Valentine's Day has come and gone. Our blood sugar has spiked from all of that chocolate and some of us never received what we were actually craving—someone else's love.
I'd like to propose a radical change. Instead of labeling February 14th, Valentine's Day next year, I think we should rebrand it "Craving Day." The entire holiday is engineered to cause us to crave: chocolate, love, passion, romance, intimacy, and fancy, steak dinners eaten under candlelight.
We were made to crave love and that God is uniquely able to meet that need.
As a married women, if I'm not diligent, I can sift through a bowl of candy message hearts . . . "love you," "kiss me," "ask me," "dear one" and find myself longing for a marriage that is as sugary sweet as the candy itself. For the single women in my world, the craving sometimes seems to be even more intense. The young women on True Woman's sister blog, LiesYoungWomenBelieve.com, have told me that while they seek God's will for their romantic lives and wait for His timing, they sometimes struggle to find purpose in the single years. If you find yourself floating in that boat, Craving Day may have you feeling like an afterthought.
With that in mind, I wanted to pass along these commitments from a great resource from Nancy titled, Singled Out For Him: Embracing the Blessings, and the Challenges of Singleness. They are worthy resolutions for women in all stations of life to consider as we seek to crave God's best for us.
Contentment is a choice. True joy is not the result of having everything I want but of gratefully receiving exactly what God has given me.
"Each one has his own gift from God, one in this matter and another in that" (1 Cor. 7:7).
The Scripture teaches that both marriage and singleness, like children, are gifts from God. To some, He gives the gift of marriage; to others, He gives the gift of singleness. Either way, we are to receive our marital status as a gift. This gift does not come from some distant relative who has no idea what we really need; it comes from a gracious God who loves us and gives the very best gifts to any of His children who leave the choice with Him.
"But I want you to be without care. He who is unmarried cares for the things of the Lord—how he may please the Lord. But he who is married cares about the things of the world—how he may please his wife. There is a difference between a wife and a virgin. The unmarried woman cares about the things of the Lord, that she may be holy both in body and in spirit. . . . And this I say for your own profit, not that I may put a leash on you, but for what is proper, and that you may serve the Lord without distraction" (1 Cor. 7:32–35).
If you are single, this is not a time in limbo, waiting for the right partner to come along so we can get on with our lives. Those years of singleness provide an incredible and unique opportunity to be devoted to Christ and His kingdom in a way that married men and women simply do not have the freedom to pursue.
"He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna . . . to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD" (Deut. 8:3).
All of us long for security and a certain level of creature comforts. Sometimes God is pleased to provide far more than we actually need. But sometimes He allows us to "do without"—to experience unfulfilled longings—so that we might come to recognize our need for Him. The sin is not in having the longings but in demanding that our longings be met here and now. Not until we are united with the Lord Jesus in heaven will all our longings be fulfilled and all the empty spaces of our hearts be filled.
"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God" (Matt. 5:8).
Lack of moral discipline is one of the greatest disqualifiers of those who run the Christian race. On the other hand, a commitment to moral purity is essential to experiencing the fullness of blessing that God intends for us. Jesus said, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God" (Matt. 5:8). The apostle Paul makes it clear that the will of God for every believer is that we be morally pure, that we abstain from every form of immorality (1 Thess. 4:3).
- I am committed to receiving my marital status as a gift from God.
- I am committed to serving Christ with all my time, abilities, and energy.
- I am committed to relinquishing all my expectations of material, physical, and emotional security.
- I am committed to developing personal discipline.
"No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it" (Heb. 12:11).
Not only is physical discipline important, but spiritual discipline is vital. Godliness, spiritual maturity, and intimacy with God do not just "happen." They are the fruit of conscious, disciplined choices and habits. Paul told Timothy to "exercise yourself toward godliness" (1 Tim. 4:7). Spiritual disciplines such as worship, praise, Bible study, prayer, Scripture memorization, and fasting can help develop a vital, rich relationship with God, resulting in godly character and a fruitful life.
- I am committed to being morally pure.
Married or single, if we let it, Craving Day can serve as an annual reminder that we were made to crave love and that God is uniquely able to meet that need. God is love, in fact. He is loving to the core. You are loved by Christ and empowered by Him to live out these commitments.
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