hard. It seems like it's been one trial, test, doubt & affirmation after another... God has been SO Faithful through it all. He's been revealing character trait upon Truth upon attribute after another... It's been hard (to be sure!), but it's been SOOOOO GOOD at the same time!!!

This is what I feel like God has been teaching me. I hope this is a blessing to you!

1) My Strength, satisfaction, joy, peace, identity & happiness is found in Him ALONE. Nothing else will fill my insatiable desire for Him, no matter how hard I might try to pursue other, lesser things than Him. Searching for lesser things to fill the void only leaves me more empty, drained, frustrated & depressed. It isn't worth it.

2) "God is most glorified when man is most satisfied in Him." - John Piper. This statement works both ways- "Man is most satisfied when God is most glorified."

3) God has not failed me yet. Why do I doubt Him now?

4) God's Plan is SO much bigger & better than anything I could ever think up. His ways are Higher. He has a Plan & Purpose for all of this. Why can't I just trust Him in this???

5) I needed a fresh Perspective- A reminder of how GREAT God is & how utterly small I am. A reminder of His attributes, character, Promises & Truth. What a better place to find these things than in His very own Word to us??? I also needed to spend more time in communion with Him, namely in prayer.

6) I had to cease striving in my own strength. It wasn't until I stopped trying, sat silently before Him & waited patiently for His response before I heard Him speak.

7) I found out very quickly that I am NOT ready for the "next step of my life," as I had (mistakenly) previously thought I was. There is still much work for God to do upon my heart, mind, words & actions.

Next, some questions-Are you content?What are you waiting on God for?Are you "ready to wait"?What is stopping you from waiting on Him?Where do you desire God to act in your life?Do your desires line up with God"s desires for your life?Do you trust that He has your best in mind- for your good & His glory?Are you listening to His voice & following His direction?

Lastly, some Scripture to encourage us. God is bringing to mind specifically:

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been Called according to His Purposes." - Romans 8:28

"Delight yourself in the Lord & He will give you the desires of your heart." - Psalm 37:4

"Be still & know that I am God..." - Psalm 46:10a

"For everything there is a Season & a Time for everything under Heaven." Ecclesiastes 3:1

"Whom have I in Heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides You. My flesh & my heart may fail, but God is the Strength of my heart & my portion forever." - Psalm 73:25-26

"I wait patiently of the Lord, He will turn to me & hear my cries. He will lift me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud & mire. He will set my feet on a Rock & give me a firm place to stand. He is putting a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will SEE & fear & put their trust in the Lord." - Psalm 40:1-3

"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up." - Galatians 6:9

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer & petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 4:6-7

"Wait for the Lord, be strong & take heart & wait for the Lord." - Psalm 27:14

"He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the Day of Jesus Christ." - Philippians 1:6

"It is in Christ that we find out who we are & what we are living for." - Ephesians 1:12

"Seek His Will in all you do & He will direct your paths." - Proverbs 3:6

"For My Thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,' declares the Lord. 'For as the Heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways & My Thoughts than your thoughts." - Isaiah 55:8-9

"So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are temporary, but the things that are unseen are eternal." - 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

Other Scriptures for meditation: Jeremiah 29:11, 2 Corinthians 12:9, Colossians 3:2, Hebrews 11:1, Hebrews 12:1-3, Philippians 4:13, Proverbs 2:3-5, Lamentations 3:21-23, Mark 8:36, Matthew 6:21, Colossians 3:17, Psalm 34:17-18, 2 Corinthians 1:3-4, Psalm 84:10-12, Isaiah 54:10, Habakkuk 3:17-18, Hebrews 13:5-6, Matthew 28:20, Isaiah 30:15, Psalm 62:1-2, 1 Peter 5:10, Proverbs 3:5-6, Psalm 37:7, John 16:33, 1 John 5:14-15, 1 Corinthians 13:12, 1 Corinthians 10:13, Psalm 36:5-8, Isaiah 40:28-31, Isaiah 65:24, Hebrews 12:11, Hebrews 4:16 etc.

Now, on this side of the trial, I can now say I AM CONTENT with where God has me right now. God is Faithful. And He is Good.