Life Lessons Learned on the Way to Marriage

Recently I started getting an e-magazine called Ladies in Waiting by a single girl named Sarah Ann. I don't agree with everything that is said, and they do use the wrong Bible version sometimes. When you sign up as a member you have access to all the older magazine where there is a vast array of information in these articles. I only got them to read for a while but the magazine is made up of articles submitted by girls around the world. The one topic interested me, Content in the Here and Now. So I wrote an article for it. I really enjoyed doing it and the next magazine I wanted to write for, as it had to do with missions, but I was too busy with schoolwork.

I was very surprised by the topic for the upcoming issue of Ladies in Waiting,Preparing for Marriage and Keeping Pure, because I am in this stage of life.I've been wanting to post some of these lessons I've learned so I decided to post it in incriments like I wrote it for the magazine.

I am engaged to be married to the most wonderful godly man that could have been created to complete me. Less than four months remain until the wedding, and I am also graduating from Bible college in less than 3 weeks, my life is busy and sometimes I rush about so much I have to learn things the hard way. There are things you never really thought about or could really fathom as a single lady, that all changes when God brings that special person into your life. Your life has a whole new focus, you want to be the best person you can be for that person and this is where one of the first lessons comes into play:

1. To be the best person for your future spouse, you must strive to be the best you can for God.
   If I am living my life as the woman God wants me to be than I will be the woman Matthew needs me to be. Rather than trying to live to please the people in my life I must strive to please God and all other’s needs will be fulfilled.

Lessons From A Dandelion

One bright, beautiful spring morning a lady took a walk in the woods. She sat down to meditate upon the goodness of God in giving such a lovely world to His children. She thought, "How happy we should be in this life while preparing for the life in the world to come."

Her attention was called to a little well known plant growing nearby. It was the dandelion. There he stood, not with his sunny golden head, but his head already turned to snowy white. His short life was fast drawing to a close. The soft breeze caught up some of his white locks that were ready to fall and bore them away. August winds carried others away and still others, until at last the dandelion stood quite alone. His work was done. All that was left would soon molder back to earth and be forgotten.

But was about the little seeds among the white locks that had been carried away by the breeze? Some of them fell not far away, while others sailed and sailed in the air and fell nobody know where, there to take root and grow into other plants.

"Just so it is with our lives," thought the lady. "Though we shall live here but a brief period of time and may be seen by few people, yet our influence will reach here and there and far away because our words and deeds, when we have returned to dust and have been forgotten."

Just Be Who God Wants You To Be!

I was reading in my devotional book, A Woman From God's Perspective by Anna Mary Byler, and came across a quote she had from A. W. Tozer and thought it was really good.

"When we surrender ourselves to God's meekness, we will not care what
people will think of us, as long as God is pleased.
Than what we are will be everything;
what we appear will take its place far down the scale of interest for us.
Apart from sin we have nothing of which
to be ashamed."

Since I mentioned my devotional book, I thought I would put a plug in for other devotionals. Devotional books should not replace the reading of the Word for yourself, but they are a nice accompaniment. A while back I mentioned the book Being a Girl Who Serves, by Shannon Kubiak Primicerio and what a phenomenal book it was. My sister just recently finished reading it and also said that it was amazing. About 2 months ago I also found her other two devotional books for girls, God Called a Girl and Being a Girl Who Loves. I haven't had a chance to read them yet, though Liv is reading the latter. Not every writer you will read will right right on with you, you need to have discernment as you read these books, because they are just the ideas of a person, not the inspired Word. I just thought I would put a little word out there about what an encouragement a good devotional book can add to your quiet time with God.

"Each day we must live in constant communication (with God):

that is performing all our outward service

our inward self on it's knees (in humbleness)."

~Benneth Jones~

From With Heart and Hand

Old Love

Is there anything more beautiful in life than a young couple

clasping hand and pure hearts in the path of marriage?

Can there be anything more beautiful than

young love?

Yes, there is a more beautiful thing. It is the spectacle of an old man and an old woman finishing their journey together on that path.

Their hands are gnarled, but still clasped;

Their faces are seamed, but still radient;

Their hearts are physically bowed and tired,

but still strong in love and devotion for one another.

Yes, there is a more beautiful thing than young love.

Old love

Have You Had Your Beauty Sleep?

