How Should a Single Woman Make God-Honoring Decisions?

One of the most difficult areas for a single woman or single mother is understanding how to make God-honoring decisions. She must know how to make decisions that will glorify God and benefit herself or her family. God’s desire is that a woman first consider the Word of God in her decision-making process (Psalm 1; 19:7; 2 Peter 1:19). There is no doubt that a woman who makes the study of the Scriptures a consistent part of her life will have a much better idea about how to make biblical decisions.

The Bible contains direct commands by which she will know a direction she cannot go apart from sin it also contains indirect principles that will give her a general direction in which to proceed. If the Bible does not expressly prohibit an action it most likely falls within the realm of freedom of choice.

Freedom to Choose

Many of us do not enjoy having the freedom to choose. We are much more comfortable with the black and white decisions that leave little doubt or room for us to err. Yet, even in our freedom, the Bible does provide some guidance and direction that a wise woman will understand as she studies and prays for wisdom and knowledge from the Holy Spirit.

Questions to Ask

There are some questions a woman can ask when wondering about the wisdom of making a particular decision. Each of these questions will cause a godly woman to examine her heart in light of specific Scriptures; such as whether this action would further feed the flesh (Galatians 5:13), be self-serving (Philippians 2:3 – 4), cause another Christian to stumble (1 Corinthians 8:9 – 13), or lead her toward some sort of worldly enslavement (1 Corinthians 6:12). Ultimately, the question is, does taking this action glorify God (1 Corinthians 10:31)?

Consult Others

A wise woman will also be sure to consult others in the matter. Another godly woman or a spiritually wise couple may have insights and the ability to contribute information that she does not think of because of the different perspective each gender brings to the discussion. She should not fear seeking the opinion of others, as though it somehow makes her look bad to them. In fact, a woman who is willing to consider the counsel of others is wise.

A single woman or single mother must not make decisions based on the popular opinion of her friends. She will be wise if she seeks wise counsel, but will be made a fool if she bows to the pressure of people pleasing versus honoring God (Galatians 1:10).

Make a Final Decision Based in Faith

Once she has gathered all of the factual data necessary, consulted the word of God on the matter, sought counsel and input in the matter, and discussed the situation and the various options available to her with older, wiser, Christians she may be ready to make the decision. If she is still unsure, she would be wise to consult godly and knowledgeable leaders in the church to seek their input on the matter. In the end, the decision must be made in faith (Romans 14:23) with trust in the sovereignty of God.