I've decided not to get married.
At least not yet.
My charming little sister Clara once told me, "I'm glad you're not married. I hope you never get married...at least not yet." Boy did I feel loved! As much as a young woman cannot wait to get married, right then and there I didn't want to. I often long for the day when I will have a home of my own to care for, children to nurture, and a husband to love. But if I miss the golden years at home, what will I gain in the future marriage years? If I take these years for granted, who is to say I won't do the same later on?
Let's just say it's not easy accepting someone else's will other than our own. We're selfish, and usually we will admit it in a not-so-subtle way. We want what we want, and sometimes we will do anything to get our way. We are kind of like a spoiled child throwing a tantrum because he wants something. He will scream and kick his little legs, and do just about anything to get his way. If his mother is too soft and lenient, she will eventually give in to his whims, instead of administering the whipping he really deserves. We are that way with God many times. We'll fight back because we want our way. Why is it so hard to say "Thy will be done"?
“A great many Christians actually seem to think that all their Father in heaven wants is a chance to make them miserable, and to take away all their blessings, and they imagine, poor souls, that if they hold on to things in their own will, they can hinder Him from doing this. I am shamed to write the words, and yet we must face a fact, which is making wretched hundreds of lives.
"A Christian lady who had this feeling, was once expressing to a friend how impossible she found it to say, 'Thy will be done,' and how afraid she should be to do it. She was the mother of one little boy, who was the heir to a great fortune, and the idol of her heart.
"After she had stated her difficulties fully, her friend said, 'Suppose your little Charley should come running to you tomorrow and say, 'Mother, I have made up my mind to let you have your own way with me from this time forward. I am always going to obey you, and I want you to do just whatever you think best with me. I know you love me, and I am going to trust myself to your love.' How would you feel toward him? Would you say to yourself, 'Ah, now I shall take away all his pleasures, and fill his life with every hard and disagreeable thing I can find. I will compel him to do just the things that are the most difficult for him to do and will give him all sorts of impossible commands.' 'Oh, no, no, no!' exclaimed the indignant mother. 'You know I would not. You know I would hug him to my heart and cover him with kisses, and would hasten to fill his life with all that was sweetest and best.' 'And are you more tender and more loving than God?' asked her friend. 'Ah, no,' was the reply, 'I see my mistake, and I will not be afraid of saying 'Thy will be done, to my Heavenly Father, any more than I would want my Charley to be afraid of saying it to me.'" (Excerpted from The Christian's Secret of a Happy Life, by Hannah Whitall Smith)
There's not just one aspect of life we are afraid of committing wholly to God. We are scared over the smallest things. We want a good and happy life, but we also want the things we want. What we don't realize is that we will have the best life when we submit to God's will. Most people have a false conception of God's will. God is angry at wickedness, but He is loving and just toward those who follow and serve Him in obedience. He isn't out to get us, or to take away every earthly and spiritual blessing. Amazingly enough, He only wants what is best for us. (1 Peter 5:7; 2 Corinthians 8:9; 1 Corinthians 2:9) We miss out on the best years of our lives by worrying about unnecessary things. If we would only trust God, how much happier and blessed we would be!
We can't just submit one area of our life to God; we have to give him everything, including our hopes, dreams, and expectations for the future. It's not an unachievable feat. Just think of how much more peace we could have. All those worry wrinkles would disappear.
Look at submission this way. We find it hard to submit to our parents. As we get older, we want more responsibility and freedom from authority. (That's our human rebelliousness working.) If we are unwilling to accept God's will, we will most assuredly be unwilling to accept human authority. If a young woman in the home will not accept her father's authority, she will not accept her husband's later on in life. She may think that a different life would be better, but if we are not faithful in small things, we certainly will not be faithful in the bigger ones. If we antagonize our siblings, we'll antagonize our children. If we disrespect our parents, how could we be ready for a faithful commitment to marriage with a partner we are to respect "till death" do us part? We would blow it, just like we did in our teenage years.
If we find it hard to accept human authority, how much more harder it is to accept God's will! But why? Why do we have such a problem? All we are doing is making each situation difficult. It does not have to be that way. When we realize that man's chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever, and that God wants only what is best for us (because everything is to bring Him glory -Revelation 4:11), then we can begin to say without hesitance "Thy will be done."
Yes, I plan on getting married someday (if it is the Lord's will.) However, for now I'll accept God's plan for commitment in the home and accept whatever He brings my way. We have a cheerful heart only when we submit to God's will. I'll be content in the home.
