This circle illustrates what my life in God as a single woman looks like, at least according to a sermon I recently heard.
Now before you start trying to interpret the image metaphor for yourself with explanations like, “Let’s see, well, the “x”‘s represent all my failed relationships….” Or, “The circle indicates the endlessness of singleness….” ect., ect., ect., maybe I should explain what I mean.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSd6-EvBgN4&w=560&h=315
First, let me say that I can be a bit of a maverick at times.
I hate cliche responses to questions or pat metaphors and explanations. And lemmee tell you – in the arena of singleness – let’s just say if you’ve read one article on singleness, and what God wants you to do with your singleness, and how you should live as a single – you’ve pretty much read them all. I appreciate all these encouragements, I do. And at times I need them. But sometimes I long to hear something about singleness that I’ve never heard before. Something to truly challenge me and change my thinking.
Let me also say that I have been single for awhile now, and I’m continually growing in faith that God knows marriage is a desire of my heart. God cares. And what’s more, God has a specific plan for my life in this regard, and a specific plan to intertwine my life with anothers. But it can be hard not to treat this period of time as an “in the meantime…” or “right now before my real life and purpose starts…” Or sometimes it’s just the desire to have a specific someone to bear the load of my life with me and help with decision-making, that makes this waiting so hard.
And I wonder. In light of all I long for…am I in fact complete? Do I have all I need or am I the orphan bit of a better half?
But back to my circle.
So I heard this a little bit ago. In a sermon by the awesome speaker, John Bevere. He wasn’t even talking about singleness – he was talking about the Holy Spirit – knowing the voice of the Holy Spirit and being led by Him in life.
And he told this story of how after he was married, it seemed like half the time he would get the word and the wisdom from God on decisions to be made in his family, but only half the time.
The other half the time, his wife Lisa would come out with something that he would realize is what God was directing in the situation. And he was complaining to God – “How come you don’t always give me the direction for the family and the wisdom to know what to do in every situation?”
And God told him.
That is to say that, as He often does, God told him to do something that seemed copletely unrelated. God told him to get a piece of paper. Draw a circle. And fill the circle with “x”s.
God told him, “The circle represents your life and the ‘x’s represent answers from me. When you were single I gave you individually all the wisdom you needed. You were complete in me.”
Then God said, “Draw a line down the center of the circle.”
This, God said, is what your life looks like now. The circle is your life and your wife’s life. (“The two shall become one,” as Genesis says.) And now there are “x”s on both sides of the line because I have intricately linked your life with your wife, so that you need each other for wisdom from me, for direction, for this one life together – two lives becoming one – that I have called you to live.
This image is still blowing my mind a bit.
And it’s helping me grow in faith.
I do truly believe that God knows exactly where I am, and is working His divine timing in my life, and that my response is simply to continue to be obedient and walk in a way to honor Him. But it is also so helpful to know that not only does God know where I am and have me there, but also, that I’m not a half-person hoping for the day I find myself “completed!”
“Complete in my Maker – individually, completely” and also, “two become one.” What a concept!
And I’m encouraged. The Lord perfects that which concerns me. He keeps my soul secure. And what’s more He provides for me. He gives me the wisdom to know what car to buy, where to live, how to pay my bills, when it’s wise to make a trip, when it’s not – all these things I worry about and wish I had someone to help advise me!
Don’t get me wrong – he often will answer through wisdom from my godly friends, my wonderful sisters, my awesome parents – all those who speak in my life. But until He places my life into the story of another’s. Until He intricately links my life with another’s. He has equipped me by his Spirit with all I need for life and godliness.
And that is wonderful news!
Shout out to my favorite speaking duo John and Lisa Bevere of Messenger International. This teaching came from somewhere on the podcast of excerpts from John’s teaching on The Holy Spirit. I highly recommend and have been grateful at so many moments of my life for their teaching and resources. I was espcially impacted in a formative way by the teaching Drawing Near. At a extremely rough time in my life, God used this resource to teach me of His passionate and everlasting love for me – it changed my life, and I’m forever grateful.
In Him Who Perfects That Which Concerns Me,
S.
His Between The Times 