Pursuing Our Goals Without Losing Sight of God’s Purpose for Our Lives
I remember hearing a woman speak about all that she had accomplished in her life. She was financially stable, successful in her career, and a single mother raising a teenager. During a conversation with a mutual acquaintance, she mentioned that she had been in a relationship she thought would eventually lead to marriage. However, she wasn’t in any rush to get married because there were still so many things she wanted to accomplish. I thought about what she said because many single Christian women today are making similar decisions. They want to establish their careers, become financially secure, purchase homes, and reach certain personal goals before seriously considering marriage. There’s nothing wrong with accomplishing these things, but we should be careful that our own plans don’t become more important to us than following God’s Will.
There’s something to be said about a woman working hard, accomplishing her goals, and being able to look back and say, “It was me and God who did it.” There’s a certain confidence that comes from knowing you trusted God, put in the work, and watched things come together in ways you couldn’t have managed on your own. These experiences can strengthen our faith and teach us valuable lessons about perseverance and depending on Heavenly Father. But we also have to be careful. Sometimes, after we’ve accomplished a few things, we can become so confident in our ability to make things happen that we begin planning every detail of our lives without seeking God’s direction. We may not intend to leave Him out, but that’s exactly what happens when we become more committed to our own plans than we are to His.
Can We Have It All?
The man, the career, the house, the car, and plenty of money in the bank. For some women, these are the things they believe will make their lives happy, fulfilling, and complete. There are also single Christian women who have decided they won’t consider dating a man who doesn’t earn as much money as they do or who hasn’t reached the same level of professional success. Now, there’s nothing wrong with wanting a man who is responsible, hardworking, and financially stable. Those are reasonable things to consider when thinking about marriage. But we need to be careful about deciding that a man’s income, education, or professional title determines whether he’s worthy of our consideration. A man can have plenty of money in the bank and still lack the character, integrity, and spiritual maturity necessary to be a good husband. No amount of money, degrees, or titles behind someone’s name can guarantee that they’ll be a good marriage partner.
Proverbs 3:5–6 (NLT) tells us, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.” This is where we have to take an honest look at ourselves. Are we seeking God’s direction when it comes to our relationships and future marriages, or have we already decided what kind of man we’ll accept and what our lives must look like? We can have a list of expectations so long that we leave very little room for God’s wisdom to influence our decisions. This doesn’t mean we should lower our standards, overlook red flags, or accept a man who doesn’t demonstrate godly character. It means we should make sure our standards are grounded in God’s Word and not simply in what the world tells us a successful man should look like.
The world constantly encourages us to pursue our dreams, build our own success, and create the life we’ve always wanted. Some of that encouragement can be helpful, especially when it motivates us to work hard and make wise decisions. But as followers of Jesus Christ, we have to remember that our lives don’t belong to us. We’ve been purchased by the precious blood of Jesus Christ, and Heavenly Father has a purpose for our lives that is greater than our personal ambitions. We can spend years working toward something we believe will make us happy, only to discover that we’ve neglected the very things God wanted us to give our attention to. And we shouldn’t measure our worth or success by whether we’re married, how much money we earn, or what we’ve accumulated. Our greatest accomplishment will always be living a life that pleases God.
Romans 8:28 (NLT) reminds us, “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” This doesn’t mean that everything we want will happen or that God will arrange our lives according to the plans we’ve made for ourselves. It means that we can trust Him to work things together for our good as we live according to His purpose. Marriage may be part of His plan for us, and it may not. Either way, our lives can be full, meaningful, and pleasing to Him. So, by all means, pursue your education, work toward financial stability, and accomplish the things God has placed on your heart. But don’t become so attached to the life you’ve planned that you’re unwilling to follow Him in a different direction. Nothing we could ever plan for ourselves will be more important than walking in alignment with God’s Will.■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“When Personal Ambition Gets Ahead of God’s Will”, written by Kim Times for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2026. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.
