I’m not complaining so please don’t’ take this  note that way.

If you have the honor or pleasure of  having a husband,  please cherish them and thank them for all they do for you.

I dreamed of getting married, raising a family, but that is not what God chose for me. I am content to be single (and now say if I ever do get married, we might have to live in separate houses—since I am quite set in my ways LOL)

I love my independence.  The freedom to do what I want, when I want.  To go where I want  without worrying about what another wants to do.  No compromising :)

What I wish I had, was the moral support of a husband.  A man like my daddy, who could solve any problem.  A husband to share the  daily struggles with.  A man to help pay the bills.

A man to take care of the car troubles that tend  to plague me at times.  The issues  that crop up when you are a homeowner.  Living as a single lady, I don’t always have the financial freedoms that others do, who  have a husband ( and some families struggle like I do ,too, yet they still have another to lean on to get thru)

And as I age, I realize I can no longer do all the hard , physical labor  things I did before. I don’t’ have the strength I once had.  And seriously, I have begun to think that my time working on the farm and at the airport, on the ramp, in and out of the aircraft bins,  moving heavy bags, and freight was not wise or helpful to my body.  Uncle Arthur has moved in and some days are diamonds, some are stone.  Yet, I carry on.  Doing what I can and praying I don’t hurt myself when I do more than I should.   As a single person, it is also hard to always find someone to help, because others have lives, too, and are busy.  It would be nice to have two incomes, or even a husband who worked and I stayed home and “crafted” all the time. LOL

The road gets weary at times,  trying to balance the budget, make ends meet when they are miles apart,  dealing  with  people in this world who still think women are inferior and don’t’ know much.     There are times it would be wonderful to hand everything over to a husband, and say, “here, honey, you deal with all this”.

But, alas, I cannot do that.   I am not sorry for the way my life has been.    There are times I wish I had that “special someone” to lean on,   and I do, because I have Jesus to lean on  thru everything, but to have a “physical body” to fold me in their arms and hold me  would be a treat.  Maybe that is why  I have an abundance of dogs. They love me unconditionally. They hug me…or  smother me, not sure which, and  God  spelled  backwards is dog……………so there has to be something there.  :) ;) 

II Corinthians 4:17

For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;

Each thing …object.... heartache…struggle..... stumbling block that we see as a thorn in our side,  is really our thorn, our light affliction, and if we  handle it right, if we trust God, if we have faith, that He will see us thru it all, then it is what helps Christ shine brighter thru our lives. 

What we see as afflictions, are not meant to harm us,  but are meant to  draw us closer to Christ.

Paul’s affliction in the New Testament kept him humble, and kept him seeking Christ.  When we allow those afflictions to draw us nearer to God, and stronger in our faith, then  Christ can “bloom” and become  that beautiful rose, that grows  amidst the thorny patchwork of our lives..

So, if this is my affliction, that I need to be strong as a single person, then it is an honor to serve Christ in this manner. To be willing to be his humble servant ( with emphasis on learning humility) :) It is an  honor to be afflicted, as He teaches me patience, kindness, faithfulness, joy, servitude. 

“Oh, Father, may I daily learn to lean on you, to trust you, to do whatever I do to honor and glorify you. To be less about me, and all about you. “