A Blessing or A Curse?

Today at church, a very dear friend of mine and I were trying to catch up on our Sunday School lesson. Somewhere in the middle of that discussion we both shared that we felt like the Fourth is more of a "couple" holiday. Let me explain... as two single women we both talked about how either we watch others' children or we are in the middle of love-birds. It isn't that we don't enjoy playing with the kiddos or seeing couples enjoy themselves, but we both seemed to share the same feelings about how it would be nice to get to do those "couple" things on holidays. So to sum our feelings... Holidays alone can stink. I know what some of you are thinking... "Geez girl, you're only 20... you have all the time in the world for romance, enjoy being 'just you' for the time being." This is very true. I am JUST 20 years old. I am JUST a "young'n" as my grandfather would say, but you know JUST because I'm young doesn't mean I don't feel alone sometimes. Don't get me wrong, being single isn't always a bad thing. There are days when I thank the good Lord above for not having a relationship.I feel there are just certain times though, it would be nice to be able to post those cute couple pictures or be able to share about how amazing my boyfriend is and I'm sure I am not alone in thinking that. 

But you know what? It's okay. It's perfectly normal to want a relationship. No, it doesn't make you weak to want someone. No, it doesn't mean that you can't make it on your own. It's HUMAN NATURE to want someone. God didn't make us to be creatures of complete independence. If that's what He intended then I don't believe He would have made Eve. Being single isn't a curse...it's a blessing in disguise. Not where you thought I was going, was it? ;) I recently ran across a quote that I have actually written on my mirror at home. It's a quote by Daniel Goddard and says:

"Appreciate being single because that's when you grow the most...and with that growth, you come to know what you're looking for." 

Let that sink in. Even during that dreaded time of being "just you" you actually get to grow. You get to figure out who you are and really focus on yourself. You are given time to figure out just what you want out of life and not only that but you also have time to truly evaluate what you want out of a future relationship.

Being single isn't a punishment. It's not a curse. It's a blessing. A blessing that you get to decide how it's handled. You can sulk in it, or you can seize the opportunity to spend time focusing on yourself. It's not selfish to focus on you and grow. Being single doesn't mean that no one wants you... it just means that right now you are letting God work on your while He works on your "one." 

So don't be ashamed of being single, be proud that God thinks you're strong enough to handle it. 
AND YOU ARE STRONG ENOUGH.