Once again, it's that time of the month for flowers, chocolates and romantic dinners. As they say, love is in the air. Romantic love and marriage are a great privilege and delight to the people of God, but so is being single.

The time we are single is a great time to experience God and life. No, enjoying singleness is not about having the liberty to fool around and do whatever you want, rather it is a time to develop one's self and enjoy relationships that may have to diminish in priority and time given once one enters a romantic relationship.

The time we are single is a great time to do these four things that will help us grow to become better Christians, and moreover better people:

A time to build your character

Courtship and marriage are enjoyable seasons in life, but they are not for the faint-hearted. Romantic relationships call for men and women with character for it to work the way the Lord means for it to. While you're single, you can take the time to allow God to build your patience, unconditional love, servant heart and loyalty.

A time to build a financial base

While it's not a necessity to have a whole lot of money before getting married, it's a big plus to have a strong and reliable financial base before entering a relationship. While our security does not rely on money but rather on God, the responsible thing to do is save up before getting married. The season of singleness is a great time to do so as financial obligations are at a minimum as there are no conjugal bills.

A time to pursue God's heart

Couples answer a call from God together, but singlehood is a wonderful time to relentlessly pursue God's call for you as an individual without having to confirm if your partner is called to the same thing. For instance, going on short-term missions trips can post a little more challenge when you're married than when you're single because you might have to either bring your partner with you or leave that person behind.

A time to cherish your first family

Before one takes the time to build a family of his or her own with someone else, God has blessed us with our first family- your parents and siblings. God calls you into a season of singleness to be a blessing to your first family. It's best to take the opportunity to do so. It doesn't mean that blessing the first family stops after marriage, but one can maximise our relationships with our parents and siblings while single.