Your relationship will work out if you decide to stay with God.
It doesn’t matter where you are at right now.
Start from somewhere in God.
Take it up from there.
Focus on your relationship with God.
Let His zeal eat you up.
Be consumed with pleasing Him.
And you will end up beautifying your destiny.
God is never confused about you.
He has it all perfectly planned out.
If you follow His map, you will not get lost.
Yes, sometimes, God leads round, but He will never lead you wrong.
Committed Until It’s Completed
Take a look at this scripture we all know:
Jeremiah 29:11 (KJV) For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.
So, God knows the thoughts He is thinking about you. He’s not wiping sweat off His eyebrow over it.
Perhaps, you will understand better in the Message Translation:
Jeremiah 29:11 (MSG) I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.
Hey, God knows what He’s doing!
Think deeply about it.
He has it all planned out!
His plans are to take care of you.
Not to abandon you!
Committed Until It’s Completed
He has plans to give you a beautiful glorious future and that includes a beautiful marriage!
I prophesy unto you, you will find His plan in Jesus’ name!
You will not miss it. You will not stumble.
You will not waste years!
God will restore all that is lost.
That God-ordained relationship will become a reality in Jesus’ name!
I prophesy stability. Wisdom from above. Grace to follow God and obey Him.
As we step into another month, it will be a glorious month for you in Jesus’ name!
One of the greatest successful transition stories in the scripture is the transition of the children of Israel out of Egypt.
Could there be one or two lessons from that story that singles can learn from as they transition from being single to being married?
How did they leave Egypt?
Let’s dive into God’s word.
Hebrews 11:29 (KJV) BY FAITH they passed through the Red sea as by dry land: which the Egyptians assaying to do were drowned.
By faith!
They transited by faith!
Ok so, from being single to being married, you will do it by faith.
The next question then is how did they do it by faith?
What were the practical things they were doing that ensured a successful transition from Egypt?
Now, let’s interpret scripture with scripture.
Psalms 66:6 (KJV) He turned the sea into dry land: they went through the flood on foot: there did we REJOICE in him.
They went through the flood on foot by rejoicing!
That’s how they did it by faith.
Rejoicing!
Indeed, you cannot be in faith without rejoicing.
Embracing the Shift: Single to Married
So, I am saying this morning, that your transition from being single into a great marriage is going to be very smooth when you understand the mystery of rejoicing.
Depression, sadness, bitterness, unforgiving spirit, and the likes are like deep potholes and death traps on the road to marital fulfillment.
However and wherever you find yourself, rejoice!
Be full of praise.
Thank Him for the gift of life.
The dead don’t plan for a wedding.
Those in the grave expect no proposal.
Rejoice every single day!
Now, there is something I am going to tell you.
Every day, dance before the Lord!
Psalms 149:3 (KJV) Let them praise his name in the dance: let them sing praises unto him with the timbrel and harp.
Rehearse your wedding day and dance in His presence every day!
The same principle applies to married couples who want to transition from being a woman to being a mother! Are you waiting on God for the fruit of the womb? Rejoice every day!
Embracing the Shift: Single to Married
Jeremiah 31:13 (GW) Then young women will rejoice and dance along with young men and old men. I will turn their mourning into joy. I will comfort them. I will give them joy in place of their sorrow.
I see every mourning, jilting, and disappointment turned into joy! God will comfort you with a good spouse!
God will have no choice but to facilitate your wedding!
There is something you have to work at as couples and it will save your marriage from unnecessary marital embarrassments.
I was looking at scripture in Genesis and I will like to share it with you! Just two verses!
Genesis 2:24 (KJV) Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.
Here we see, that in marriage, you become one flesh.
The word cleave has so many meanings. But two of them caught my attention.
1. To catch by pursuit.
2. To pursue hard.
Cleaving is not what is done on the wedding day alone, it is what you do all your married life!
You are to keep PURSUING each other in love, looking for ways to satisfy each other, and looking for opportunities to bless each other.
You have to keep working at loving each other more, finding creative ways to love each other more.
This is how to cleave!
How is this cleaving expressed?
It tells us in the next verse!
Genesis 2:25 (KJV) And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.
Because they are now one flesh, there is nothing to HIDE again!
You cannot hide your flesh from your flesh!
The Bible says you become one flesh, not one spirit.
It means, in all things, things of the flesh, affairs of this world, everyday things, you are to be open to each other!
Do you get it?
Avoiding Marital Embarrassments
Every time a husband or wife hides something from his or her spouse, the devil is attempting to mess up with the one flesh principle instituted by God!
And then this is what the Holy Spirit showed me!
Because they were naked and not ashamed, they will not not see shame!
Amplified Version says:
Genesis 2:25 (AMPC) And the man and his wife were both naked and were not embarrassed or ashamed in each other’s presence.
Avoiding Marital Embarrassments
Their nakedness to each other eliminated every shame!
The word naked suggests nudity in all senses.
Nudity of thoughts, intents to each other!
Dear husband and wife, be open to each other.
When something is nude, there is no packaging.
Don’t repackage what happened to your spouse. Say it as it is. The truth sets free. Falsehood brings bondage and robs you of your boldness. That is how to enjoy the fullness of God’s blessings in your marriage and avoid unnecessary embarrassments!
