Devotion 9

The Single Life:  Do I Have to get Married?- Devotion 9

You do not have to get married! Jesus was single and so was St. Paul. It is not evil to remain unmarried. However, the scriptures say it is better to get married than to let your passions burn. In fact, if this is not a struggle for you the scriptures say that a person can be even more effective as a Christian remaining single. Listen to what Paul says:

I would like you to be free from concern. An unmarried man is concerned about the Lord's affairs--how he can please the Lord. But a married man is concerned about the affairs of this world--how he can please his wife--and his interests are divided. An unmarried woman or virgin is concerned about the Lord's affairs: Her aim is to be devoted to the Lord in both body and spirit. But a married woman is concerned about the affairs of this world--how she can please her husband. I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but that you may live in a right way in undivided devotion to the Lord."

If anyone thinks he is acting improperly toward the virgin he is engaged to, and if she is getting along in years and he feels he ought to marry, he should do as he wants. He is not sinning. They should get married. But the man who has settled the matter in his own mind, who is under no compulsion but has control over his own will, and who has made up his mind not to marry the virgin--this man also does the right thing. So then, he who marries the virgin does right, but he who does not marry her does even better. (I Corinthians 7:32-38) (NIV)

Prayer: Lord thank-you for your words about marriage and the single life. Help me apply them fully to my life and not ignore or twist them. In Jesus name. Amen