As Single as they come...

So i found out today that one of my good friends just got engaged to be married...CONGRATULATIONS SIGRID! And i'm photographing a wedding this weekend of yet another friend of mine, not to mention both my best friends are happily married and have been for over 2 years now. Most of my other friends are either engaged or in serious relationships, and here's me as single as they come. And not to mention i relived my date-less days by going solo yet again to a work Gala. This makes me think...

What is it about me that is preventing me from getting married? The right guy you might think...and yup, that's a pretty important aspect when it comes to marriage, and nope, haven't found him yet. But why? There's the million dollar question...and to that only the Lord knows.

The Christian, faith-filled side of me understands that there is a perfect man for me out there somewhere and sooner or later he and I will cross paths. Things will happen in God's perfect timing when that time is the most unexpected. I keep telling myself that the Lord is perfecting my future husband, and it takes awhile to mold him to my standards. So the next question is are my standards too strict? But who determines what is too strict? I definately don't want to settle on a man who will pay attention to me, but doesn't love me forever...is it so bad that i want him to be perfect?

The Lord says: "I want you to be free from the cares of this world...Married women and women who have never been married are different. The woman who has never been married can spend her time working for the Lord. She wants to please the Lord with her body and spirit. The woman who is married cares for the things of the world. She wants to please her husband. I am saying these things to help you. I am not trying to keep you from getting married. I want you to do what is best. You should work for Him without other things taking your time." - 1 Corinthians 7:32-35

So according to the Lord it's a good thing that i'm not married, here's the problem...i'm not using my singleness to committing myself to the Lord. Maybe that's the key, maybe the Lord put that thought in my head this morning as I was driving to work (i had a dream about Sigrid getting married last night, so thoughts of marriage were already in my head before i came to work and actually read her blog that told that she was engaged!)

Committing my life to serving the Lord is something that i've strayed away from the past few months, and maybe it's a wake up call for me. It's time i stood up in my faith, and reached some souls for Jesus. Maybe that's part of the solution, maybe not, but it definately wouldn't hurt. Don't get me wrong, it's not that if i serve the Lord then i will be married, but it's time that i used my free time and my everyday life to love the man who loves me, has always loved me and will always love me, back.

All the Christians i know who are married or soon to be married are amazing women and men of God, maybe there's a level of faith i need to get to, which makes me work on my faith and hope. But then i see other friends who aren't Christians experiencing that same love that results in marriage, and that shoots me down again...

There is a reason I'm not married, to learn something about myself, to support my family and be there any time i'm needed with no other obligations, to be free to travel to Pittsburgh, Rochester, and Florida on a whim, to get my career online and save up some money....

I guess more pondering is in order, but at the end of the day my faith of someday being married trumps it all.