A recent blogpost by a former classmate showed up in my newsfeed the other day. Yes it caught my attention, not just because we once once shared seats at the Journalism Department, but also because the author raised a critical issue, young people are increasingly delaying marriage in favour of other honourable pursuits.
My former classmate blamed it on the parental orientation that grooms kids to aspire for education without aspiring for life long commitment.
This substitution, she argued, should rarely be happening. I agree buddy, few ambitions under the sun should give marriage a run for its money.
Of course we post-modern people are encumbered with a lot, long workdays, job transfers, masters degrees, church activity, “just live your life” ideals and sometimes – Mum or Dad simply haven’t put our commitment notions to test, but how long can we stick our head in sand?
How long can we escape the call to adulthood, years after our first grad party, job?
Will the play station eventually hide our insecurities, will our weekend partying compensate the responsibility of breast feeding, paying school fees, or attending daughters school concert?
Will weekly fellowships and church activity obstruct God-honouring friendships that may lead to the aisle? In the long run, no, it shouldn’t be that way, Of course not everybody is going to say “I do” someday (even scripture doesn’t guarantee that) but shouldn’t the desire to marry and get married take it’s noble place, regardless?
Whereas my less than three year marriage experience doesn’t qualify me to answer such noble questions, I remain convinced it’s high time our future featured a desire to cherish and be cherished, till death does part.
That reality will flourish us too, as humans , most times in ways that career ladders and radical independence won’t.
Because indeed, single hood was the first thing God called “not good.” ( Gen 2:18)
I hope my former classmate is still reading?
