Basically, I have one point to make in this article, and it is about commitment. As a single woman (with goals, plans, and dreams, mind you) I sometimes find myself subconsciously wondering when my Prince Charming is going to show up so the wait can be over and my fairy-tale can begin.
When I think about this fairy tale, it is usually rose- coloured and hazy, consisting of nothing but me being swirled and twirled through a romantic dreamy life. It always has an undercurrent of "the struggle will end as soon as we get married".
I'm sure many of my married friends would like to tell me when the struggle really begins: after you say "I do". That the struggle lies in the picking up after one- another, or their new lack of freedom, or the constant day in and day out dealing with another human being full of frailties and complexities of their own.
If I hear anything from the pulpit about marriage, it is that it takes effort. That "love is a choice". In my figurative rush to the altar, I have completely failed to consider how difficult it will be to choose to love my broken, dysfunctional, sinful (read: human) future husband for the rest of our lives.
But here's the kicker, it will be even harder if I haven't first learned how to choose to love my God every single day. Married to the Master simply means that I have the opportunity to practice this commitment with Jesus first.
In the gift of our singlehood, we have the opportunity to learn how to "choose to love" a perfect, completely worthy, and infallible God – whether we feel like it or not. Some days we feel like it, other days we don't, but if we can learn to get over ourselves now and do what we know is right every day with God, how much easier will it be to do so with our spouses?
Tina Hakimi is an Arizona-raised, Sydney-based writer pursuing her doctorate at UNSW and learning the art of thanksgiving in all its forms.
Tina Hakimi's previous articles may be viewed at www.pressserviceinternational.org/tina-hakimi.html