Category:

Dating

A Prayer for You

Posted on September 29, 2017

Here’s a little prayer for you to keep you encouraged:

Thank You, Yahweh, for Your wisdom and guidance. You truly are the only living God. You are just and merciful. You designed us in our mother’s wombs. You’ve called us from the beginning of time to do Your will and walk in Your way. You’ve told us to walk forth in expectation, to not be afraid of what You have given us, to expect restoration. Without faith, it is impossible to please You. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. We are not fighting against flesh and blood but against spiritual wickedness in high places. The weapons of our warfare are not human. We gain our strength through Elohim-the creator, Abba Father, Yahweh our God.  We desire a close personal relationship with You, Yahweh, the creator, the Awesome One. The One who gave us Jesus, the One who gave us the truth.Thank You, Father, for our different journeys that all lead to You. Thank You, Father, that although some may grow faster than others, we all are on the road that leads to You. Thank You for ordering our steps on this day. Thank You that we don’t have to worry about tomorrow. You are the way, the truth, and the life. No one goes to the Father except by You, Jesus. Make Your will the desires of our heart. When we are in You and obedient to Your word, then our desires will have no choice but to line up with Your will. Thank You for our spouses, Father. Help us to not disqualify anyone based on the questions they ask, but only on the fruit, they produce. You have raised a generation of men and women that are holy and know what to look for in a spouse. Let neither party be disqualified based on our own expectations.

Help us to not lean unto our own understanding, but acknowledge You in all our ways so that You will make our paths straight. Father, we are all growing to know You better day by day. None of our walks are the same. As long as You’re the head then we will be satisfied. Help us as single Christians to be virtuous and discerning. Help us to not be a counterfeit ourselves. Let us seek a genuine connection with You so that we won’t be led astray. Your children know Your voice. Let us become so acquainted with You that no counterfeit will stand a chance. Let us wait on the Lord so He can renew our strength that we may mount up with wings like eagles, run and not be weary, walk and not faint. Let us not faint for we shall reap the good we sow if we keep walking. Help us to walk into our healing, our ministries, our true selves as You called and chose us to be. For many are called, but few are chosen. We are the chosen few. We are Your children first and foremost. Let no man or thing replace You in our hearts. Continue to be the lamp unto our feet and light on our paths. We pray for Your divine guidance. This is the year to celebrate our Lord. Let us praise Him in advance. Yahweh is our source, our provider, our healer. Let us call upon His name in the time of trouble and in time of great joy. For this is a time of great joy. We walk in expectation of the natural manifestation of completed spiritual tasks. Yahweh, deliver our angels from any trap set by the enemy. We pray Your divine protection over the angels sent to guard and protect us. We pray for Your mercy and strength over the angels sent to deliver our prayers. We pray down all tactics of the enemy. We pray against every tactic designed to hinder our prayers and we declare God’s victory. We pray for the spirit of strength, confidence, peace, and comfort. The enemy shall not prevail. He has already lost, for we are more than conquerors! We don’t even have to fight! God fights on our behalf. As done in heaven, let God’s will be done on earth.

In Jesus’ name, 
Amen.

 

Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

 

Isaiah 40:31(ESV)

But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

Reflection

Posted on September 22, 2017

My birthday is soon and as I reflect back on this past year, I can’t help but get a little emotional. I’ll be 32 years old and I imagined that my life would be so different. I thought I would be married with at least 2 kids and the perfect house, job, and car. In reality, I don’t have any of those things. Not to say that I won’t have it someday, but my life is not turning out the way I expected. So, I asked God what’s wrong with me? I don’t necessarily feel like a failure, but I do believe I’m living below the promises of God. It’s quite frustrating. I want to be content in this season and hold on to the joy and peace I receive from God, but it’s hard to cuddle with peace at night. Sometimes I just want someone there to hold me, or to have the money to travel the world on a whim, but alas, here I am just living. 

So every year when my birthday rolls around, I take stock of my life. Where do I want to be? What do I need to do to get there? This year I don’t know. I have no idea where I should be or what I should be doing. I believe that I know my purpose, but how I do I pursue it? Next year at this time I want to be able to look back on my life and actually feel accomplished. Not that I don’t feel accomplished now, I just feel like something is missing. What is it? It can’t be God. He’s the same yesterday, today, and forever. It has to be me. Maybe I’m not praying enough, or maybe I’m not as faithful as I could be. God promised that he would give me the desires of my heart when I delight in Him. Perhaps I’m not delighting in Him as much as I should. Perhaps I still need to remove idols that are separating my heart from God and the promises He has for me. What more do I need to do? I truly desire God’s will for my life. I want to live for Him. I think I’m doing what I’m supposed to do. So, why does it seem like everyone else gets the promises of God and I’m over here twiddling my thumbs? I feel like time is ticking away. I’m trying to hold on, keep the faith, but some days it’s hard. What is one to do on days like this?

