Woman's Passionate Pursuit of God

Karol Ladd

Description

Karol Ladd, author of the bestselling The Power of a Positive Mom, shares a passionate exploration of Philippians with women who are longing to love God and life.With humorous stories, keen biblical understanding, and engaging examples Karol encourages women to live with intention and joy and reveals how they canenjoy being a work in progressuplift others with sinceritychange their thoughts and change their livesfind strength when they are losing heartdiscover contentment in every situationKarol's trusted guidance and infectious enthusiasm will help women fall more deeply in love with God and His Word as His plan for their lives becomes more meaningful and possible than ever before. Insightful, leading questions make this a great resource for individual or group study.

Informations

• Publié par: Harvest House Publishers, Inc.
• Date de parution: 01 février 2011
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780736941037
• Langue: English

Extrait

KAROL LADD

HARVEST HOUSE PUBLISHERS
EUGENE, OREGON
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version , NIV . Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.
Verses marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible , New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, IL 60189 USA. All rights reserved.
Verses marked KJV are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.
Scripture taken from the New English Translation ( NET ) BIBLE copyright 2003 by Biblical Studies Press L.L.C. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
Verses marked NASB are taken from the New American Standard Bible , 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. ( www.Lockman.org )
Verses marked MSG are taken from The Message. Copyright by Eugene H. Peterson 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.
Cover by Koechel Peterson Associates, Inc., Minneapolis, Minnesota
Cover photo Thomas Northcutt / Photodisc / Thinkstock
Backcover author photo by Shooting Starr Photography by Cindi Starr, www.shootingstarrphotos.com
A WOMAN S PASSIONATE PURSUIT OF GOD Copyright 2011 by Karol Ladd Published by Harvest House Publishers Eugene, Oregon 97402 www.harvesthousepublishers.com
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Ladd, Karol.
A woman s passionate pursuit of God / Karol Ladd.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 978-0-7369-2964-6 (pbk.)
1. Christian women-Religious life. 2. Christian life-Biblical teaching. 3. Bible. N.T. Philippians-Criticism, interpretation, etc. I. Title.
BV4527.L2533 2011
248.8 43-dc22
2010015987
All rights reserved . No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means-electronic, mechanical, digital, photocopy, recording, or any other-except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.
Printed in the United States of America
11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 / VP-NI / 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
This book is dedicated to every woman who has ever experienced even an inkling of a desire to passionately pursue Christ. May your love for Him grow deeper still as a result of reading this book .
Thank you to all my wonderful friends at Harvest House Publishers. Bob, LaRae, Shane, Peggy, and everyone who has played a part in this book and video project, it is a true blessing and joy to work with you. Thank you for your commitment to excellence and the truth of God s Word. Thank you also to all the women who allowed me to share their stories and passion for God in order to inspire others on their journeys.
C ontents

Introduction: Chasing Happiness and Finding Joy
1. Beautiful Hope from Ugly Beginnings (Acts 16:6-40)
2. Pardon My Progress (Philippians 1:1-11)
3. Diamonds Formed Through Difficulties (Philippians 1:12-19)
4. Living Your Life with Passion and Purpose (Philippians 1:20-30)
5. The Surprisingly Delicious Flavor of Humble Pie (Philippians 2:1-11)
6. Shine Like Stars in the Universe (Philippians 2:12-18)
7. What Does True Devotion Look Like? (Philippians 2:19-30)
8. Getting Rid of Garbage to Gain What Is Priceless (Philippians 3:1-11)
9. Forget the Past and Press On to What s Ahead (Philippians 3:12-21)
10. Change Your Thinking and Change Your Life (Philippians 4:1-9)
11. The True Secret to Contentment (Philippians 4:10-13)
12. Be the Blessing in Your World (Philippians 4:14-23)
Conclusion: The Passionate Life
Start Your Own Positive Woman Connection and Study Questions
Endnotes
Notes
About the Author
A Woman s Passionate Pursuit of God DVD
Other Great Harvest House Books
I NTRODUCTION
C hasing Happiness and Finding Joy

