by Hannah Hanzel | Jun 23, 2016
There’s got to be about five million articles, stories, blogs, etc. about being a Christian and being single. This is pretty much another one of those… kind of.
You’re single. In your 20s, maybe? So where is this guy or gal who is going to stumble onto your spiritual path, look up, and be filled with a heavenly glow? Doesn’t God know that loneliness is the worst ever? Maybe He’s waiting for you to be asked by the lady in your church for the 502nd time when you’re going to get married. That can’t be it.
Being single doesn’t haunt me day and night. It doesn’t even hit me every day, to be honest. I’m a very content, young Christian woman. I have my job, hobbies, ministries, friends, and family. I’m actually closer to God now than I ever have been in my life. But then there are just “those days.” You know what I mean. Those days when every lonely thought and feeling pierces your mind and heart.
It may start with you waking up and realizing that you eat breakfast alone everyday. Then you get to work and happen to notice all the family photos in the cubicle next to yours. On your break you check Instagram and “every” post is a cute couple on an adventure. When it’s time to leave work, it seems that everyone else is calling their spouse to see if they need anything from the store. At home you lounge on your couch and notice how much space is left on the other side of it. Then, when it’s time for bed, you lay down… alone. Am I the only one who has had one of “those days?”
I’d like to share with you how I get through “those days.” There are five specific and practical guidelines I apply when either I know ahead of time that it’s going to be one of “those days” or when it is becoming one of “those days.” Here they are:
- Prepare my heart. I am single. I am susceptible to loneliness. I need to be okay with that to a degree. When I prepare my heart, it may look like singing worship music, reading my Bible, or just telling myself that it’s going to be okay.
- Build a bridge. I cannot have a pity party! First off, who wants to be with that single friend who makes you feel guilty for having a happy spouse and kids? No one! Second, I need to be able to find a balance between having a bad day and self-wrecking my day. I must not believe Satan’s lies of “those days!”
- Avoid Social Media. If I am feeling lonely because of virtual envy, I need to put the phone down and walk away. As soon as I start seeing the happy couples on Facebook when I am having one of “those days,” I can get very bitter. Not only that but I might start looking up exes or crushes and start making plans outside of my control. So I need to just say no if that is what it takes to survive one of “those days!”
- Ask for prayer. That’s what community is for! When I am smack-dab in the middle of one of “those days,” the first thing I do is text my people and ask them to pray! Knowing in that moment someone is praying God’s will and presence over my life is priceless.
- Congregate or Retreat. Depending on what kind of one of “those days” I am having, I will do one of two things. First, there is congregate. I may drive an hour and a half to go eat supper with my family or have a few close friends over for a Mario Kart tournament! This always reminds me of my blessings and makes my heart smile. Then there is retreat. Assuming that you have your daily time with God, this retreat is an added time with the Lord. I may need time to refocus and just feel God’s wings unfurl over my lonely heart. I may sing songs to Him and read encouraging scripture. I may sit on my bed curled up and cry out in fear and honesty to Him… He can handle it. I may just sit in silence. There’s something therapeutic about sitting and being still.
Single Christian woman, single Christian man, God is near. He does not look away when you are dealing with one of “those days.” The Bible has many instances that it refers to the phrase “in those days.” Almost every time it was a reference of change. Either change was yet to come or change had happened. In the same way, God is working in the middle of one of “those days.” He is teaching your heart to run to Him and orchestrating your actions to point to Him.
The next time you have one of “those days” think of my list, but most importantly think of how God is going to use that day for His glory! Be a willing vessel!
by Hannah Hanzel | Apr 20, 2016
Last year around Christmas time I had the awesome opportunity to go on a mission trip to Mexico. It was my fifth time to go on this same mission trip, but no matter how many times I go, I still get as giddy as if it were my first trip. International Missions is where God has hidden my heart, so it is natural for me to go on mission trips frequently.
However, this specific trip was different. I had just graduated college. I wasn’t “tied down” anymore. I was pumped and chomping at the bit to head out on the mission trip (and hopefully the long-term mission field eventually). When we got there, I was hopeful and eager.
One day, we went out to go door-to-door and share the Gospel with people. We encountered a lot of stories of Cartel kidnappings and vicious murders in this neighborhood. Normally this doesn’t bother me. At the risk of sounding “holier than thou,” I felt and still feel if God wants me in harm’s way then that is really the safest place to be. The most dangerous place is to be outside of the will of God.
After hearing all day about these incidents, I hit my bunk that night a little shaken. I laid awake for hours past Lights Out. I was so confused. I faced the same question that every single person in the world faces at some point: “Why are bad things happening to good people?”
