this one's for the girls...

I want to take a minute to celebrate the gals who contribute regularly on this blog. Girls who don't, I celebrate you too. I just don't know that much about you.

Here on this blog, we have undertaken the task of articulating our experiences as single Christian women in an increasingly insane world, both in and outside the church. We have encouraged and supported each other, and we have lived our lives with integrity and love.

Here are some specifics:

Jen, you walked away from a guy who was a.) not a Christian and b.) using you. You weren't horrible. You weren't cruel. You weren't mean. You just told him where you stood, and you left -- a display of your good character, moral conviction, and kindness. You haven't set out to get revenge, or reveled in bitterness. You're forging ahead in your faith.

Jess, you've been consistently seeking God and His will since you started posting on the blog, and especially since your new location and new friends. You're striving to maintain a clear focus in your relationships with the non-Christian/taken men around you. You're dedicated to representing Christ. You stepped out in faith to a new city and a new branch in your career. You're persevering in incredibly daunting circumstances.

Joey, you're all the way out of the country! You're never afraid to try something new, and you're always seeking to serve God and look at others kindly. You never denigrated the Latin Guy when it didn't work out; instead, you saw it as a positive opportunity in your own growth.

MP, you're wise enough not to get tangled up in the messes and scrapes that tend to bog down the rest of us. Three cheers! And especially for being a loyal and unswervingly supportive friend who gives practical and godly advice, and who never minces on the truth (like our Savior). You're so much kinder to the Freaks and Weirdos than I am. You take everyone's personhood seriously, and you live an absolutely upstanding life. God shines through you, and everyone sees it. You're determinedly faithful to the church in spite of your own difficulties with it. You're fighting that good fight.

I see all of the women here dedicated to the truth, to purity, to goodness, to the gritty realization of faith and love in a completely mad world. We have all posted things that required courage, on topics that often get swept frantically under the rug. We're honest with each other. And we're doing well.

I love seeing girls embracing their freedom in Christ, and, instead of letting their mistakes get them down, trusting in the divine love that surrounds us to keep us moving forward, onward, and upward. We all know that we are Redeemed -- that as far as our sinful natures are concerned, the old has gone, the new has come! We have new natures, and while we'll make mistakes like everyone, we have the courage and grace to continue in the unfailing love of God. Because God doesn't see our sin when He looks at us; He sees His Son, and Himself, and the beautiful daughters He has created and cherished and whom He holds to His heart.

So let's rejoice! We DO treat others lovingly, in the most practical respects, and we don't hesitate to call a spade a spade, which in a society of saccharine (or wimpy) Christian niceness tends to stand out and look "mean." But we're not supposed to hedge on the truth. Jesus didn't. Particularly when it came to the religious leaders who preached burdens upon the people, or who acted wrongly in their treatment of others. And that's what all of you seek to do -- tell the truth -- and kindly at that, especially regarding specific individuals, and especially when those individuals aren't themselves Christian.

So way to go, gals! (And guys too...we just don't hear from you as often.) We have a Savior who looks on us with delight, who "rejoices over [us] with singing." And you're doing it right. Your lives reflect love and truth. And that's pleasing to the God who set us free, who sees us, and who loves us indescribably, as we are.

Plus you're all Fabulous. Really. Smart, motivated, articulate, gorgeous, creative, compassionate, fun, sensible. Yes, it's a mystery why we're all still single. But at least we're holding to hope, and doing what's right, and telling it like it is.

It's an honor and a joy to blog with you.