Pray While You’re Prey Weekly Devotions for Singles
We do not spend our entire life on top of the mountain. There will always be peaks and valleys to life. The reassuring fact for Christian singles is that every situation in our lives is used to for something beautiful. Every time of trial and testing can lead to a time of beauty and blessing. My pastor once said to me, “Life has ebbs and flows and you can begin to enjoy it as soon as you learn to ride the waves.” In order to have peace in our lives, we have to understand that God has a purpose in every season. This season of singleness is not the result of God loving you any less than He loves those whom He has allowed to get married. Singleness can be seen as a time of blessing or a time of testing. The results of this time when we belong to God and God alone will be beautiful. Being single gives us the opportunity to get to know ourselves and our God more intimately. It is a blessing that allows us to pursue dreams that may not be possible if we had the concerns that come along with having a family. During my time of singleness, I have had the opportunity to see different places in the world. I studied abroad and visited London, Paris, Madrid, and Milan. I have discovered places that I love to visit here in the U.S., like Providence, Rhode Island and Savannah, Georgia. I am not saying that it would not have happened if I had a family. But, there was beauty in being free to discover what the world has to offer. Being single gives God the opportunity to uncover the places in our lives that we still need to work on before we are in a committed relationship. Singleness is a place where God can test our commitment to Him. He can find out if our focus on Him is because He is the center of our joy or if it is because we have not other options. I have failed this test several times. God allows someone in my life as a romantic interest and before I know it, I have forgotten about all of the promises I made to Him. The fantastic thing about God as a teacher is that He allows retakes on His tests and they are always open book. There is beauty in fixing our flaws before we enter into a relationship with another person. No matter whether we see singleness as a time of blessing or a time of testing or both, God makes it beautiful. If we take a moment to stop complaining or lusting after things that are not meant for us in this season, we can become content with the plan that God has for us right now. He hears your thoughts and prayers and He knows the desires of your heart. God wants you to experience the most beautiful version of your dreams that is possible, and He will make it so in His time. Prayer Thank You, God for being in control of time and every season of my life. Please forgive me for being impatient as You make everything in my life beautiful. Lord, please help me to humbly accept everything You are trying to show me in this season. In Jesus’ Name, Amen *Scripture quotations are from the New International Version ©1984, unless otherwise indicated.
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Pray While You’re Prey Weekly Devotions for Singles
There have been many times that I have thought that my singleness and childlessness is a punishment for everything that I have done wrong in my life, especially concerning relationships. I have felt that there is no possible way that God would ever give me the opportunity to marry again because I was unfaithful during my marriage. I have felt that God would never give me the opportunity to date again because I was unable to keep my vow to remain abstinent in past relationships. I have been tortured by the thought that I will never have children because, in a moment of irresponsibility, I prayed that I would rather never be pregnant than be pregnant at that time. But, as awful as the mistakes are that I have made, God’s forgiveness covers them all. God does not lie. If His Word says, He removes our sins as far as the east is from the west, then that means that He forgives and He forgets. Yes, we still have circumstances in our lives that remind us of our indiscretions, but those circumstances are consequences of disobedience; they are not God’s way of lording our failures over us. If we have sincerely asked God for forgiveness, He is faithful in His forgiveness and forgetfulness. So, why do we dwell on the past and sins that have been erased? For me, I know that the concept is difficult to grasp. It is hard to accept that anyone can love me so much. It is unfathomable that someone cares enough about me to clean up all of the filthy places in my life. I believe we find all of this so incredible because we know that we, in and of ourselves, cannot exhibit this type of love. We struggle to forgive others and to forgive ourselves. Nonetheless, as complex as this kind of love is to understand and display, this is the kind of love that God gives to us and through us, and once we accept that we are forgiven, we can have peace in our lives and move forward. Now, of course, the devil is beside himself with glee every time we doubt God’s forgiveness. Satan wants us to live in the past. Our past is his greatest weapon because he has no idea what our future holds. Our enemy wants us to feel beaten, broken, and blasphemous. If he can keep us feeling like God cannot love us, then we will not love ourselves. When we do not love ourselves, it is impossible to love others properly. Recognize this lie from the pits of hell and know that you are forgiven. You are loved by God. No one can take that love and forgiveness away. The only person that God ever said was, “a man after My own heart,” was an adulterer and a murderer. This does not mean that sin is acceptable; it does mean that God looks in the heart. And, if we, like David, are truly repentant, God forgives us, forgets the sin, and forms a future for us according to His Will. Prayer Thank You, God for Your forgiveness. Please forgive me for the times that I have sinned and for the times I have refused to forgive those who sin against me. Lord, please help me to be confident in the face that I am forgiven and that You have forgotten. In Jesus’ Name, Amen *Scripture quotations are from the New International Version ©1984, unless otherwise indicated.
