Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Single for Valentines Day?: Part 4 ~Submit~

Along with surrendering to Christ your all and your everything, as I talked about in my last post, you must submit to Him.

Submitting to His plan, knowing, and truly believing, that His way is best. Submitting to whatever happens!

Submit:
Transitive Verb:
  1. To yield or surrender (oneself) to the will or authority of another.
  2. To subject to a condition or process.
  3. To commit (something) to the consideration or judgment of another.
Intransitive Verb:
  1. To give in to the authority, power, or desires of another.
  2. To allow oneself to be subjected to something.
Willingly placing your life in God's hands, and letting go. Happily accepting whatever God brings into your life, waiting or not waiting for the man you dream of.

It's not always easy to submit, just as submitting to our parents isn't always easy, but we submit, because we love God, and because we know that He knows better then us. God has planned all, from beginning to end and we, at this point in time, only see a small portion of what's going on, and at times, we don't like what we see. Waiting is not really what any girl plans on when she wants to be married. But planned on or not, it is often what happens, and it's hard. But submitting to waiting, submitting to God's perfect plan, is something we can joyfully do! Submitting doesn't have to be a horrid thing. Joyfully submitting is what God wants us to do! It's not rolling your eyes and saying, "Okay, I have to submit, so here I go," and it's not "Well, I don't have any other choice. I really can't do anything to change how long I have to wait so I might as well submit." No, it's, "I know God's way is better then mine, and once I take my hands off and joyfully wait to see what He has planned, I can see my life unfold in ways I never even thought or dreamed of. God's ways are so much more wonderful then anything I could ever have worked out!"

Submitting to God means that you take your hands off of the things in life that you really have no control over, like how long waiting for a man, or what man will come into your life, etc.. But that doesn't mean, however, that you just sit back and say, "Well, whatever happens happens." On the contrary, although you submit to God and joyfully accept what He has planned, you must work at trusting, at loving (God, our family, and our future husband, although we don't know who he is just yet) at preparing for marriage, at making sure, even in this time of waiting and wondering, that you stay pure for our future husbands.

Submitting to God is not a scary thing. He is not waiting for us to submit and then, once we've taking our hands off, He will bring horror after horror of unspeakable things into our lives to make sure we're unhappy. No! God wants to bring us joy in Him! And He does that when we submit, when we desire what He wants, and when He gives us desires that please Him and then when He fulfills those desires that please Him.

A desire for marriage is a God given desire! He's not, once we submit, just going to leave us with this growing, unfulfilled desire. If the desire for marriage truly comes form God, He will fulfill it! It may take years and years to fulfill, but once we've submitted and surrendered, and have chosen to be happy, we won't mind the waiting!

So submit to our caring, compassionate, loving, gentle, all-seeing, all-knowing God, who does not make it His goal to make us sad and unhappy, but quite the opposite, and watch your life unfold in God's way, and be truly happy to accept anything He brings, and you will be happy!

13 comments:

Clare said...

I've really been enjoying your Valentine's Day series. You've been posting some very wise words that I think all single girls can relate to, and learn from.

Ana said...

Mamselle Duroc~
Thank you for your visits. I'm thankful the Lord is using the posts He enabled me to write. Thank you for your comment!

Kiersten said...

Ana,
I just recently found your blog via Ashleigh's. Thanks for taking the time to write this Valentine's series :o) I also like your pictures...where do you find all of them? Especially the one with the little girl looking into the goldfish bowl!

And I have a question...you are single, teaching piano lessons? Did you go to college? I am a single woman (21) and in school right now pursuing an Early Childhood Education degree. I have struggled with whether or not to pursue a college degree. It seems to just make my life so BUSY...what with work (I nanny) and going to school, and I know that what I am doing now is cultivating what my life will be like in the future...and I don't want my life to be so busy and harried in the future when I am a wife and mother (if God brings me that desire of my heart). Just wanted to know your thoughts on this, whether you went to college, etc...

Thanks,
Kiersten

Ana said...

Kiersten~
Believe me, it is my pleasure to write a series on my blog if it is at all helpful to anyone at anytime of life! I'm just glad the Lord is so choosing to use it!

To be honest with you, I've found my pictures from various sites and blogs. I believe the little girl and the fishbowl was found on "A Wise Women Builds Her Home" linked on my side bar. (The link to the picture is: http://proverbs14verse1.blogspot.com/2007/11/but-fire.html )

Yes, I am single, living in my parents home and teaching piano. I have decided, with my parents, to not attend college of any kind. I am still taking piano lessons and the education I get from my very, very advanced teacher, is equal to what I could receive in a college setting, only at a far less cost! I understand completely that college life combined with "regular" life would be VERY busy. And I guess, since I am teaching piano and learning to be a wife and mother (rather preparing to be) throwing college in to the mix would make my life very busy too.

