As a general rule, I’m not a worrier. That doesn’t mean I never worry. Worry’s just not one of my default traits. However, recently I’ve been worrying about something.

All worry starts out the same. You murmur two small words, and they catapult you down a spiral of hopeless doom. The words are “What if”.

Right now my worry goes like this: What if my baby girl doesn’t say “yes” to a relationship with Jesus? Or what if she says “yes”, but then turns away from Him? What if my baby becomes a prodigal child?

You’re probably aware that the number of young adults leaving their faith and the church is increasing. You may be one of them. There are many talking heads out there ready to tell us the reason this is happening. I’m sure some of them are correct in their analysis and research. However, the bottom-line reason young adults are leaving the church is because Satan is real.

What if my child, after growing up in a home where Jesus is real, is one of Satan’s prey?

The thought makes me sick to my stomach, makes me want to fall to my knees, like a knife going into my heart. That is my baby, you know.

And so I worry. The spiral goes on, and one “What if” becomes two that becomes three and so on.

A Lot of Prayer

On Wednesday nights a group of five young women in their 20’s come to my house for small group. This past Wednesday we were talking some about this. In the context of our conversation I said, “And you may not get married . . “ Then I kept talking.

But the moment those words left my lips I saw one of the girls crinkle her face, move her head back, and shutter. That was her “What if” worry. She had a physical reaction from just hearing those words.

Now, I do not think single women should go through their days anticipating being single forever. Actually, I think you should stop saying “If I get married” and start saying “When I get married.” However, sometimes it’s beneficial to let you mind go there, down that long road of “What ifs” to get to the end and see what you find.

I first heard about this from Beth Moore. I believe it was in a Wednesdays with Beth Bible study I was listening to online. Beth Moore said that she went through a time when she worried that her husband would die. So someone challenged her to imagine if that really happened. What would she do first? And then after she imagined what she would do first, most likely stay in the bed for days or weeks, what would she do next? And then what we she do after that? And then after that? And so on and so on.

As Beth Moore continued this story, she finally got to the end of her “What ifs.” And what she found is that life would go on, and Jesus would be there to carry her.

Friends, the same is true for you and me. Life will go on. Jesus is at the end of all of our “What ifs”, and He is there to carry us.

At first this may not seem encouraging. It is probably still terrifying. But we must remember that God is sovereign. He is sovereign in all things – in loneliness, in abuse, in sickness, in death, in unfaithfulness, in rebellion. 

We must also remember that our hope is in Jesus. My hope is not in my child’s salvation. And your hope is not in a future marriage. Our only hope is in Jesus. Without Him there is nothing at the end of our “What ifs” but misery and ultimately death.

This weekend may this be our prayer: that at the end of our “What ifs” we see Jesus as our only hope. And we are called “blessed”.

This weekend I am praying for you. Please leave your requests in the comments or on the Facebook page.

And a Little Encouragement

Okay, so if you follow me on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, you know that this is coming!

And I can’t be more excited! Y’all!! There are so wonderful, amazingly talented, single women who I had the honor of interviewing, and I can’t wait to share their stories with you. Let’s just put it this way, why couldn’t I be these women when I was single? So be looking for 31 Days of Interviews with Single Women coming in October for the 31 Days Writing Challenge.

It’s not too late to tell me what you need from the One Year No Dating Challenge is, click here. Be sure to take the quiz!

And Even Some Fun

This week’s Cents of Style Fashion Friday Deal is college game day colored accessories for 55% off and FREE SHIPPING with the code: GAMEDAY.

There have 5 different items on sale –  a “game day” custom graphic tee, long beaded necklace, short beaded necklace, jersey infinity scarf, and knit head wrap. Each, excluding the shirt, comes in about 18 different two tone college colors. This is the perfect way to fashionably show you are a fan! All items are under $15 shipped, with some under $9 shipped. 

Praying for you this weekend! Leave your requests below! 

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