Welcome to my NEW Blog Series: Two Paths, One Savior: Conversations with Glory / Singleness and Ministry, Week 4
If you are receiving this blog via email, clicking the post title will show the best version.
About the Series: This new series shares the story of my friendship with Glory. She is Nigerian, and I am from the United States, yet God tied our hearts together in a beautiful way. We met at a Bible study in Lagos, Nigeria, and her love for Jesus was clear from the very first day.
Glory later moved to Canada, and during a recent visit, I interviewed her about her life and faith. I’ll be sharing one topic each week:
Week 1 – Our Connection and Story: greenepastures.org/two-paths-one-savior-week-1/
Week 2 – Early Life and Faith: greenepastures.org/two-paths-one-savior-conversations-with-glory-early-life-and-faithweek-2/
Week 3 – Journey and Calling – Two Paths, One Savior: Conversations with Glory / Journey and Calling, Week 3 by Patti Greene | Greene Pastures by Patti Londa Greene
Week 4 – Singleness and Ministry – THIS WEEK
Week 5 – Writing and Ministry Together – Be Inspired
6 – Reflection and Encouragement – Be Encouraged: You’re Not Walking Alone
Week 7 – Friendship and Connection – Enjoy Christ-Centered Friendships
GLORY: Singleness and Ministry, Week 4
Q. What has it been like serving the Lord as a single woman?
A. Serving the Lord as a single woman has been an adventure, especially in a world where people expect you to get married at a certain time. You grow up thinking you will do what everyone else does — get married, have children, and serve God as a family.
But I have learned that our paths are all different. The most important thing is to see where God is leading you, how He is leading you, and to be content walking that path with Him.
It helps not to compare yourself with others, but to trust that God knows what is best for you. God will give you what is yours in His timing. That kind of contentment has helped me serve the Lord with all that I am and all that I have.
Q. What joys have you discovered in this season?
A. What I have discovered in this season of serving God as a single woman is that God is enough. God is more than enough for us. The Word of God is always true, and if God says He is enough for us, then we don’t need anything extra. He is more than enough.
The real challenge is learning to take that truth, sit with it, walk with it, and be at peace with it — that God is enough for us. That doesn’t mean it’s wrong to be married. It doesn’t mean marriage is better or worse. It simply means God has a different path for each of us, and His timing for each of us is different.
Whatever season of life we find ourselves in, and whatever situation we face — whether married or single — the Word of God says that God is enough. Truly, truly, God is enough. His Word is true, and I’ve learned to enjoy God being enough for me.
Q. What challenges do you face, and how has God met you in them?
A. The challenges I have experienced serving God as a single woman come mostly from living in a society that assumes people should follow a certain path at certain times in their lives — like a woman should be married at a certain age, have children, and raise a family. When life doesn’t happen that way, it can look like something is incomplete or missing. But, like I said, God’s path for each of us is different.
The biggest challenge I’ve had to face is learning to keep my peace and my joy, no matter what I think people may be thinking, how they may interpret my situation, or what assumptions they may make. I’ve also had to learn how to continue serving God fully — in the exact place He has called me — using the room He provides for me, without letting myself be limited by the expectations people place on those who aren’t where they think they should be.
We live in a society where people think you should be married, you should have this or that, and if you don’t, they believe it limits you. Some even think being a woman limits you in ministry. But I have learned that we are all children of God, and God does not discriminate. God calls us according to His will and His purpose for our lives.
So I’ve learned, in the face of all those limitations, not to limit myself — because the limitations people put on me only hold power if I allow them to. I am the one who chooses whether those limitations hold me down. And I’ve learned that God puts no limit on me. So I do my best not to limit myself or allow assumptions, presumptions, or societal expectations to hinder my work and my service to God.
Q. How do you stay encouraged when you’re doing ministry “alone” on the outside but never alone with Him?
A. How I stay encouraged during ministry alone is because I know that even though I am alone physically, I am not alone. I have never been alone, because His presence is so real and so true to me that I do not feel alone. I know that God is my ever‑present help, not just because the Bible says it, but because I know it and I experience it. I experience it day by day. God is my best friend. We talk all the time; we do things together. It’s not a phantom, and it’s not an idea. It is my real reality, so I do not feel alone.
I also encourage myself by remembering that it is better to be where God has called you than to be somewhere you placed yourself. Wherever God calls you, He gives you grace to stay there. But when we take ourselves to places God has not called us, we struggle. I have seen people enter relationships because they felt time was passing or because they simply wanted to be married. I have walked with people in those situations. I’ve seen them struggle and deal with things God was actually trying to protect them from. Seeing that has strengthened my determination to walk with God rather than walk outside His will and purpose for me.
So I have come to the conclusion that it is better to walk in obedience with God, be single, and keep my peace than to step outside His will, His timing, or His provision and end up struggling for the rest of my life just to meet a norm or fulfill a desire. Of course I want to get married. Of course I would love that. But I know His times and seasons are in His hands, so I am content to be where He has called me for now, until God opens the next door.
I have learned to find my peace and my joy in simply enjoying Him, enjoying what He calls me to do, and enjoying the people He brings into my life.
FACT by Patti
For 13 years, I’ve been Glory’s friend. I don’t know every detail of how she handled being single for so long—only what she has shared with me in confidence and what God has allowed me to see as her friend. I do know this: Glory has always wanted to be married. She hoped to share ministry with someone, and I understand that desire myself. I’ve seen her excitement when she thought marriage might happen, and I’ve also seen the sadness when it didn’t. I’ve seen her longing for children, and how that door never opened.
But underneath all those unfulfilled desires, I saw something stronger. I saw a woman of faith who wanted God’s will more than her own. I honestly wish I had the same courage she has shown. Sometimes we struggle because we want our desires met, but they don’t match God’s plan. In Glory, I see a woman who follows God first.
Even when contentment rises and falls, her love for Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit always bring her back to what is true—her earthly reality and her eternal blessings. Her life reminds me that contentment isn’t about getting everything we want. It’s about trusting the One who knows what is best.
Bible verse for contentment through hard times: “Godliness with contentment is great gain.” — 1 Timothy 6:6
Prayer:
Dear Jesus, You see every woman who carries the same hopes Glory has carried. You know the ups and downs of wanting marriage, and watching it not happen. Please give these ladies Your perspective. Some are content without marriage or children, and some are not. Lead each one to a church family and into a deep walk with You. Help them love the life You have given them, and trust Your timing in all things. Amen.
Next Week: Writing and Ministry (Together)
Feel free to repost, forward, or save, citing its source. And please subscribe to GreenePastures.org to receive my blogs through email.
#Singleness #SingleWomeninMinistry #Challenges #Persevering #ChristianMinistry #Ministry #Nigerian #SecularWork #ChristianJourney #ServingGod #ChristianPeace #ChristianEncouragement #DependingOnGod #Obedience #SingleWomen #SingleWoman
Books by Patti Greene
Coming Soon: Luke 2: The Christmas Story: Discover the Birth of Jesus in Scripture
Unstoppable: Go the Distance with God ISBN: 979-8284335017
Answer Me: Developing a Heart for Prayer ISBN 978-1512760453
Bible Word Search Puzzles: The Gospels ISBN 979-8218070465
Bible Word Search Puzzles: Acts and Epistles ISBN 979-8218092696
Bible Word Search Puzzles: Epistles and Revelation ISBN 979-8363612046
Christian Caregiving: Practical Advice for a Happy Ending ISBN 978-0692115381
Awaken Me: A Devotional Prayer Journal ISBN 978-1490893181
Anchor Me: Laying a Foundation in Prayer and Bible Study ISBN 978-1490893174