A woman’s relationship status does not define her; so being single is not a disease or an indication of something ‘wrong’ with her. This article is not to list a bunch of reasons you are at fault for not being married – as if marriage was something you just bought at the store. As a daughter of God, He is working out your story beautifully; so bask in that. This is, however, for Christian ladies who are ready for marriage but frustrated that they can’t find the right guy, though there seems to be options.
Stop looking for men who have it all figured out
Many Christian ladies want a man that “knows where he is going” but God’s men usually don’t have a clue: Think about that for a moment. Think through the Bible…all the great men that had relationships with God and who he used and blessed usually didn’t have a clue about where they were going and even if they had a clue, their lives for a long time did not reflect that great place God said he was taking them. Just think about it. All the way from Abraham …going to a land he did not know; Joseph having a dream that people would bow down to him but became a slave and then a prisoner; David who was anointed to be King and then lived the next 15 years in the wilderness as a fugitive; Peter the great fisher of men who was barely able to catch fish.
These men would have had a rough time finding a wife today.
God’s men don’t “always” have a direction or know the details. So stop looking for men who have it all figured out!
Here is the solution though. Here is what you should be looking for: Men who can be led by God. (Rom 8:14) Don’t look for a man who already has the best laid plans. Look for one who knows how to follow directions from the best planner.
‘Low risk, high reward’ perspective
Many ladies approach relationships from the perspective of “low risk, high reward”. They want to get the absolute best man with the least amount of risk. They don’t want to put themselves out there at all.
They want the man to take all the risks…to be utterly convinced he wants to be with them before they open up about who they really are. You know who you are…You act like you are the only prize in the equation. He doesn’t know anything about your background but you turned into a private investigator to make sure he is good enough for you. You are financially irresponsible and an impulsive spender, you’re spending insane percentages of your income on your hair, shoes, bags, and your “package” but you want a man who knows how to make and keep money. You have not grown your faith or prayer life to where it needs to be but you want a demon chasing, tongue speaking, Bible spitting warrior of a husband…because “he is the leader of the home”.
You’ve dated a bunch of losers that didn’t work out but he is no-good because he has had several failed relationships too? You want to see him as he is but you cover yourself up in perfectly filtered Instagram pictures, hair extensions, push up bras, makeup and layers of stuff that make it impossible to see who you really are. You are lazy with not much follow-through but you want a man who can stay up all night working on a project. If he put that spotlight on you, would you make the cut?
In essence, many Christian ladies say they have faith but they don’t. They say that God is their source but they are lying. They say that they trust God’s will for their future but they are lying. They don’t. They put their trust in a man. What kind of job he has/can get. How much he is making or can make. They want to make sure he has the “ability to provide”. They want him to have his life utterly figured out…
But there are many great men who haven’t found the employment they have the potential to get. There are others who were living it up until the economy crashed. I have met some who had it all but God insisted they give it up to go and further the gospel.
Don’t be defined by what he has
Many ladies forget that good Christian men look for women who share similar non-romantic, non-spiritual values: Sure he should be romantic and sure he must share those spiritual values but ladies, these Christian brothers are looking for those other character traits as well that speak to the operation of your possible lives together. Dependability, thriftiness, work ethic, time management, hard work, follow-through and so on.
One of the first things we learn about Ruth for example, was her work ethic. (Ruth chapter 2). She knew how to pull her hair back, forget about her nails, roll up her sleeves and get on the grind. She worked really hard and even when she got the attention of the “well established guy with the sensitive heart” she didn’t stop working. She took the break that he offered her and went back to work.
That’s how you earn a man’s respect when you can show him that what he has does not define who you are.
Here is the icing on that cake. Just because Ruth could get down and work, didn’t mean she couldn’t look pretty and tidy up (Ruth 3:3)
Good Christian men know their worth too
Ladies, men are understanding their worth a bit more too. Christian men are getting more and more comfortable attending relationship seminars and getting information about seeking God’s face for a wife. They are realising how powerful of an impact a wife has on the outcome of their lives and ministry, and they are spending more time trying to see what is beneath the surface. They know that a woman can make or break everything. They realise that a woman’s desires can accelerate him towards purpose or derail him.
They are praying more and they are realising that while you still remain a prize, they too are precious in God’s eyes and want to do right by him. They are realising that a wife can make or break a man.
Yes they are praying for a Ruth but they are also praying against Delilah as well.
Many Christian ladies have no testimony with men
A few years ago, an older friend (a number of years older than me) came up to me after a church program and asked me about a lady in my church. Who she was and what she was like as a person.
I didn’t stop talking for minutes. They were married about a year later.
Same thing happened to Ruth. (Ruth Chapter 2:3). Boaz came back from a trip, saw Ruth and asked his foreman “Who is that and who does she belong to”, to which the foreman answered and gave a fantastic testimony of her character. (Vs 11)
Here is a secret ladies, you know how you like a guy and try to keep it to yourself until your girlfriends force a confession out of you? We guys don’t do that. The moment we think we are interested in you, we are telling someone and we are asking around about you and we are asking our male friends/mentors. Because we know they will tell us like it is and of course won’t spread it all around church and make things suddenly awkward or cause all the sisters to start giving the dirty eye next Sunday.
The truth is that even Christian ladies can be toxic sometimes when it comes to how they treat men who they don’t consider a prospect. You forget that when the real prospect comes and is interested in you, he will ask other men. Some who may never have approached you but who have watched you from afar, and yes some who may have had an interest in you but you didn’t like. How did you handle those situations?
Many Christian women want a Proverbs 31 man
That’s not a typo. Pick up your Bible and read Proverbs 31 again with fresh eyes… from the perspective of the character of that woman and you will see that those qualities are the ones that many women are looking for in a man when they should be busy developing those qualities themselves.
Single Christian men are reading that passage looking for those qualities in a woman, and women are putting that passage down and instead looking for those qualities in a man.
Not ready to be led
Many Christian ladies want to be married but they are not truly ready to be led. They want to marry a boyfriend but not a husband. They want only a partner but not a leader. They want an emotional prenup that things will always be 50:50. They say they will concede authority to God himself but in their heart, they are not willing to be led by his representative in the home.
Men were created to lead at home. Now, with that leadership comes accountability to God, meaning that God holds him accountable and will punish him first for bad leadership. But a man cannot be accountable for a woman he can’t lead and a Christian man does not want to be over anything he can’t be accountable to God about.
Inability to keep things real
Many young married Christian women are painting a fairy tale picture of marriage to their single ladies.
Many young married women are doing a major disservice to single women. These young married women create a fairy tale picture of weddings and marriage to their single friends. They love being the centre of attention and talk up how dreamy it is. Perfect Instagram photos, perfect wedding photos, expensive glamorous weddings, perfect Facebook updates, photos and so on. Is there anything wrong with that? No. It would just help a lot more when married young women keep it real with their sisters and tell them that the wedding day does not make the marriage. It would help a whole lot more if they sit their single friends down and talk about the importance of a praying wife, a strong wife, a submissive wife (to a Godly man) and how contrary to popular opinion, the faith of a wife is both a weapon for the family and its defense as well. Instead, they get their single sisters all dreamy eyed.
Sisters, God has a beautiful story of love written for you. Am I saying settle? No way. But I am saying look at these men through the eyes of Christ. Get your pride out of the way. Don’t define your marital success by how well your wedding day or “lifestyle” stacks up with other women. Most importantly, start seeing yourself as a true (not just perceived) gift from God that can bring God’s favour and blessings into your husband’s life because that’s what you are. So work to become that to have a love-filled, Christ-centered happy marriage when it does happen.
