Pray While You’re Prey Weekly Devotions for Singles
It seems like I have been thinking about not being single from the day I hit preschool. I still remember my first little crush at the daycare center. We chased each other around the playground, giggled and laughed with each other all day. I just always felt like I was not meant to be alone. In middle school and high school, I was just plain boy crazy. I prayed and prayed that God would send me a boyfriend. I was so boy crazy that, looking back, I am glad that I was nerdy and unattractive because if I had gotten the attention I so desperately craved from a guy, I probably would have given him anything he wanted in return. Fortunately, I was nearly an adult when I made the choice to disobey God and give away my virginity. That decision caused some pain and anguish, but not nearly as much as it would have if it had happened earlier in my life. While that decision was a bad one and it strained my relationship with God, I, eventually, got on the right track. I knew that I wanted to be married. So, I prayed and prayed that God would send me a husband. And, I thought He did. After all, I met my ex-husband at church. Nevertheless, I realized that my decision to marry him was a huge mistake. I was not waiting on the Lord so much as I was just waiting on someone to be willing to marry me. After my marriage, I slipped backwards a bit, but eventually found myself back in a place of obedience. I still wanted to be married; forever married. So, I kept asking and asking. And, I met someone with whom I thought I would spend the rest of my life. Then, I prayed and prayed to God to let him be the one. I asked God, correction, I begged God to let him ask me to marry him. That never happened and the relationship ended. I was crushed. At that point, I just wanted God to make the hurt go away. So, I started talking to Him and I started listening to Him. And, I am not sure when it happened, but one day, I stopped asking. It had been part of my prayers for so long, “And, Lord, please send me a boyfriend…a husband…someone to love me like you love me.” I had felt like once I had a mate, my life would be complete, but after spending time just communing with God, I finally realized that, with Him, my life is already complete. I didn’t have to ask anymore. All I had to do was waiting. And, in my waiting, He would strengthen me. Yes, there would be times when singleness would test my limits, but not to the point of disobeying God and trying to get Him to do my will. I learned to stop asking for what I wanted for me and what God wanted from me, so that I could get what I wanted. I started asking Him what He wants for me. And, I learned how to wait. I do not always like waiting, but I have been waiting for so long, and I have been blessed so heartily in the midst of my waiting, that it seems silly not to continue. We must know and trust that God knows and wants what is best for us. I still ask God for things, even occasionally for a mate, but it is no longer my number one prayer. And, I have certainly learned to wait for His answers to all prayers. Prayer Thank You, God for the wisdom to know that You know what and who is best for me. Please forgive me for trying to answer my own prayers rather than waiting on You. Lord, please help me to remember to ask that Your Will be done in my life, not mine. 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
If you found a lamp, rubbed it, and a genie popped out saying, “I will grant you three wishes,” what would you wish for? Many people answer that question with, “more wishes!” Some people would wish for money, some would wish for fame, some, especially if they are reading this, might wish for a loving spouse. I would love to be all holier-than-thou and say that I would wish for world peace or something selfless, but I know me better than that. It is okay to fantasize about what you would wish for with your magical wishes; however, too many of us treat God like He is a genie. We treat him as if He is responsible for giving us our every desire. All we have to do it name it and claim it or blab it and grab it. God is NOT a genie. Yes, God wants us to come to Him with our every desire. But, God also wants us to be so in tune with Him that His desires for our lives become our desires. A genie lives in a bottle. He is summoned out when someone rubs the lamp, and then, he grants the wishes and goes back to the lamp. Can you imagine what this world would be like if God was limited to only acting upon our selfish whims? I do not even want to think about it. What if God was confined to a small lamp? The God I serve is way too big for that! Still, we read verses like Mark 11:24 and misinterpret it to mean that we can just make our three wishes, believe with all of our hearts, God will say the magic words and then our desire will appear. That is not how it works. If that were the case, yours truly would not be single and childless. We can absolutely ask God for whatever we desire, but we need to understand that if it is not in His Will, He will say “no.” When Jesus asked God to spare Him from the crucifixion, God said, “no.” Notice what Jesus prayed, though, He said, “Nevertheless, not My will, but Thy will be done.” That is the part we forget. We ask God for a myriad of people, places and things to come into our lives, but we give no thought to the fact that God wants us to live our best life; the life that will bring Him glory. Ask, seek, and knock; the Word of God says you can. Just be sure that you are asking for more of God, seeking His face and knocking on doors of opportunity to be more like Him. Then, you will have everything you desire and even more than you could ever imagine. Prayer Thank You, God for hearing my prayers of supplication. Please forgive me for being selfish when I make requests to You. Lord, please help me to know the desires You have for my life and to request that which will draw me closer to You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen *Scripture quotations are from the New International Version ©1984, unless otherwise indicated.
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