Ok, time for me to fess up.  I was not looking forward to doing this chapter.  Let’s just say that patience isn’t my best virtue, especially when it comes to my being single.  I feel that the fact that I am 41 years old, that I have “kids” that I saw be born, getting married,and having their own babies; that I am using wrinkle cream and hair dye more than acne cream and cute hair styles, has qualified me for having “enough” patience and I am growing tired of it.  I have to stop myself from rolling my eyes when I hear a 25-year-old complaining about being single.  I think to myself, “Try adding 16 more years of being single and see how it feels!”.  Now, with all that being said…I KNOW THIS IS WRONG…I am not proud of it.  It is a quality I do not like in myself, and it is something I am completely willing to work through while we go through this chapter.  I don’t want to stay here, it’s not fun.  So let’s start unpacking this together, are you with me?

I enjoyed the story of Janis and Linda from the book, and I literally laughed out loud with Linda’s “Great is Thy Faithfulness” line.  Now both their stories ended with happy marriages and they both enthusiastically agreed it was worth the wait.  We don’t know how old they were, how long their wait was, but it did seem like it was a painful process for them, even though they joked about things and kept the faith.  They stayed strong in their convictions and were “rewarded” for that.  It does make me curious about what would have happened if one had married and the other hadn’t, or if they were both still waiting, but that is a topic for another day!

What did speak to me, in a big megaphone type way, was the line, “Many women have waited and won.  Many women have lost faith and compromised.”  How many of us have put time constraints on God?  Or at least thought “If ‘x’ doesn’t happen by a certain date, then I am just going to ‘y’”  I used to have an age limit of 40 to have another child, and as that approached I moved the “deadline” to 42.  I will admit to thinking that if there isn’t someone in my life by 45 I will loosen my standards.  Now would I actually go through with these random deadlines, I’m honestly not sure.  I may have just moved it up, the way I did the baby one.  I don’t know.  What I do know now, as much as it is painful to think about, as scary as it is to consider, I have to trust in God’s timeline.  I can not start taking things into my own hands because of a self-imposed deadline.  I need to trust that God is taking care of things in my best interest and that I need to continue to be a Lady of Patience.  I am opening myself up to stretching and growing with all of you this week.

LET’S PRAY

Jesus I call on You today,  Thank You for always having our best interest at heart, even when it is difficult for us.  I know that our Father loves us and only wants the best for us.  Please help those of us who struggle with patience.  Help us trust in You, help us enjoy the journey.  You know our hurts, take our hearts in Your hands and care

YOUR ASSIGNMENT

Please share whether or not your struggle bring patient in your single life.  If you do, what are the fears and struggles?  If not, what strategies have you developed to cope?  Also, do you think age influences patience?

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Our Next

Single Women’s Online Bible Study

“Captivating: Unveiling the Mystery of a Woman’s Soul”

by John & Stasi Eldgredge

Begins January 6, 2013

To sign up for this Online Bible Study, click HERE and follow the instructions. You will also be given a link to where you can purchase this bible study. We’re looking forward to studying “Captivating” with you!!