Pray While You’re Prey Weekly Devotions for Singles
Olympian Lori “Lolo” Jones, 29, made headlines a little while ago, and not because she made it to the London Olympics, where she could redeem herself in the 100-meter hurdles, after having fallen while in the lead at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Lolo was in the headlines on the news, on the radio, on the Internet because she said that staying a virgin is harder than training for the Olympics. Now, I am not what anyone would consider an athlete; I played three years of sub-par volleyball in eighth through tenth grade and I did win the Presidential Physical Fitness Award in sixth grade, but that is the extent of my athletic ability. When I watch track stars, or any other athlete for that matter, I cannot imagine the level of training that they go through to win races on the national and international levels. So, when she says that it is difficult, but staying pure is even more difficult, you know that staying a virgin is not easy. Many people wanted to chalk Lolo’s virginity up to some training ritual, but she very clearly stated that she does not intend to have sex before marriage because of her relationship with Christ. Now, people want her and Tim Tebow, the world’s most famous virgin, to date. I am not really interested in Lolo’s potential love life with Timmy, but her love life with Jesus is inspiring. Lolo Jones is right. Staying pure is complicated. It is complicated if you have never had sex. It is complicated when you are in a relationship. It is especially complicated if you have had sex and are trying to live obediently. God is not a cruel god. He is not trying to keep something wonderful and magical from us, but He wants us to enjoy it as married people. God knows the complexities of having a sexual relationship with someone. Those complexities are best handled by people who have committed themselves to each other through marriage. Lolo and Tim get that. It took me a long time, and several slip-ups, but I get it, too. To know that you are being obedient to God and showing Him that you love Him more than any person on this earth makes purity more precious than an Olympic gold medal or a Superbowl ring. You might not feel like you are capable of living according to God’s Will as it applies to sexual intimacy, but God is able to help you through it. It is one of many narrow doors of Christianity, but the benefits of obedience far outweigh the momentary pleasure of disobedience. No one said it is easy, but it is totally worth it! NOTE: I wrote this several weeks ago and it just so happens that it is getting posted as the Olympics are wrapping up. Tell me that's not God's timing. Lolo didn't take the medal stand, but I am confident that God has a bigger prize for her than silver, gold or bronze! Prayer Thank You, God for giving me the opportunity to show You how much I love you by keeping my body pure. Please forgive me for the times when I have not lived according to Your Will. Lord, please help me to be strong enough to refrain from sex until marriage. In Jesus’ Name, Amen *Scripture quotations are from the New International Version ©1984, unless otherwise indicated.
Pray While You’re Prey Weekly Devotions for Singles
Seven years ago, after re-reading Proverbs 18:22, I had the revelation that God’s intention was not for me to be constantly seeking the attention and affection of a man. He did not want my time to be consumed with husband-hunting. The only thing I should be desperately seeking for on any given day is more of God. This is not just a word that He spoke to me. He wants us all to live in the natural order of His creation, which means that women should not ever be chasing after men. So, after many years of setting traps for men, I hung up my hunting gear. I would sit back and wait for “him,” whoever he is. I would not be calling someone unless I was returning a previous call. I would not be initiating any kind of contact for that matter. I would not seek out attention. I would be obedient and let him do all of the finding. About a year after this declaration, someone found me. I stuck to my guns. He approached me, he called me, and he planned our first date. Everything was going fantastically. Until the day after the first date, when he didn’t call after he said he would. So, I called because I thought maybe he had lost my number. When we officially started dating, I made most of the contact and most of the plans, despite my best efforts to wait on him. I had quickly slipped back into chase mode. And, it should come as no surprise that we broke up. In spite of the good times that we had, the relationship was draining because I was always pursuing and not allowing him the opportunity to pursue me. I was giving a lot of effort and not allowing him the chance to put forth effort. I had disrupted the natural order of relationships. As a result, I am single. In relationships prior to this one, the biblical implications of who should find whom had not really sunk in, but I went into this relationship knowing the right thing to do and still choosing my own way. That is always a recipe for disaster. This is not about being coy or playing hard to get. This is about being obedient to God. And, when you know better, you must do better because God will not bless disobedience. For the brief time that I was letting him find me, it was exhilarating, but exhilarating quickly turned into exhausting when I stopped listening to God. God wants us to be in healthy relationships and to be married if that is our desire. God wants our first allegiance to be to Him; however, He is loving and kind and He understands the innate need that many of us have to be with a companion. God created us in such a way that men enjoy pursuit and women enjoy being pursued. Although it may seem like men enjoy being hunted or women enjoy the role of huntress, the Bible clearly states that the man should do the finding. We must obey God’s Word to enjoy the single life and to have great relationships when it is our time. Prayer Thank You, God for giving me an understanding of Your Word. Please forgive me for not following Your will in my relationships. Lord, please help me to play the role that You intended for me to have while single, dating and once I am married. In Jesus’ Name, Amen *Scripture quotations are from the New International Version ©1984, unless otherwise indicated.
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