There is no greater or more valuable relationship than our relationship with the Lord. He alone can give our lives true meaning as He fills our life with hope, peace, and the wonderful knowledge that He has provided His true children with forgiveness. God is our Father and He knows what is best for us. Without the Lord, we can't make wise decisions and so this is why God wants us to commit fully to Him so that He is wisely guiding over our lives. This is why God tells us that He needs to be everything in our lives which is evidenced when we love Him with a pure, trusting, childlike love that surrenders our whole lives to His care. This is the type of love that loves the Lord with all of our heart, mind, soul, and strength so that He is in control over our lives instead of us! 

If God truly is at the center of our life then we don't have to worry about finding a partner in our lives.  The Lord teaches that we are already married to Him in the deepest, most intimate relationship imaginable.  It is such an intimate relationship that the Lord refers to Himself as the "Bridegroom", and His followers as His "Bride".  Some people get so stressed and worried about not finding a person to share their lives with, but God does not want us to focus on finding a mate. (1 Cor. 7:27) It is good to pray about this matter and leave it with the Lord, but we should not fret and get upset if we are single.  In fact, the Apostle Paul recommended for the unmarried that it would be good for them to remain unmarried just as he was not married if that was possible for them. (1 Cor. 7:7-9) To remain unmarried can often times give people more opportunity to focus more intently on the things of God which are concerns that are far superior to any other endeavor in life. We may then have more time to devote to extremely important matters such as sharing the gospel with the world and helping people in need.  

However, it is definitely not a sin to marry (1 Cor. 7:28), and in many people's lives marriage has been a truly wonderful gift from God. We are warned in the Bible not to make hasty, wrong judgments about this important matter, however, for otherwise, we could end up in a relationship with a person who does not even have a committed relationship with God.  This could lead to many difficult situations for as the Bible tells us "what do righteousness and wickedness have in common?" In 2 Corinthians 6:14-18 it warns us: 

"Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has the light with darkness? Or what harmony has Christ with Belial, or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever? Or what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God..."

As we can see from these verses, God does not want us to bond closely with anyone who is not a strong follower of the Lord and especially when it comes to a potential marriage partner. We must also be very careful of those who claim to be Christians verbally but who may not be living as a true follower of Christ. For wise discernment in this area, please check out the following article: Testimonies = FRUIT! Also, beware of people who are deeply religious but have unfortunately fallen into a false religion or cult type belief. For better discernment in this area please check out the following articles: False Teachers List and Cult Characteristics. We have to be extra vigilant and discerning about false religions especially since they are so rampant in our day.

We need to relax and not get anxious about who God may or may not have planned for our marriage partner. We need to place this matter in the Lord's hands for He knows what is truly best for us. We can rest in the soothing scripture of Proverbs 3:5 which tells us to "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding." If the Lord wishes for us to have a marriage partner He will definitely provide that person for us.

God knows our every need and He knows if we are ready or not for such a commitment as a lifelong marriage. We can rest knowing that if this time comes, the Lord will make it very clear to us. If we are walking faithfully with the Lord, obeying His word, and following the Spirit's leading in our life then we will have a calm and peaceful confidence about whether or not a potential marriage partner is the right one for us.  Such a potential person will not make us feel pressured, make us want to compromise our values, be a believer of heretical doctrines, or walking down a path of sin against God. This potential partner will instead provide us with encouragement and support, be steadfastly walking with the Lord, and have the fruits of a true believer in the Lord.

In the meantime let us busy ourselves with the work of the Lord! Time is precious, souls need to hear the true saving gospel message of hope, and the promise of our Lord's return is drawing ever near! The Lord's urgent work should be our primary ambition in life and if the Lord does give us a marriage partner one day, this should also be the driving passion in that person's life as well.  

Article by F. A. Butler