To Be (married), Or Not To Be?

To Be (Married), or Not to Be?

An unmarried man can spend his time doing the Lord’s work and thinking how to please him. But a married man has to think about his earthly responsibilities and how to please his wife. . . . A woman who is no longer married or has never been married can be devoted to the Lord and holy in body and in spirit. But a married woman has to think about her earthly responsibilities and how to please her husband. 1 Corinthians 7:32-34

Some of you are single. Now don’t take this the wrong way, but good for you! A lot of the players I worked with in my coaching days were—you guessed it—single.

You may want to be single, or maybe not. You may have thought that your being single was something that was going to change soon, but now you find yourself dealing with the loss of a relationship and the accompanying pain, or perhaps the beginning of a new one and all the hope it seems to bring. Maybe you’re simply too young to be thinking about any relationship now at all.

So often in our society we view being single as a burden. We should be married. We want to be married. Why aren’t we married? That isn’t God’s attitude toward the matter, however.

As you can see from today’s verses, the apostle Paul viewed marriage as a potential distraction from doing the Lord’s work, and Jesus told His disciples that “God helps” those who stay unmarried (Matthew 19:11). Jesus wasn’t denigrating marriage; He was simply indicating that the unmarried often have greater potential for ministry, as Paul says.

We spend so much time talking about finding someone to marry. And then we spend a lot more of our time in helping those relationships grow so as to maintain a healthy marriage; and we should do all we can do for our marriages to continue to grow. We need healthy marriages because they are the foundation for healthy families and the health of our society.

There’s nothing wrong with being married. But take your time. Don’t rush into things if you’re not married, because there’s nothing wrong with being single. Instead of spending so much time on forays designed to find a spouse, spend it with the Lord. You’ll find it easier to stay focused on the Lord and what He has planned for your life—which may include marriage.

If you are married, you need to make sure you are supporting your single friends as well. Is there someone you can reach out to and affirm as a child of God?

Uncommon Key > If you are single, don’t rush into a relationship that isn’t part of God’s plan. Your time may be coming . . . or maybe God trusts you with singleness! Whatever your situation, prayerfully give it to Him.