Hello, fellow singles 
!
Just a few things I've been thinking about as I forge ahead in the world of Christian Singledom (I know, sometimes I think it feels more like martyrdom!)
As I try to keep my head above water between a recent disastrous blind date and the two online Christian dating sites I've been a member of for several months, I've come to realize that one of the people whom I admire most in the Bible is Rebekah.
We don't really think about this because these days, we literally have the entire world at our fingertips--all we have to do is hop on the internet, send a text, or check out Twitter, Facebook, etc.
Rebekah was just a young girl going about her everyday life... and suddenly, one day at the well, some strange guy with a bunch of really thirsty camels shows up and eventually says to her, "Hey, I serve a guy back home... he has a son... would you be interested in leaving your family, security, everything you know and love... and traveling back to my hometown with me, a complete stranger, and marry some guy you've never seen, met, or talked to?"
In our day and age of instant communication, this seems completely unfathomable. I doubt Eliezer had any sort of carved or chiseled image of Isaac with him so that poor Rebekah could even "check out the goods" to see if she even thought the guy was physically appealing.
The Bible says that Isaac was 40 years old when he married Rebekah, but I'm not sure of any record of how old she was at the time (please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong). I think to myself, what if she was only in her early 20's? I know that I, for one, would be totally uncomfortable (read: I would have told God, "NO WAY, YOU HAVE TO BE KIDDING!) with the idea of marrying a 40-year-old guy I'd never met! (This is just my own opinion, as I am not attracted to guys who are twice my age.)
I know the culture and times were different then, but think about it: Rebekah had no real way of knowing what Isaac looked like. She couldn't hop on Google and find out if he had a criminal record. She couldn't friend him on Facebook first or even sent him a few texts or tweets or even make a simple phone call to even find out who he really was or decide if she liked the sound of his voice.
And yet, she found it in her heart to leave her entire family, friends, and everything she had ever known... to follow what God had for her and just GO. Keep in mind, there was also no turning back. She couldn't take one look at Isaac, change her mind, and then just hop on the next camel going home. This was it, and it was to be permanent.
I wonder if she asked God questions... I wonder if she had the fears and concerns that I would have had: "God, is he ugly?" "Will he be abusive?" "Will his family like me?" "Will I fit in with anyone there?" "Will I be turned into some kind of household slave?" I also wonder if maybe she was scared to death and perhaps her family consoled her with, "Well, at least you're marrying into family (her family was related to Abraham) and you know they have money so you'll be well-taken care of."
I can just hear it now: "MODS!! Seoulsearch is trying to say that Rebekah was a gold digger!"
NO, I am not trying to somehow discredit her or her decision by any means, but when talking to people about the Bible, one thing I hear many times is, "Oh... the Bible has nothing to do with my life--those people lived so long ago, if they even did exist--what could I possibly relate to in their lives?" If we take a closer look, we can see very real human beings with very real emotions, struggles, and dilemmas that aren't so different from what we face today.
Fear is something I've struggled with my entire life. But I would hope I am finally at a point (or at least, almost there), to where, if God called to my heart and said, "Kim, I have this great guy for you, but he's (in another country, on the other side of the world, in a place you'd never thought you'd see yourself living in) and you're going to have to trust me that he's a good man and will look after you. You're going to have to leave everything you know and love behind but I want you trust me, even through the hardships, that this is the person I've found for you who is going to help you fulfill your purpose in life."
I would hope that I could be even half and brave as Rebekah... and to JUST GO.
(Something else that inspired this thread was when I was part of "real live" dating service a few years ago. I talked to one particularly nice guy on the phone and he was from a country I'd ALWAYS wanted to visit... he seemed like a nice person... but, ironically, he was not even interested in meeting me face-to-face because we were an hour and a half away from each other and he said he wasn't interested in anything with that long of a distance. I was a little hurt, but told him I understood, because of course, you have to respect the other person's decision. Maybe we would have never worked out as a couple anyway, but I remember being a bit sad by the thought the he wouldn't consider even meeting.)
We ALL have our lists of "hopes" and "wants" for that "special person"... but what would you do if God threw you a curve ball (He seems to specialize in that) and tossed in a few unknowns, as well as a location you'd never even considered before? What if you met a great person, but that person was in another country, or spoke a mother language that was different from your own? What if they were part of a situation you would have normally not seen yourself marrying into? (Maybe this person is from a divorced home and you never saw yourself marrying into a divided family, etc.) What if he or she had a career that scared you to death (being a police officer or in the military, etc.?)
How far would you go, and what risks would you take to find THE ONE?