At least not yet.
My charming little sister Clara once told me, "I'm glad you're not married. I hope you never get married...at least not yet." Boy did I feel loved! As much as a young woman cannot wait to get married, right then and there I didn't want to. I often long for the day when I will have a home of my own to care for, children to nurture, and a husband to love. But if I miss the golden years at home, what will I gain in the future marriage years? If I take these years for granted, who is to say I won't do the same later on?
Let's just say it's not easy accepting someone else's will other than our own. We're selfish, and usually we will admit it in a not-so-subtle way. We want what we want, and sometimes we will do anything to get our way. We are kind of like a spoiled child throwing a tantrum because he wants something. He will scream and kick his little legs, and do just about anything to get his way. If his mother is too soft and lenient, she will eventually give in to his whims, instead of administering the whipping he really deserves. We are that way with God many times. We'll fight back because we want our way. Why is it so hard to say "Thy will be done"?
“A great many Christians actually seem to think that all their Father in heaven wants is a chance to make them miserable, and to take away all their blessings, and they imagine, poor souls, that if they hold on to things in their own will, they can hinder Him from doing this. I am shamed to write the words, and yet we must face a fact, which is making wretched hundreds of lives.
"A Christian lady who had this feeling, was once expressing to a friend how impossible she found it to say, 'Thy will be done,' and how afraid she should be to do it. She was the mother of one little boy, who was the heir to a great fortune, and the idol of her heart.
"After she had stated her difficulties fully, her friend said, 'Suppose your little Charley should come running to you tomorrow and say, 'Mother, I have made up my mind to let you have your own way with me from this time forward. I am always going to obey you, and I want you to do just whatever you think best with me. I know you love me, and I am going to trust myself to your love.' How would you feel toward him? Would you say to yourself, 'Ah, now I shall take away all his pleasures, and fill his life with every hard and disagreeable thing I can find. I will compel him to do just the things that are the most difficult for him to do and will give him all sorts of impossible commands.' 'Oh, no, no, no!' exclaimed the indignant mother. 'You know I would not. You know I would hug him to my heart and cover him with kisses, and would hasten to fill his life with all that was sweetest and best.' 'And are you more tender and more loving than God?' asked her friend. 'Ah, no,' was the reply, 'I see my mistake, and I will not be afraid of saying 'Thy will be done, to my Heavenly Father, any more than I would want my Charley to be afraid of saying it to me.'" (Excerpted from The Christian's Secret of a Happy Life, by Hannah Whitall Smith)
There's not just one aspect of life we are afraid of committing wholly to God. We are scared over the smallest things. We want a good and happy life, but we also want the things we want. What we don't realize is that we will have the best life when we submit to God's will. Most people have a false conception of God's will. God is angry at wickedness, but He is loving and just toward those who follow and serve Him in obedience. He isn't out to get us, or to take away every earthly and spiritual blessing. Amazingly enough, He only wants what is best for us. (1 Peter 5:7; 2 Corinthians 8:9; 1 Corinthians 2:9) We miss out on the best years of our lives by worrying about unnecessary things. If we would only trust God, how much happier and blessed we would be!
We can't just submit one area of our life to God; we have to give him everything, including our hopes, dreams, and expectations for the future. It's not an unachievable feat. Just think of how much more peace we could have. All those worry wrinkles would disappear.
Look at submission this way. We find it hard to submit to our parents. As we get older, we want more responsibility and freedom from authority. (That's our human rebelliousness working.) If we are unwilling to accept God's will, we will most assuredly be unwilling to accept human authority. If a young woman in the home will not accept her father's authority, she will not accept her husband's later on in life. She may think that a different life would be better, but if we are not faithful in small things, we certainly will not be faithful in the bigger ones. If we antagonize our siblings, we'll antagonize our children. If we disrespect our parents, how could we be ready for a faithful commitment to marriage with a partner we are to respect "till death" do us part? We would blow it, just like we did in our teenage years.
If we find it hard to accept human authority, how much more harder it is to accept God's will! But why? Why do we have such a problem? All we are doing is making each situation difficult. It does not have to be that way. When we realize that man's chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever, and that God wants only what is best for us (because everything is to bring Him glory -Revelation 4:11), then we can begin to say without hesitance "Thy will be done."
Yes, I plan on getting married someday (if it is the Lord's will.) However, for now I'll accept God's plan for commitment in the home and accept whatever He brings my way. We have a cheerful heart only when we submit to God's will. I'll be content in the home.
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