Are You Willing to Let God Work on You First?
We want God to bless our future, but sometimes we aren’t nearly as eager to let Him prepare us for it. Now, a lot of us don’t like hearing that, and I get it. We have our plans, our expectations, and our own ideas about how things should work out. And truth be told, many of us have been praying so long about marriage that we don’t want to hear another word about preparing for it. But here’s the simple truth: whether we want it, don’t want it, or we’re completely over it, if marriage is God’s Will for us, believers who want to please Him should also want to do what He says about the matter. When it’s all said and done, that’s what it all boils down to. Proverbs 19:21 (NLT) reminds us, “You can make many plans, but the LORD’s purpose will prevail.” And that’s the final Word on the subject.
God deals with our inner landscape, and sometimes our desires help us see more clearly where He’s working within us. You can be having a conversation with someone, and a subject comes up that gets you thinking about something you might not have given much thought to before, especially when it comes to relationships. That happened to me recently when a friend mentioned one of the most important qualities he looks for in a future wife. I wasn’t expecting his answer, and I have to admit, it kind of took me aback. He said for him, it was all about accountability.
He went on to tell me that being responsible with money, paying what you owe, and knowing how to manage what God has entrusted to you are big things with him. Now, that may not be the first thing a woman thinks about when she’s considering marriage, but he made a good point. How we handle our responsibilities says quite a bit about our character.
Being Faithful With What God Has Already Given You
The more I thought about accountability, I began to realize that it’s about so much more than how we handle money. It’s about being responsible with what God has already placed in our hands and doing the best we can with what we have. None of us gets everything right all the time, and there will be times when we make mistakes or fall short of our responsibilities. But are we willing to own up to those mistakes and do what we can to make things right? Are we faithful in the things we’re responsible for now, or are we waiting until our circumstances change before we start taking them seriously? These are things we need to think about when we’re asking God to prepare us for something more. Because preparation isn’t just about what we hope to receive someday. It’s also about how we’re handling what He’s entrusted to us today. In Luke 16:10 (NLT), Jesus Christ says, “If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities.”
Let God Prepare Your Heart
Whether marriage is in your future or not, God still has work for you to do, and part of that work involves allowing Him to develop your character. Sometimes we’re so anxious to get to the next chapter of our lives that we become impatient with the preparation. We want the blessing, but we don’t always welcome the correction, discipline, and changes that may come before it. Hardly any of us adequately anticipate the challenges that often come wrapped in the blessing we desire. But God knows, that’s why we need to allow Him to work within us.
Our Heavenly Father knows the difference between a heart that’s willing to surrender to Him and one that’s simply looking for Him to grant its desires. So before you become discouraged because something you’ve been praying for hasn’t happened yet, take some time to examine what you’re asking God for and what you’re allowing Him to do in your life right now. Are you giving Him room to correct your thinking, change your attitude, and teach you how to love others as He has commanded? Or has the desire for marriage become so important that it’s taking more of your attention than your relationship with Jesus Christ? We certainly can’t afford for that to happen.
We never want to place ourselves in a position of missing what God is doing in us because we’re too preoccupied with what we want Him to do for us. Let Him prepare your heart, not just for the future you’re hoping for, but for the life He’s called you to live today. ■
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.
“Allowing God Access to Prepare You”, 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.
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