For I want you to understand what really matters, so that you may live pure and blameless lives until Christ returns .
-P HILIPPIANS 1:10
To seek God is to desire happiness; to find him is that happiness .
-A UGUSTINE
S pring in Dallas just doesn t make sense to me. On any given day, we may have a freeze warning at nightfall and 80 degree temperatures by the very next afternoon. It s crazy! They say if you don t like the weather in Texas, just stay around for a couple of hours, and it ll change.
On a recent March morning, I stepped outside to get the newspaper and was hit with a blizzard. Well, it may not have been that extreme, but it was one of those take-your-breath-away cold fronts that felt like a blizzard to this thin-blooded Southern girl. By mid afternoon of that very same day, I was sitting in the garden reading and enjoying some good ole Texas sunshine.
Personally, I love to be outside, and I love to read, so when I can find the time to enjoy both, it is a happy afternoon. On this particular spring day, my personal reading agenda was the book of Philippians in the New Testament of the Bible. Written by the apostle Paul while he was a prisoner in Rome, one could easily assume Philippians would be a real downer of a book. On the contrary, it is quite a delightful and uplifting read. In fact, the theme of joy-from this unlikely author-sort of oozes through the pages.
As I relaxed and tried to picture how Paul could possibly write such a positive message from a prison cell, I glanced up to see a white butterfly dancing around our garden. I watched with amusement this fluttering creature touch a flower here, flit off to another flower there, dart to several others, and then fly back to where it had begun. It never stayed in one place for more than a few seconds as if it were pursuing something it would never find. Just as quickly as it appeared in my garden, it was off to the next field of flowers.
Observing the illusive dance of the white butterfly made me think about how illusive life s pleasures can be. Just like this flitting creature, I realized how easy it is for me to flit, flutter, and fly from one activity or person to another, trying to find sweet nectar to satisfy my longings for significance and joy. I m guessing you have felt those same feelings a time or two as well. The pursuit of happiness is common to us all. The question is: Where does the chase stop, or does it stop? Are we fooling ourselves into thinking that there is something out there that will enrich our beings and fill the hunger of our souls?
The Happiness Hunt
Hunting for happiness can often tease us. Consider the money, time, and energy we expend during our lives chasing the intriguing if onlys of life. You know what I mean; if only then I will be happy.
If only I could date a wonderful guy
If only I could go to the right college
If only I could find the best job
If only I could marry the perfect man
If only I had married that other man
If only I could have well-behaved kids
If only my kids could make the cheerleader squad, sports team, or special interest club
If only I had time to relax, money to spend, a house that is clean, or a life that is simple
Phew! We can wear ourselves out just thinking about all the possible opportunities to experience happiness, and I didn t even mention the physical perfections we chase. If only I had
pretty hair
thinner thighs
toned arms
fewer wrinkles
a smaller tummy
a different nose
Then I would be happy! Right?
Sounds like white butterflies flitting around from one flower to another! Oh, I m not saying these things won t make us happy. They very well may generate happy feelings for a while, but typically once we have experienced an if only, it s on to the pursuit of the next hopeful dream. The point is feelings of happiness come and go. Vance Havner put it this way, The world s happiness should be spelled happen-ness because it depends on what happens. 1 We may be happy because we just got a raise, or someone is nice to us, or the kitchen is finally redecorated, but then the hunt is on for the next happy happening. The pursuit of happiness simply takes us from one sweet flower to the next.
What Really Matters
The irony of my butterfly encounter on that spring day in Dallas is that I was sitting there reading a book that highlighted enduring qualities that transcended shifting circumstances and fleeting feelings. Paul (yes, from his prison cell) described a resilient joy, a consistent contentment, and a peace that passes all understanding in his letter to the Philippians. Unlike the flitting butterfly, Paul taught the early Christians how to experience a true satisfaction of the soul.
Does God call us to pursue happiness or to pursue Him and His purposes in our life? In the book of Philippians, Paul paints a fresh perspective on life for us. He challenges us to live and think differently than the world around us. If this man in prison can write about being full of joy, then I think he has something to teach us about a type of meaningful fulfillment and deeper delight beyond circumstances or people.
Ultimately Paul encourages us to chase what is eternally satisfying, a pursuit that will not disappoint. I m inviting you to join me on an exhilarating journey as we walk together through Paul s joy-filled letter to the Philippians. You will never look at the challenges in your life the same way again. I believe you will discover a type of soul satisfaction that brings lasting fulfillment.
A Woman s Passionate Pursuit of God is about experiencing a joy that won t go away. It s about finding a true contentment and an eternal purpose for your life as we discover the powerful truths Paul presented in his letter to the followers of Christ at Philippi. There are a variety of ways you can take in the truths of this book. You can use this book for your own personal reading, a neighborhood book club, or a large group Bible study. At the end of each chapter, you will fi