We’ve heard people say it all the time, “I need my beauty sleep.”
Now we know that all the sleep in the world doesn’t make someone become more beautiful,
…or does it?
After working the one week and getting very little rest I began to think about that saying, but in a different light. I found myself becoming very irritable and easy to spout off hurtful words. Then I noticed I became more emotional and run down making me feel like crying or just falling in a hole and sleeping for days. (Yes, this was the point I was at!) So I looked at that saying with a spiritual light, what are you like when you are tired and worn out?
God’s Word tells us that we need to guard our heart because that’s what comes out in our action.

“Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life” (Proverbs 4:23)

If I am not taking care of my heart that will be evidenced in my life by my actions. And if I am not getting the proper amount of sleep I am not functioning well. Which means I am not understanding what I am reading in my devotions and when I try to pray I become weary and tired. You see the point I am trying to get to is that when I am not getting the physical sleep I need, I’m not taking care of the body God has given me. I cannot live my life to please the Lord if all that is coming out in my actions(the evidence of my heart) is ugliness. Thus getting the physical rest we need is helpful to being a beautiful woman of God, not for physical beauty but to be spiritually beautiful.
Remember that spending time with God is important, and spending that time with Him will bring spiritual rest also. Spiritual tiredness puts a strain on our relationship with the Lord and deprives us of the blessings that we could have
.

“Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen,
I will be exalted in the earth.”
Psalm 46:10

So be sure to take time to take care of the temple of God that He’s given you, you may not become more physically beautiful with sleep, but it will help you become a more beautiful woman of God. Being alert physically helps you become more alert to the spiritual truths God has to show you. Are you getting your beauty sleep?

Contentment - A Life Long Journey

Contentment- we are all in that stage of life. I realized earlier this year that we never reach a point in our life where we are completely content . You can try to convince yourself that once you get to a certain point, like marriage, you’ll be content. The Lord has shown me that it doesn’t end there. We are all human beings and most times very fleshly ones at that. We are always desiring something else.
Growing up it was my dream and prayer that I would marry a godly man, that God would help me know the right man without me “trying others” and being in a lot of relationships. This is a normal desire and there is nothing wrong with wanting to marry a godly man, but we have to be content where the Lord has us. If you are single right now, God wants you to be content there. And contentment isn’t just saying, “I’m fine with this stage of life because I have to be, I‘m supposed to be content because that‘s what the Bible says.” God wants us to be happy and joyful, serving Him, not worrying about our future with a godly mate. If we sit around spending too much time on ourselves we dwell on the things we don’t have. Want to know a simple cure for that? Busy yourself serving the Lord and being involved in the lives of those around you.
Recently the Lord has brought a godly man into my life and has worked it out that we and both sets of our parent have the peace of God about a relationship. So over the past few months we have spent time together, getting to know each other and the goals we feel God has for us. For some reason I thought once God brought the godly man He created for me into my life, it would all be great, no more dealing with contentment for a godly mate. Guess what? I was wrong, I found myself content in our relationship but waiting and longing for the moment that he would ask me to marry him. God had to remind me, “Anna, be content where I have you, in a wonderful relationship with a godly man, your engagement time will come.”
Little did I know that less than a month after I was praying about this my man of God was going to propose to me. And it was amazing… better then I could even dream, and now, the next project for me? Being content until the day God has for us to marry, August 20th. And I know that once we are wed I will have other issues of discontentment to deal with: homes, children, money, ect… It’s a normal part of our lives.
We will never reach the point of perfecting ourselves in the area of contentment, but this also means we have to keep bringing that sin to the feet of the cross and let God work it out in our lives.
Embrace where God has you right now, “…for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.” Philippians 4:7. Whatsoever state in the Greek means who, which, or what - that’s you and your circumstances. Content here means 1) sufficient for one’s self, strong enough or processing enough to need no aid or support 2) independent of external circumstances 3) contented with one’s lot, with one’s means, though the slenderest
Be happy with the things God has given you and the way He’s made you “…Be content with such things as ye have…” Hebrews 13:5. The word content in that verse can mean satisfied but also means to be strong in.
Lord willing this may have given you a glimpse of what to look “forward to” or the work you have cut out for yourself. There is great joy and peace from God that comes as a result of being content and rejoicing where God has you in life, who He’s created you to be. Remember- contentment is a lifelong journey, you’ll never arrive at your destination until we find ourselves in Heaven with the King.