February 14 has come again–and with it, scads of single women hole up in their houses to pout over chocolates they’ve bought themselves (or else they gather together to collectively bemoan/celebrate their singleness, preferably in someone’s home so the outside world doesn’t have to see their desperation.)
I did the latter last night (although we only spent about ten minutes bemoaning–and that brought up by the one married woman in our midst!)
Today, I’ll spend the day working as usual, hopefully giving God thanks for the rich life He’s given me right now-and trusting that His plan for my future is just right.
I was blessed this past week to read Monica’s encouragement to single women:
“Remember Abraham, who waited over 25 years for the fulfillment of the promise – when he tried to make it happen on his own, he created a whole mess that carries on in the Middle East even into the present day. God still fulfilled His promise to Abraham, however, and will fulfill every promise to us today (I Corinthians 1:20). If we hold onto those promises He has made, and resist the passions of the world, we will experience the joy of peaceful obedience to the One who satisfies the soul.“
Despite our teasing about maybe “just happening” to have our cars break down outside of the Christian school that (allegedly) has two single male teachers, I know that it is better to wait on the Lord–and to trust that He will fulfill my every need and conform my every desire to His.
My brother Daniel has encouraged me to post links to last year’s “Love Month”, lest any readers should benefit from my experiences and expertise (Hah!) in the world of singleness and relationships.
So, without further ado: Love Month 2010
- Talking Back: Love Month (An introduction)
- Only Human (How no man or woman can fulfill what God Himself intended to fill)
- Do you believe in fairy tales? (A look at the ultimate in love stories–God’s pursuit of His church)
- Prince Song (A song about the fairy tale of God’s pursuit of His church)
- Beyond the Fairy Tale (The true story of God’s pursuit)
- The Errant Bride (God’s Old Testament pursuit of His errant bride)
- Beloved (A song a friend mentioned)
- Accepting the Proposal (An invitation to join in the Great Romance)
- Embracing the “Gift” (on the gift of singleness)
- The Journey to Contentment (part of my own story)
- Chasing after my wild-man lover (part 2 of my own story)
- I don’t feel (on learning contentment when you don’t feel content)
- Always a guest, never a bride (a guest post by my sister)
- Skills in Singleness (What to do during the wait)
- Absolute Purity (what it means to be pure)
- Men are pigs, don’t encourage them (about modesty)
- Temple Ornaments (a second look at modesty)
- Ladies and Gentlemen (on complementarianism)
- Fulfilling our Roles (living in the roles God has given us)
- Purity of Heart (my Mom guest posts about lust)
- Taking issue with lust (my own post about lust)
- It’s hard to stop a train (Avoiding fornication)
- Dating isn’t for kids (How to know if you’re ready to date)
- No Regret Relationships (my thoughts on how to have them)
- Breaking up is hard to do (some tips on how to do it for the glory of God)
- I’ve LOVED it (a little wrap-up)
Please feel free to comment on any of these posts. Even though they’re a year old, I’d love to continue to foster dialogue about singleness, dating, and purity.
Don’t forget to take a look at Barbara H’s meme “The Week in Words”, where bloggers collect quotes they’ve read throughout the week.
I can remember doing that kind of thing for a bit in college — “just happening” to be a certain somewhere when a certain someone was supposed to be, hoping to “run into” each other and have a conversation — but that seemed so manipulative, and I felt, as you do, it was better to just wait for the Lord to bring about His will in His time.
I’ll have to come back and look at these links another time.
Thanks for sharing these links. I’ve already clicked on 4 to read right now!
:)
I loved most of them that I did get to read last month and as I commented on one of them, I am going to encourage my 14 year old daughter to read some of them. There is great wisdom here! Happy you liked my “encouraging words”. I wish to communicated to my daughters that it is OK to be single. God has a plan for you. You are loved! Although we may crave “love” from one of the opposite sex, be patient, God will bring Mr (or Miss) Right along.
The car breaking down thing was SO a good idea and you know it :)
I’m grateful for the trust and patience you exhibit. I’m not sure if you read the comment I left on one of my posts in response to your comment, but I HAVE been thinking about you specifically as I’ve done my February theme. Thank you for being an example of contentment and “blooming where you’re planted.” All of us–married, single, whatever–can learn from that!