We live in a world where social media brings the temptation to compare our story to the highlight reels of everyone else. For most of us, it only takes a few seconds online to see countless stories of people getting married, having babies, and “living their best lives.”
Unfortunately, the temptation to compare our story to theirs is something that can seep into our expectations of how our search for love is going. When it feels like “everyone we know is getting married”, it turns up the heat, fuels the anxiety, and increases the pressure for us to find that special someone.
Today, we’d like to challenge those feelings and offer some practical steps to better approach our expectations for our search for love.
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” – Proverbs 3:5-6
Here’s the bottom line upfront. Your story is always going to be different from everyone else’s story—and that should be celebrated. Just because all your friends, all your siblings, or all your coworkers found someone already, doesn’t mean you’re not right on track with the plan God has for you.
Unfortunately, this is often easier said than done thanks to things like social media, pesky parents looking for grandkids, and Hollywood stories of romance that are far from rooted in reality.
Thankfully, our lives and our plans are not and should not be controlled by the world. We have a God who knows the plans he has for us. We have a God that sees around corners and sees the blind spots we can’t. While it’s easy to lean on our own understanding or lean on the understanding of what we think we know, God always sees clearer and always sees further.
So, here’s the takeaway. Trust in God’s timeline. Trust that He actually knows the plans He has for you. Trust that you have nothing to worry about, even if things aren’t happening as quickly as you want or in the way that you want.
To close, we want to give you a few practical steps if this is something you’re struggling with.
- Pray. Ask God to help you better trust the plans He has for your romantic life.
- Consider ditching social media. Take a real hard look at whether or not social media is adding value to your life or subtracting from it.
- Talk to the people pushing the timeline. If you have family members or friends that are pressuring you for “results”, kindly but directly ask them to stop. Let them know it’s not healthy for you, and you’d appreciate it if they stopped.
- Focus on yourself and your relationship with God. Ensure you’re living the life that your desired mate would find attractive. For example, if you’re looking for an incredible Godly man but you’re out partying every weekend, there may be changes you need to make before you meet someone special.
📝 Here’s Some Reflection Questions:
- Are there things in your life you could work on to bring yourself more in line with what your desired match would be interested in? (Note: We’re not saying to change yourself just to be more like what someone else wants. We’re referring to growing in your relationship with God in ways that are positive to you outside of a search for love.)
- What people or things in your life are causing you to feel pressured to compare your relationship results with others?
- What changes can you make today to eliminate some of those pressure-causing things from your life?
Are you a single Christian looking to meet someone special? You can sign up for the Higher Bond App for free now! Click here to learn more or download the app below:
