To experience the blessings of marriage while single, I studied I Corinthians 13, the “love chapter,” for ways to express God’s love better.
I found many deficiencies in my attitude and perspective that cried out for more active and abundant expressions of love. I had a long way to go, it seemed. I felt like a bushel was over my light, and I needed to kick that bushel off so potential mates could see my good qualities, if I was ever to get married!
I was conscientious about improving myself, becoming a better person, being less selfish, less self-righteous, less self-centered, more thoughtful of others, and seeing the good in others. Progress was slow, but steady and consistent.
I became more out-going and willing to open up. I strove to express my thoughts better verbally and not keep all my emotions and feelings bottled up inside. I looked for the good in other people and stayed aware of it.
Also, and this is important, I honored and acknowledged God’s love for me. I knew that God was watching over me at all times and had only the best in Mind for me. I could never fall short of having love in my life, I grew increasingly convinced.
To know love is to know God, and I could know God whether I was married or not, I knew. The love from God was not qualified, conditional, or partial. It was unconditional, unqualified and there for me at all times. Like rain falling out of the sky, God showers love over our lives. But we need to be mentally open to receiving those blessings. And this is what I worked to feel and know, to receive, accept and express more fully and abundantly—God’s unqualified love for me.
During those soul-searching, love-seeking months, I found peace about my status as a child of God. I didn’t worry about whether I was going to get married or not in the future. I enjoyed my relationship to God, my growing sense and expression of Love’s everyday presence at work in my life. Divine Love was taking care of me in all the best ways, I knew, and that was enough for me. And it really was.
And that was when Kathy walked into my life…
Hmmm…I wonder what happened next…
Love-ly, Evan!
Heart-warming.
Inspiring.
:<)))))
When my first wife, Judy passed away, that was when C/S came to me which saved me from suicidal depression, for I was at cross roads in my life at 26. So young was I and so happily married, and then the loss. Well when a friend introduced to me C/S, I went to Boston to further explore the C/S Religion and upon taken a tour of the different homes that MBE resided, I met an older women on the tour bus who was a C/S of many years. She inspired me with hope to find another, Joan, who I met that year, fell in love again, married again and had many happy years of marriage.
Thank you for the beautifully clear, sincere and endearing explanation of how you worked out your Love-related state. It’s inspiring and encouraging.
Thank you so much for these blogs. They are such a blessing and much appreciated. I have enjoyed the marriage series and today’s spoke right to me. I am not married and do not have a special someone in my life but I have been praying to see and express God’s love more.Thanks for the clear ideas on this topic.
Dear Evan – Just wanted to express my heart-felt gratitude to this in-depth series on marriage. Let me just say that this is a very timely blog for me right now. Thank you so much!