There are ways that look good and yet they are dead ends. There are marital pursuits that look like heaven on earth, yet they end up being hell on earth.
One of the greatest prayers to pray is to ask God to guide your feet and prevent you from stepping into marital errors.
And this, God has done in many ways, but we often think it is a disappointment and that something is wrong somewhere.
Yes, something is actually wrong, and God is often behind some relationships that crashed. God will not look on and allow evil to befall you. He is committed via the covenant.
Securing Your Marital Destination
Take a look at the scripture:
Psalms 119:29 (KJV) Remove from me the way of lying: and grant me thy law graciously.
This is a prayer unto God to stop you from the way that is replete with errors.
Take a look at the Message Translation:
Psalms 119:29 (MSG) Barricade the road that goes Nowhere; grace me with your clear revelation.
Wow!
May God barricade every evil way disguised as a romantic adventure!
May you be graced with clear revelation!
There have been barricades, right? God could be behind some of them. In order to protect you!
What’s the point of getting married only to discover surprises that throw you into perpetual despondency?
What’s the point of marrying a lover only to discover that you married an unrepentant cheat?
What is the point of getting married only to discover that it is no different from being sentenced to a marital prison?
God in His sovereignty and benevolence will prevent you from entering into a lifetime of regrets, pain, and agony if you listen to Him.
Securing Your Marital Destination
The next verses are very profound. Read them slowly.
Psalms 119:30-34 (MSG) I choose the true road to Somewhere, I post your road signs at every curve and corner. [31] I grasp and cling to whatever you tell me; GOD, don’t let me down! [32] I’ll run the course you lay out for me if you’ll just show me how. [33] GOD, teach me lessons for living so I can stay the course. [34] Give me insight so I can do what you tell me— my whole life one long, obedient response.
May this be your story in Jesus’ name!
May your errors lead you back to God and into miracles.
I pray for you, God will teach you how to grasp and cling to what He says in Jesus’ name.
For those who are already married, and you are feeling you have made a mistake now because of things you discovered, take to the Lord in prayer. Seek help. Seek Counsel. Go for therapies if needed. Do all in your capacity to salvage your marriage, because if a person failed in marriage, it affects every other thing! May God give you the wisdom and fortitude to do the right and the needful!
Oh, Pastor, you have no idea what I have been through!
My problem is unique, out of this world, an impossibility!
You can go on and on…but I have only one thing to say;
You are still alive!
Troubled, Perplexed, Persecuted, And Cast Down But Alive!
And if you are still alive, victory is sure!
2 Corinthians 4:8-9 (KJV) We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; [9] Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed;
To be troubled means to be afflicted, narrowed, thronged, and to suffer tribulation.
Ever been there before?
What does it mean to be perplexed?
It means to have no way out, that is, be at a loss mentally!
Ever got to a place where it seems all reasons fail you and all way seems blocked?
Where you are at your wit’s end and suicidal thoughts sift through your mind and you device means of ending it all?
But it didn’t end!
The amplified Bible explains it this way;
2 Corinthians 4:8-9 (AMPC) We are hedged in (pressed) on every side [troubled and oppressed in every way], but not cramped or crushed; we suffer embarrassments and are perplexed and unable to find a way out, but not driven to despair; [9] We are pursued (persecuted and hard driven), but not deserted [to stand alone]; we are struck down to the ground, but never struck out and destroyed;
You Have No Idea!
You have gone through a lot.
Broken relationships
Sexual harassment
Abortions
Depression
Manipulated by people you trusted and looked up to
Deceived and sexually abused by the one you call a Pastor
And you feel God hates you. God doesn’t like you. Why do you have to go through all that?
The first thing you need to know is that God has not abandoned you.
There are things that are self-inflicted, there are those that came as a result of disobedience, and even more because of mistakes of parents.
The second thing is that you need to pour out your heart and forgive all who hurt you and took advantage of you.
The third thing is to forget the past and move into the new that God has for you.
Then and then only, will you find yourself, in the experience of verse 15;
2 Corinthians 4:15 (MKJV) For all things are for your sake, so that the superabounding grace might be made to abound through the thanksgiving of the greater number, to the glory of God.
You Have No Idea!
You will look back and give thanks for everything!
Why?
2 Corinthians 4:17 (MKJV) For the lightness of our present affliction works out for us a far more excellent eternal weight of glory,
Everything you went through is referred to as light…because Jesus went through more and more for you to the point of shedding blood.
Hebrews 12:3-4 (MKJV) For consider Him who endured such contradiction of sinners against Himself, lest you be weary and faint in your minds. [4] You have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.
Hebrews 12:3-4 (MSG) When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls! [4] In this all-out match against sin, others have suffered far worse than you, to say nothing of what Jesus went through—all that bloodshed!
And then, in verse 17, it drops the bomb. All you ever went through, which the devil meant to use to destroy you will be used by God as raw materials to work out His glory in your life.
How?
You don’t need the details. You only need to hold on to Him and then see His incredible, unbelievable divine purpose as it unfolds in your life.
2 Corinthians 4:17 (AMPC) For our light, momentary affliction (this slight distress of the passing hour) is ever more and more abundantly preparing and producing and achieving for us an everlasting weight of glory [beyond all measure, excessively surpassing all comparisons and all calculations, a vast and transcendent glory and blessedness never to cease!],