Why, Father, are you letting these faithful believers see their daughters be taken and abused by these evil men? Why are you letting these good men be beaten and blackmailed by these unlawful abusers?
There in the middle of the church gym floor on my air mattress, I searched through scriptures for an answer. I came to Habakkuk – a simple, short, and often a seemingly inapplicable book of the Bible. I read a verse I had highlighted a long time ago, “Lord, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds. O Lord. Renew them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy.”
Habakkuk’s complaint wasn’t much different from Hannah’s (mine). Through the whole book, Habakkuk is pleading, complaining to God for mercy on the faithful. The last part of the passage seemed to stick in my head, “In wrath remember mercy.”
Then it hit me. I deserve hell. There is no difference between the Cartel and me. There is no difference between ISIS and me, or Sex Traffickers and me. The renowned verse, John 3:16, doesn’t say “For God so loved the naturally kind people,” or “For God so loved the ethical workers.” It says “For God so loved the World”.
The Lord’s answer was plain. I deserve the wrath of God. I deserve an eternity in separation from the One True God Almighty. And yet He chose me to be his own child, royalty. I left that mission trip with a whole new sense of humility. When you realize how much grace has been lavished on you, you can’t help but live every day with gratitude. God is always good. We must live as though each day and each situation were God’s mercy gifts to us.
by Hannah Hanzel | Mar 15, 2016
No, I didn’t misquote the popular saying. In the following paragraphs I’ll scratch the surface of what this means. You know what “practice what you preach” means. If you were to google it, you would come up with something like this:
“Do yourself what you advise others to do.”
Pretty straight forward. It’s also a phrase that Christians use to remind each other of how they should be living. From one Christian to another, what you say should match how you behave. If you are speaking of mercy, then your lifestyle should reflect that. If you are speaking of patience, then your lifestyle should reflect that.
But what about preaching what you practice? What does this mean to the Christian today? Many of us have heard the quote:
“Preach all the time, if necessary use words.”
This quote has been credited to Saint Francis of Assisi. Though considered profound, our Christian society has taken it as a vow of silence. We use it as a cop out of Mark 16:15, “He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to all creation.’” We have decided, as Christians, we can live a holy and silent life, assuming that if people notice we live differently then they will come to us. If they see how we go to church, pray at lunch and help others in need, they will seek us out for a “come to Jesus” session. While these things are all good, there must be a balance between preaching and practicing.
What does this mean for the non-believer today? Under my convictions of Romans 9 and many other places in the Bible, I believe there is nothing we can do to save a soul. I, myself, cannot determine whether someone will accept Christ of my own power or by what I do. In a nutshell, it comes down to obedience. Obedience as a believer as to whether we will share the Gospel as Matthew 25 commands, or disobey and be silent. Obedience as a non-believer as to whether they will accept the call to salvation. This all being said, preaching what you practice builds your testimony. But again, what does all of this mean for the non-believer?
The idea that the non-believer will come to us based on how we live is in direct conflict with John 3:20. This verse states, “Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed.” If someone is in sin and without Christ, why would our silence affect their state of spiritual curiosity? They don’t want to seek out the light, they want to hide from it.
We must proclaim it! Verbally! Actions are powerful, but they do not speak louder than words. Actions are useful for exhibiting what we speak, but we should not replace the latter with the former. Both are necessary to the spread of the Gospel.
Speaking/preaching/proclaiming can be scary. One reason I think that believers today choose to stay quiet and lean on their actions is fear. Fear is a powerful motivator. Something to understand is that even the “greats” were scared. People like Moses (Ex. 4:10), Jonah (Jonah 1:3), David (Psalm 56:3-4, and Abraham (Gen. 15:1) were afraid. We, however, have one thing they had not yet received – the Holy Spirit.
While the Spirit came in the Old Testament at times, He did not fully dwell in believers. We, on the other hand, have full access to the power and courage the Lord gives through His Spirit. Because of this, we should be speaking the Gospel with innocence and shrewdness (Matt.10:16). Fear is not to be our motivator. Our motivator should be love. If the Heroes of the Old Testament can boldly proclaim the word of God, then how much more can we proclaim with His Spirit abiding in us?
Even if we still get scared, God promises to be with us. Joshua 1:9, Deut. 31:6, Matt. 28:20, Heb. 13:5, Rom. 8:38-39, John 14:16-17, and many more verses provide proof of God’s faithfulness. Go and preach what you practice with boldness and love. Do not neglect the verbal responsibility to share the Gospel.