The ball has dropped. The confetti’s been thrown. The clock struck midnight, and the party is over. We’ve said “Goodbye” to 2011 and “Welcome” to 2012. As the celebration winds down, it’s time to begin keeping
those New Year’s Resolutions. Just in case you haven’t made your resolutions yet, we have a few ideas designed specifically
for the Christian single woman.
Here at
A Wellrounded Woman Ministries, we don’t believe that singleness is a cause for shame or embarrassment. It doesn’t mean
you out of God’s will or that you’re of less value than a married woman. Singleness is simply a stage in life. For some, it last longer than others. Other women experience singleness throughout different periods in their lives because
of divorce or widowhood.
Just because you are single today, doesn’t mean you will be single for the rest of your life. For most women, the stage of being single is like all life stages: it lasts for a season and then you move on to another season. Knowing that this is just a stage that will most likely come and go, why not embrace and enjoy your season of singleness while you
are living it?
Too many women waste their season of singleness wallowing in self-pity and wishing their lives away. This is the trap we want to see you avoid. We want to help you view this life stage through a Biblical perspective. It’s our desire to help you seize every opportunity that this stage offers you to expand your horizons, reach your God-given potential,
and further the work of God’s kingdom. That’s why we’ve made this list of New Year’s Resolutions. It is our
hope that you will prayerfully make and keep these New Year’s Resolutions for the Christian Single Woman.
1. I
resolve to love the Lord My God with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength.
There is no greater commitment that any woman can make—married
or single—than to commit herself to loving God with every fiber of her being. Making this resolution means that you have
determined that every facet of your life will be devoted to passionately loving and serving God.
What exactly does this mean? Well, when we say we will love Him with all of our heart, we are saying that we will fix our affections first and foremost on Him,
more strongly than on anything else, and we are willing to give up all that we hold dear at His command.
Saying, “I resolve
to love Him with all of my soul” means that you would be willing to give up your entire life to Him. You are literally
saying that you will devote all of your life to His service, and to be willing to die at His command.
To love Him with all of your
mind means you are submitting your intellect to His will. This involves a commitment to reading and studying the
Bible in order to learn His ways. It means valuing His principles and teachings more than you value the teaching and principles
of the world. Loving Him with all your mind means that His ways will be the determining factor in your decision making
and choices.
Finally, loving God with all of your strength means that you will use every part of your soul and body to serve Him. It’s a new mindset that whatever you do throughout your day, you will do for the glory of God. It’s a whole new way of
thinking—but it will revolutionize your life.
Choosing to make this resolution will give you a sense of purpose and fulfillment. It will remove the tendency that singles have to focus on themselves. Your life will no longer revolve around your needs,
your desires, and what you’re missing. Instead, as you choose to consciously keep this commitment, your vision will change
and you will begin to see God’s heart for a hurting world. As you choose to empty your life for God and His kingdom purposes,
you will find that your life is full of joy, excitement, and love.
2. I resolve to
follow Paul’s example and learn to be content in all circumstances.
There’s a quote that says, “Life may not be the party we
hoped for, but while we're here we should dance.”
In Philippians 4:11-13 Paul says it this way, “For I have learned to be content
whatever the circumstances.”
In their own way, they are both saying the same thing---this is the life God has chosen to
give me, I might as well enjoy it. Does this mean you should never be sad or lonely? Of course not, that would
be unrealistic. All single women have moments when they wish they were married. However, we need to choose
to move past these moments and choose to enjoy our lives just as they are right now.
I’m not going to say that this is always easy. The truth is that it’s hard to take a “que sara sara” attitude when your
life isn’t going the way you hoped or dreamed. I’m sure that Paul understood this. Think about where he was
when he wrote these words. He was sitting in prison for committing no crime other than preaching about Jesus. I’m sure there were days that he longed to feel the sun on his face, to take a walk wherever he wanted, or to eat better food than
he was given.
However, as Paul sat in prison he had two choices: he could wallow in self-pity and become bitter
or he could choose to be content and accept that God was allowing this in his life. He could waste his days wishing he
wasn’t in jail, or he could use his time to write letters and encourage the churches. Paul’s choice was to learn
to be content.
This is a key phrase for the Christian single woman. Paul learned to be content. He taught his thoughts and his emotions to accept that this was God’s will for his life. He learned to stop focusing on what he wished his circumstances were, and to start making the most of each day in his circumstances.