I have not read Jennie Pollock’s book, Only If: Finding Contentment in the Face of Lack and Longing. Ben Virgo over at Christian Heritage London conducts this wonderful interview with her. Jennie works as Head of Public Policy at the Christian Medical Fellowship and worships at Grace London, where she is a frequent teacher. I believe this book grew out of requests from her audience to publish her thoughts.
I don’t know her but, listening to the interview, I was touched by her honest reflection on being single at age 48 when, for much of her life, she assumed that God would one day bring her a husband and children. I was 23 when Karen and I married. From dear Christian friends who are single, I have learned that there are trials of singleness today that are foreign to my own experience. I have spoken to many who are content with singleness, but still feel a longing that is hard to communicate to others. Sometimes the others are married people who are not very receptive. I think that part of that may be that singleness is a different experience today than it was several decades ago. It’s not an immediately comfortable topic for many.
Along these lines, I heard an interesting interview with Marshall Segal, one of the editors at Desiring God and author of the 2017 book, Not Yet Married: The Pursuit of Joy in Singleness and Dating. Marshall is a newly-married guy. He speaks pretty authoritatively, and his view of sanctification seems rather married-person-centric for my tastes, but I believe he sees and understands the communication gap between single Christians and married Christians. He knows this from experience and his interview is strong where he recalls what it felt like to be single.
Nevertheless, I was so touched by the gentleness of Jennie Pollock. I am confident that she holds experiences that come to life in her book. I’m confident that she has much to share regarding what contentment looks like (and feels like) in the middle of longing. Again, I haven’t read her book, it’s on my list, but she sounds like someone who would absolutely resonate with many of my single friends.
Take a listen to her interview, buy and read her book, Only If, and tell me what you think.
