Voices

Who are you listening to regarding your life? As I have talked to others about being a committed single, I find an occassional person who has said, "That's what I should have done, but everyone thought I s hould marry _____. And now we're married. It's okay, but not that great." Mind you, I don't hear it often, but occassionally I am hearing this.

It seems to me that in many areas of our lives, we as singles listen to way too many voices which are neither our own or God's. Some of these are the voices of our friends. They are well meaning, they want us to be happy and assume that even a bad relationship is better than no relationship. Some are the voices of parents wanting grandchildren. They may be married voices who having found happiness in their marriages, that marriage is the key to your happiness as well. It may be the voice of the one you are dating. He or she may be in love with you, but the question is: Are you in love with him or her? No one person can have enough love for both parties in a relationship.

The voices of society also chime in. Employers and co-workers asking why one has come to the office party alone or veiled hints about the "stablizing effect" of marriage. The popular media also sings to us about how one must always be in a relationship and how one who is not is either pitiful, miserable, selfish or a loser.

Whether you are single until you find the right person, or you are a committed single, the only voices to listen to are those of your own heart and that of God. Remember, those voices are of people who do not have to live your life. And they don't have to go home at night with that person who "is just right for you."