I have decided not to attend college for a couple of reasons:

1. The only reason I would go to college is to have a degree in teaching so that, if I am blessed by God with marriage and children, no one can say I'm not capable of teaching because I have no degree.

2. My greatest desire is to be a stay at home mom and wife and nothing in college (even Christian college) could equip me for that role better then my mother!

3. To me, it seems, if my life's desire is to be a stay at home mother and wife and I go to college and major in something completely off that track and I do end up getting married and being a stay at home mom then would all those years (not to mention dollars) go to waste?

4. I don't want my life to be so hurried and in such a rush all the time. It really is not very helpful for the one trying to live a peaceful, quiet life. And I understand no one has a completely quiet and peaceful life, but if I can cut some hurry and scurry out of my life by NOT going to college I will jump at that chance.

5. I want to be a stay at home mom, and if I go to college and am out of the home all day every day, then when/if I get married, staying at home would seem so strange to me and not only would it take time to get used to but it would be hard to be content with staying home when I'm used to running around. And I don't want that. I do realize that there are college classes on line and if you choose to take college that way then being out of the home would not apply there.

I hope I answered your questions. I greatly appreciate your willingness to comment/ask questions and then be willing to have an answer given! Please, if I haven't fully answered your questions, or if I have raised new ones. Please let me know, I'm more then happy to help you in anyway I can!

Elisabeth said...

Ana, I just got the sweetest comment on my blog yesterday and wanted to share it with you:

Madam Duroc said, "As Valentine's Day approaches I've really enjoyed reading both your and Ana's posts on your blogs... you provide so much wisdom and encouragement."

Isn't is humbling ... you and I doing our best with the ability to write God has given us and a desire to bless and encourage other young ladies ... and girls responding in such a heart-felt way?!? I am ... overwhelmed!

BTW, I was also wondering where you got your pictures ... ! :->

Ana said...

Elizabeth~
What an encouraging comment! It is very humbly and almost scary at the same time. To provide people with words we hope to be encouraging and making sure what we say lines up with the Bible should make us check, recheck, and check again to make sure we've said it properly! Thank you for sharing that comment with me!!

Elisabeth said...

Absolutely ... check, recheck, check once more. And then push 'publish' and pray! The funny thing is, I've always been shy of influencing people ... it was the last thing I intended to do when I started blogging, but ... it seems, I am unfluencing people whether I like it or not! I just hope and pray - oh so much! - that I influence people for GOOD - for GOD!

Ana said...

Elizabeth~
I know! When I started my blog it was to share what things I found encouraging from my Bible reading or books or something, it puts so much more weight on you to make sure you're representing God accurately! But I'm so thankful that I have bloggie friends like you that I can be encouraged by and help me remember what I'm striving for in my blog! Thank you!!! It means more then my words can say!

Elisabeth said...

"Representing God accurately" ... I know, that's just it! Like, if someone who doesn't know anything about God reads my blog, have I represented Him accurately enough that they are drawn to Him? Scary! But ... thankfully, God helps us to write for Him!

Aww ... thank you, Ana! You know, I've become so thankful just recently for 'bloggie friends' too ... for instance, I love how we are 'bloggie friends' and can encouage and cheer each other! Thank YOU for YOUR friendship and support. I appreciate it soooooo much! :->

HAve a wonderful and special weekend!

ExploreColorado said...

VB Said

You've made some great points in expressing the difficulty of being content in the state of singleness. I remember those days; how difficult it was around valentines day.
It looks like you've got a good perspective and are working hard to have a propper attitude.

Contentment has been my life-long struggle. I've found it's a choice. There's no such thing as "happily ever after", but you can choose to have a "merry heart" and then it becomes "contentment ever after."
This is true whether you're married or not.

Don't worry it may not get easier, but you'll get better at it with practice. This is true even after you're married, and spend half the night up with a crying baby.

Keep up the good work.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not to your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your path. Proverbs 3:5-6

P.S. Most of the ladies in your pictures seem to portray the attitude I try soooo hard to fix in my own life. That sad, whistful, longing, that can only be filled when we accept Gods lot for our life and get busy serving. It's amazing how a picture can capture so much emotion and portray it so accurately.

Ana said...

Elizabeth~
There is nothing more to say to you in this comment box ... you said it all so perfectly in your last comment!! :) I find it interesting that we find each other thinking and writing the same things! :) Fun!
Thanks again!!

Ana said...

Vickie~
Thank you for your comment. I, too, long for that contentment portrayed in the pictures I used ... that's why I used them! :)

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