This article was published by Kindred Spirit on June 1, 2015.
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1. See us.
- If you’re a speaker, talk about marriage, but also about the possibility of celibacy and prolonged singleness. Revere all options—like the apostle Paul did.
- Broaden views of male and female roles beyond breadwinning and childrearing.
Image courtesy of Hoola Talullah via flickr.com
2. Validate us.
- Celebrate how God is using us by admiring our contributions at work or how we met that single parent for lunch.
- Convince us of our significance—help us understand how we can use our schedules, our relationships, and our aloneness to bless the church and fulfill the missio Dei.
3. Include us.
- Mention us in pastoral prayers. And when thinking up applications for messages, include a single man or a dating woman in your examples. When you do so, challenge us toward more than just sexual purity.
- Invite us to small groups and dinner parties, even when all the other guests are married. We need close relationships with people from all walks of life.
4. Help us.
- Offer to change our windshield wipers or join us as we look at houses for sale.
- Tell us we may call you at any time—if our car stalls on the highway or if we return home to find the front door vandalized.
- Send us home from church with healthful leftovers.
5. Welcome us into your family.
- Offer to have dinner waiting for us before small group. Eating at your house, even leftover spaghetti, fills us up better than a Big Mac.
- Invite us to Junior’s soccer match or to go bowling with your family. Many of us would love to spend time with our friends’ kids.