!Just a few things I've been thinking about as I forge ahead in the world of Christian Singledom (I know, sometimes I think it feels more like martyrdom!
)As I try to keep my head above water between a recent disastrous blind date and the two online Christian dating sites I've been a member of for several months, I've come to realize that one of the people whom I admire most in the Bible is Rebekah.
We don't really think about this because these days, we literally have the entire world at our fingertips--all we have to do is hop on the internet, send a text, or check out Twitter, Facebook, etc.
Rebekah was just a young girl going about her everyday life... and suddenly, one day at the well, some strange guy with a bunch of really thirsty camels shows up and eventually says to her, "Hey, I serve a guy back home... he has a son... would you be interested in leaving your family, security, everything you know and love... and traveling back to my hometown with me, a complete stranger, and marry some guy you've never seen, met, or talked to?"
In our day and age of instant communication, this seems completely unfathomable. I doubt Eliezer had any sort of carved or chiseled image of Isaac with him so that poor Rebekah could even "check out the goods" to see if she even thought the guy was physically appealing.
The Bible says that Isaac was 40 years old when he married Rebekah, but I'm not sure of any record of how old she was at the time (please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong). I think to myself, what if she was only in her early 20's? I know that I, for one, would be totally uncomfortable (read: I would have told God, "NO WAY, YOU HAVE TO BE KIDDING!) with the idea of marrying a 40-year-old guy I'd never met! (This is just my own opinion, as I am not attracted to guys who are twice my age.)
I know the culture and times were different then, but think about it: Rebekah had no real way of knowing what Isaac looked like. She couldn't hop on Google and find out if he had a criminal record. She couldn't friend him on Facebook first or even sent him a few texts or tweets or even make a simple phone call to even find out who he really was or decide if she liked the sound of his voice.
And yet, she found it in her heart to leave her entire family, friends, and everything she had ever known... to follow what God had for her and just GO. Keep in mind, there was also no turning back. She couldn't take one look at Isaac, change her mind, and then just hop on the next camel going home. This was it, and it was to be permanent.
I wonder if she asked God questions... I wonder if she had the fears and concerns that I would have had: "God, is he ugly?" "Will he be abusive?" "Will his family like me?" "Will I fit in with anyone there?" "Will I be turned into some kind of household slave?" I also wonder if maybe she was scared to death and perhaps her family consoled her with, "Well, at least you're marrying into family (her family was related to Abraham) and you know they have money so you'll be well-taken care of."
I can just hear it now: "MODS!! Seoulsearch is trying to say that Rebekah was a gold digger!"
NO, I am not trying to somehow discredit her or her decision by any means, but when talking to people about the Bible, one thing I hear many times is, "Oh... the Bible has nothing to do with my life--those people lived so long ago, if they even did exist--what could I possibly relate to in their lives?" If we take a closer look, we can see very real human beings with very real emotions, struggles, and dilemmas that aren't so different from what we face today.
Fear is something I've struggled with my entire life. But I would hope I am finally at a point (or at least, almost there), to where, if God called to my heart and said, "Kim, I have this great guy for you, but he's (in another country, on the other side of the world, in a place you'd never thought you'd see yourself living in) and you're going to have to trust me that he's a good man and will look after you. You're going to have to leave everything you know and love behind but I want you trust me, even through the hardships, that this is the person I've found for you who is going to help you fulfill your purpose in life."
I would hope that I could be even half and brave as Rebekah... and to JUST GO.
(Something else that inspired this thread was when I was part of "real live" dating service a few years ago. I talked to one particularly nice guy on the phone and he was from a country I'd ALWAYS wanted to visit... he seemed like a nice person... but, ironically, he was not even interested in meeting me face-to-face because we were an hour and a half away from each other and he said he wasn't interested in anything with that long of a distance. I was a little hurt, but told him I understood, because of course, you have to respect the other person's decision. Maybe we would have never worked out as a couple anyway, but I remember being a bit sad by the thought the he wouldn't consider even meeting.)
We ALL have our lists of "hopes" and "wants" for that "special person"... but what would you do if God threw you a curve ball (He seems to specialize in that) and tossed in a few unknowns, as well as a location you'd never even considered before? What if you met a great person, but that person was in another country, or spoke a mother language that was different from your own? What if they were part of a situation you would have normally not seen yourself marrying into? (Maybe this person is from a divorced home and you never saw yourself marrying into a divided family, etc.) What if he or she had a career that scared you to death (being a police officer or in the military, etc.?)
How far would you go, and what risks would you take to find THE ONE?
