"God must be withholding a relationship because I'm not spiritually ready yet."
How it sounds in your head: You see couples at youth group and think they must pray more than you, have more faith, be more pure. Maybe if you read your Bible more consistently, stopped struggling with that sin, got more involved at church, THEN God would trust you with a relationship. You're on spiritual probation.
"But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."
-- Romans 5:8Religion - turning Father's love into a performance-based reward system.
Church culture teaches that blessings follow obedience, so singleness must mean you're failing some spiritual test. The couples who seem blessed must be doing something right that you're doing wrong.
Gomer was literally a prostitute, actively unfaithful, completely unready and unworthy. God told Hosea to marry her anyway - not after she cleaned up, not after a waiting period, but IN her mess. God's love pursues before readiness, not after.
I REFUSE the lie that God is withholding relationship until I'm spiritually good enough. IT IS WRITTEN that while I was STILL A SINNER, Christ died for me - God gives His best to me at my worst. There is NO CONDEMNATION for those in Christ Jesus, which means no spiritual probation, no proving period, no performance requirements. IT IS WRITTEN that I am blessed because of the BARAK covenant through Abraham's seed, and that blessing isn't based on my quiet time consistency - it's based on CHRIST'S FINISHED WORK. I am the righteousness of God in Christ RIGHT NOW, not after I get more spiritual. My Father is running toward me with every good gift, not waiting for me to earn it.
Your Father sees you trying to be good enough and His heart breaks because you already ARE - not because of your Bible reading, but because of Jesus' blood. He's running toward you with the ring and robe while you're still in the pig pen of 'not ready yet,' because readiness isn't the requirement - sonship is.