I have to be firm in the belief that God is for me and knows what I need and when I need it.  I have to trust Him. I know that I want His best for my life. So, for now, that means I wait. Someone once asked me what’s the hardest part of being single, and I said the wait. Not knowing when or where anything will happen, but still believing that it will. I think that’s one of the hardest things in life. Now that I’m waiting and believing, I have to put in the work. That’s where I’ve messed up in the past, not doing the necessary work. God’s promises are available to me I just have to go get them. I have to pray, be obedient, study to show myself approved, and have faith. It’s easy to say, but intentionally setting aside time to give to God every day hasn’t been so easy. Distractions are endless and excuses are plentiful. I have to be intentional about spending time with Him. I also have to be OK with letting God be God. Just because my life isn’t turning out the way I expected, doesn’t mean it’s not His best for me. I’m willing to take this time and do the work to grab hold of every one of His promises. I’m willing to wait. When I get weary, I’ll cast my cares on Him so He can give me rest.  When I’m having a hard day, I’ll rest assured in the fact that His grace is sufficient. I don’t have to worry or be anxious about anything because God’s got me.  Until I get those promises, I’m going to keep holding on to that joy and peace. I’m going to take comfort in the fact that next year, I’ll be a better person and more secure in God because I set aside my expectations and trusted Him enough to wait.

 

Our Father, thank You, for Your everlasting love. Help me to hold tight to it while I’m in this season. Search my heart Lord and clean it. Purify me so that I may be closer to You. When I’m feeling restless and tired, help me to cast my cares on You. Change my thought life so that I can think about things that are good, pure, holy, and praiseworthy. Increase my faith. Help me to trust in You more than ever. Let Your will be done in my life. Let my life be used for Your glory.

In Jesus’ name. Amen. 

Philippians 4:4-7 (NLT)

Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon. Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

Patiently Waiting

Posted on September 8, 2017

This a letter I wrote to my future husband. I wrote this letter partly out of frustration and partly as a plea to God for understanding. At the time, someone told me that I was his wife. I didn’t believe it, but I still considered the possibility. As a result, I started questioning my beliefs about love and how it would come. God spoke to me and this letter to my future husband is the result. At the end are a scripture and short prayer that I hope will encourage you as you patiently wait for your future spouse.

Dear Husband,

I always knew that love would be a choice. It was always floating around in the back of my mind somewhere. Today, however, is the first day I really believed it, or should I say accepted it. I get to choose who I love. Looking back, it doesn’t seem like this should be some big revelation, but the way I viewed love and God, I thought I had no choice in the matter. My perception was that God chose who I was supposed to marry, and I had to just live with it. I thought that I had to be with this person, even if they made me shudder. Then I starting thinking, why would God do that to me? Why would he make me wait for “the one” and then I’d be disappointed with him? God wouldn’t do that. God doesn’t do that. I get to choose who I’ll love. If I get to choose, then maybe there isn’t really just one man made for me. I get to choose the best man for me.

I always thought that meeting my husband would be magical. But God isn’t a magician. He doesn’t perform tricks. He is God. I never realized I put God in a magical box and expected Him to recreate some fairy tale fantasy. God revealed love will not come to me that way. I will make a sober decision on who I will love. It may seem cold-hearted but it’s really not. We are called to be sober-minded and vigilant, to not be led by emotions, but by the Holy Spirit. That’s why I said no to someone who recently told me that I was his wife. I chose not to love him in the romantic sense. Everyone has been asking me, why not him? I just say he wasn’t for me, but the truth is I couldn’t imagine myself with someone I don’t want to kiss or touch. I don’t want to be with someone just because he goes to church. From that experience, I’ve been questioning my expectations of love. Are my standards too high? Is it enough that he’s a Christian? Will God provide the rest in time? Will God allow me to look at him lovingly while I shiver in disgust at the thought of anything beyond a hug? God loves me too much to do that to me. He wants me to live and not just exist. That’s why I said no. Maybe the thoughts of some magical, fantastic love are unrealistic, but the reality of no love is unbearable. Is marriage just duty and submission? Is that all I have to look forward to? I know God will do exceedingly and abundantly above what I ask or can even think. So, that loveless and dutiful marriage must be a lie. God doesn’t want that for me. God sent the Holy Spirit to guide me away from that bleak existence. If I had said yes to him, I would have been merely existing, not living.

Thank You, God, for giving me peace and wisdom about that situation. Thank You, Jesus, for coming so that I may have an abundant life. Jesus didn’t come to earth and die on the cross so that I could barely survive or plainly exist. He came so that I could cast my cares, worries, and fears upon Him. His word brings a peace that surpasses all understanding. My heart is so full with the love of God right now. Thank You, God, that although the love I choose may not be magical, it will be heavenly. There may not be a “one” but my spouse will be sent by God. I’m sure you probably considered some others for marriage, but you will choose me. You will choose to pursue me and ask for my hand in marriage. I will choose to say yes. We will choose each other. When I say yes, know that it means that I choose to love you until there is no more me. I’ll still be the dutiful, submissive wife, but our marriage will be filled with love. A love so deep it will be unspeakable at times. The only way to express it will be to show it. The wait will be worth it. We will have a Godly love that glorifies Him. So, until I meet you and choose to love you, I”ll continue to wait patiently. I will be still and know that He is God. I will keep the faith and reap in due season. God is still God and He will do what He said.

 

Heavenly Father,

Allow me to continue to walk in faith. Open my eyes to the truth and don’t allow me to be deceived by the discouraging lies of the enemy. Let my heart have an unshakeable hope for marriage. I will be strong and confident because I wait on the Lord. Thank You, God, for giving me the desires of my heart when I’m obedient to You. Father, I ask for discernment to recognize your will. Faith without works is dead, so help me to work on myself and my perception of love. I pray that I continue to develop and grow in You, Lord. Let your will be done.

In Jesus’ name.

Amen.

1 Peter 5:8-9English Standard Version (ESV)

 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.