As singles, many of us desire marriage which is a very important institution established by God and is the centre of human existence as per Yetunde Ayeni in the book “Woman: helpmeet or hell loose”.Marriage is such a blessing and a season of life we admire and most of us desire.
Life has different seasons. Ecclesiastes 3:1 and 11(NLT) says “For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven… Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time…”. Adam lived a single season in the presence of God and carrying out a God-given task of catering for the creatures under his care before his union with Eve. Thus, if there is a season for everything in the Christian journey, then singlehood is surely a season with a God-given purpose.
Let’s discover the singlehood season from the biblical stories of Ruth (Ruth chapter 1-3) and Rebecca (Genesis 24).From these narratives and for this write-up, our focus will be on CHRISTIAN SINGLEHOOD AS A SEASON TO IDENTIFY AND DISCOVER YOURSELF and SOME IMPORTANT CHARACTER TRAITS CHRISTIAN SINGLES SHOULD NORTURE. So let us get into our first topic on Singlehood.
CHRISTIAN SINGLEHOOD AS A SEASON TO IDENTIFY YOURSELF WITH GOD.
Key text: Ruth chapter 1
Key verse: Verses 16 (NLT) “But Ruth replied, “Don’t ask me to leave you and turn back. Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.”
Ruth’s single story is so inspirational. She was from Moab meaning she was raised in paganism because Moab was a pagan community involved in idol worship. The woman Naomi and her family had moved from Bethlehem (a community which served the Living God) to Moab, where her two sons married Ruth and Orpah, who were all Moabite ladies. Unfortunately, Noami’s two sons died, thus Ruth and Orpah became widows meaning they were back to a season of singlehood.
Naomi decided to return to Bethlehem, her place of origin. She persuaded her two daughters in law Orpah and Ruth not to follow her because of the difficulties she was facing and that season of her life was bitter (Ruth 1:13). Orpah decided to go back to Moab but Ruth refused to go back to Moab her place of origin. She insisted on following Naomi despite every difficulty, Ruth 1:16 “But Ruth replied, “Don’t ask me to leave you and turn back. Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.”
Ruth was a Moabite as earlier mentioned. Moabite women were noted for the detestable things they did like sexual immorality, idol worshipping etc (Numbers 25:1-3).During this single season of her life, despite all difficulty and different choices she could make, Ruth choose to identify herself with Naomi and worship the LIVING GOD whom Naomi worshipped. Ruth did not want to go back to Moab where Idolatry was a norm. She was determined to worship the Living God and wanted to stay close to Naomi and her people who worshipped the Living God. Nothing could stop Ruth, not Naomi, not even the challenges of that single season could stop Ruth from identifying herself with God.
If we read the entire story of Ruth in the later chapters, we would see the effects of a single season with foundation in God. Ruth finally married Boaz, had a son Obed who was the Grandfather of King David and Jesus Christ came from this lineage, insinuating Ruth belonged to the ancestral lineage of Jesus Christ the Messiah, the Savior of the World.
Because of her identity in God, Ruth was able to face and overcome the challenges of single season; she was blessed with the right company who gave her wise counsel for her life and helped to mold her character; she fulfilled her vocation and she discerned and lived her purpose.
Singlehood is a season with its own challenges but by the Grace of God we can overcome these challenges. Your Identity in God is of great essence during this season and during the other seasons of life. A SINGLE SEASON WITH GOD AS THE FOUNDATION IS A STEPPING STONE TO PURPOSEFUL LIVING.Accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and watch Him lead you and by His grace your single season will be a good foundation for the other season of your life just like it was for Ruth.
Ecclesiastes 11:9 and 12:6-7 “Young people, it’s wonderful to be young! Enjoy every minute of it. Do everything you want to do; take it all in. But remember that you must give an account to God for everything you do…Yes, remember your Creator now while you are young, before the silver cord of life snaps and the golden bowl is broken. Don’t wait until the water jar is smashed at the spring and the pulley is broken at the well. For then the dust will return to the earth, and the spirit will return to God who gave it.”