Wedding Cake © by feverblue
{Editor’s Note: Today’s post was written by Kori Rainey. You can learn more about Kori at the end of the post.}
Twenty-three was the magic age for me.
Maybe it was being raised in a small town or maybe it was just the girl in me, but growing up, there was no question that by the age of 23 I’d be happily married with at least one kiddo on the way.
That’s what everybody did, right?
So with each year that passed after that, it wasn’t only myself that I had to console, but everyone else. Every holiday the family came together, the big annual question loomed: “Are you ever going to bring someone home for the holidays?” Of course my family always had the best of intentions, they were just ready and thought I was at the right age to get married.
And, by the time age 29 rolled around, I was beyond ready, too.
As a matter of fact, after two college degrees, nine mission trips, a few years in a leadership role of my singles group at church—not to mention the volunteering as a Big Sister, helping with relief with the Salvation Army, and so on, I felt I had paid my dues. How many times would I have to have the same talk with the Lord again?
“Ok, Father, I’m ready now. When will I get married? Where’s my man?!?”
Still, no man came.
So, it was time for drastic change. A big move to the metropolis of Dallas was in order. Surely there were loads of Godly Christian men all over the the big city. And I was certainly ready for that.
Disappointment is what I found instead.
Almost 2 years later I found myself lonely, again. My biggest decisions throughout the week were choosing Subway or Taco Bell for dinner. I also never thought finding a church home would take so long. My expectations of the big city had exceeded reality.
I found myself, once again, ready for something nonexistent in my world. After talking with the Lord a whole heck of a lot about my options, I narrowed it down to two: move back to East Texas and slip into the comfortable world I knew, or resist the urge of all things comfortable and normal to me and take a huge step of faith in the direction that the Holy Spirit had been nudging me towards.
So within a time frame of about 2 months, I said “yes” to God’s plan. I changed jobs, bought a house, made a commitment of a church home, and started a singles group. I took the plunge and decided that if Dallas was going to be my home, then “Ok, Lord, I’m all in.”
It was the most rewarding decision ever–a year and a half later, I find myself right in the center of God’s will.
And that singles group I helped begin? It started with two of us and has now grown to over 40 people that I get to do life with every week. There is nothing sweeter than being surrounded by guys and gals who are desiring to know our Father more. My heart is full of love for every single one of them; they have become my family away from home.
My days in Dallas now are pure joy, and resisting the old me has lead to the most rewarding path I used to only dream of. Resisting has proven to be so much more important for me than being ready.
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