Embracing this season of singleness
In every season, I learn new things. This year, God has opened my eyes to see the treasure in this season of singleness. While there have been challenges, I can testify that God has transformed my heart from despising this season to embracing this season.
1. Firstly, my eyes were open to see that I CAN have a fulfilling season of singleness. After watching many movies and TV shows from adolescence to adulthood, I had believed the lie that I could not enjoy life until I had found my life partner. I am so grateful for those who are open and brave to share their testimony because we need to hear the truth that single women are not broken (https://youtu.be/6ql1KIcNMJQ?t=83), and women can be single and loving it (https://youtu.be/XlyPwMfo_AA). These testimonies transformed my perspective. I started to imagine myself enjoying my life and I started to believe that I am whole in Christ. Since February, I started doing the activities and hobbies I have always wanted to do. I went on walks at the park, ate at my favorite restaurants and went to the theater to watch Minions: The Rise of Gru. I am thankful to be able to go to public parks to appreciate God’s creation, the trees, plants, animals and lakes. I am thankful to go to Little Saigon to eat my favorite Vietnamese food, which reminds me of my family and home. I am thankful this year to freely travel to Brazil, Thailand, CA, FL, TX, and ride on the AmTrak for the first time.
2. Secondly, I learned that I do have a husband When I first became a Christian, I related to God mainly as my Heavenly Father, but recently, I started to meditate on what it means for Jesus to be our bridegroom (John 3:29). I remember going to a conference organized by sister Christy. She was discussing with the Lord whether she should tell the gals that their husband is not in the room, so they could focus on Jesus at the conference and the Lord responded to her saying, you can tell them that their husband is in the room!
One day on a walk, I told Jesus that I understood that He was the bridegroom and according to the Bible, the bridegroom leads the relationship and the bride responds to the leadings. I have had a good relationship with Jesus, but I desire to go deeper in knowing the length, width, depth and height of His love. I remember ending our conversation on the walk saying, “I invite you, Jesus, to keep pursuing me and to pursue me more.”
20 minutes later, I find my roommate’s boyfriend knocking on my door and bringing my favorite drink. When he shared the story of how he received the drink from work, I was amazed how Jesus made it happen. During the walk, I started to crave this specialty drink (food is my love language), but I decided to go straight home after the walk. The drink was a reminder that Jesus sees me and knows me personally and He is always up to the challenge of pursuing His bride
3. Lastly, I have learned to trust God with my future. One of my favorite verses: Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths (Proverbs 3:5-6). While there are times, I am tempted to take matters in my own hands to get married, I continue to trust the Lord has the highest and best plan for my life. Time and time again, the Lord has shown me His faithfulness through the testimony of 6 sisters in Christ and counting! In each of their testimonies, the sister was following the Lord and trusting the Lord with their heart’s desire for marriage. When they waited on God, He always brought someone who was exceedingly and abundantly more than they could ask or imagine. Wherever you may find yourself, I encourage you to share with God the desires of your heart. He places those desires in your heart and He has the best way to fulfill them. He is the giver of every good and perfect gift: Testimony of the Gift and the Giver: https://edplusjan.com/2016/03/23/gift/
