Be Careful What You Wish For

Among other things, I enjoy my pastor's messages because he is so down-to-earth in what he has to say. Today, as he talked about making Christ more important than ourselves, he got onto the topic of weddings. In most weddings, the bride is truly the focus of the event - in our pastor's words, the guy just gets to be there, but it's not about him. And he went on to a side note about how a girl dreams of and plans her wedding many times for years. He turned to the teens in our congregation and said just that to the girls. "You dream about the beautiful dress you'll wear and walking down the aisle with all eyes on you and about how the church will look and how the cake will be decorated and what the reception will be like. Guys, when they dream about a wedding, dream about the wedding night. So true, so true. God has made men and women different and it is vital for young women to recognize that.

Moving along, though, the pastor began talking about the ten generations that had to pass after the birth of Perez until the birth of David, the future king. He went into detail about why those ten generations were necessary, but I won't. At any rate, before David's birth, the people of Israel began clamoring for a king. Samuel kept telling them it wasn't time, but they just kept on asking for one. Finally, God gave them a king. King Saul. And what a fine mess he was. He was a terrible ruler and a terrible king, but God gave the people what they'd asked for. If they'd waited, He would have given them David and skipped all the pain and tribulations under Saul.

The pastor then went back to the subject of marriage and pointed out that all too often, we do not want to wait for God's timing. We want what we want when we want it. That is especially true today in America. We are an impatient people and immediately isn't fast enough for us. Turning back to the teens, our pastor again addressed them specifically and told them to be careful about wanting a spouse before God's time. "Girls, he might just give you a Saul. And guys, you might just get a [long pause] Saul-tine." The congregation roared. It was too funny! However, the message is right on target. Don't rush God.

Long ago, I had a very dear friend who longed for a husband. One day I said to her, "You may be ready, but perhaps the man God has chosen for you isn't ready yet. You need to allow God to prepare him, too."

Enjoy all that life has to offer you right now, today, just as it is. I've been married over half of my life, and with God's blessing, I will be so for nearly three-fourths of my life before I meet Him in heaven. Look back on your own life. If you are twenty, think about how much you have changed since you were ten. Do you remember who you had a crush on way back then? Is that still the person you dream about? Probably not. Just as you have changed, God is changing all those around you. One day, when the time is right for both of you, he will reveal His plan to you. Don't rush Him. HE has all the time in the world.

Finally, young women listen to this. Guys' brains are very different from girls'. You need to find out all you can about that and dress, act and talk accordingly. Let me recommend an amazing book to you. For Young Women Only: What You Need to Know About How Guys Think by Shaunti Feldhahn and Lisa A. Rice is one of the best written explanations about men and the pictures in their minds that I've ever read. It will change everything you thought you knew about guys, and hopefully about how you relate to them.