I FOUND IT!! Soon after publishing my blog post last night, I was heading to bed when I found the book that I mentioned in my first post. I totally think it was God’s timing for me to find the book after I wrote Part 1 of this story because I think He wanted to test me – test my memory of what I had read in the book and test my willingness to follow His leading in what I should write in my blog post rather than rely heavily on the book. :) For this reason, I’m not going to update Part 1, but just start this post with telling you about the book. Here is the cover of the book:
It is a thin, pocket-sized book (perfect for me!) called Discovering God’s Purpose for Your Life by Beth Moore. This book was given to me by my sister-in-law, Sharon, along with an encouragement card (she’s so good at that!). Like I said, it is the perfect size for me to have a quiet time that isn’t overly complicated with a book that isn’t so daunting of an endeavor. The entire book is about part of one verse: Philippians 3:10, which is part of what is now one of my favorite passages in the Bible! Beth Moore breaks up the verse into parts and discusses each part in a different chapter to help show readers what God’s purpose is for your life. Beth specifically uses the Amplified Bible version for the verse, though I memorized the verse in NIV; I’ve listed both versions below:
“My determined purpose is that I may know Him, that I may progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him, perceiving and recognizing and understanding the wonders of His person…” – Phil. 3:10 (Amplified Bible)
“I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death…” – Phil. 3:10 (NIV)
Whenever I read the Bible, I like to get the context of what I’m reading, so I read a little before and after the Philippians 3:10 verse:
“What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.” – Phil. 3:8-11
I memorized verses 10-11 and I clung to it as a new understanding of what God was trying to teach me. I prayed these verses repeatedly until they thoroughly broke down the barriers I had put up in my heart and mind. It was when I started chapter 2 of this book that I really stopped to think about what I was reading. Our determined purpose is to know God! As Beth’s book illustrates, “Your Book—Your life—is named Knowing Christ, and it is by you.” Each chapter of our life progresses as we seek the Lord and yield to His perfect Will. So, I guess you could say that this blog is a written version of my book Knowing Christ, by Letisha Houston – this book is the journey that I’m living out every day. “In every single season of our lives, in every situation, in every circumstance, He is after you knowing Him,” Beth explains. I love the way she explains things and I hope you get the chance to read it sometime! I think it's only like $1.99 at Lifeway! GREAT deal for such a wonderful, heart-changing message!
As I read the Word of God this past year, I prayed the things that Beth’s book suggested along the way: praying for God to show me the wonders of His Word, to help me perceive what He says to me through His Word, to help me understand His Truth. I learned that just as we have an innate desire for intimacy which can only be filled by the Lord, God also desires to be delighted in and to be sought after…by us! He chose to reveal Himself to us!
“We have cheapened our walk by going for what he can do for us alone, when the real joy is growing in the knowledge of the wonders of His Person.” – Beth Moore
I had a pretty exhausting day, so I hope some of this made some sense! Let me leave you with some of the questions that I had to face and that you likely will have to face also if you wish to have a closer walk with your Creator. If you are struggling with your relationship with God or having difficulty discerning His voice in your life, you will sooner understand why if you answer the questions truthfully. In fact, as long as we’re still living on this earth fighting against our sin nature, we will have to keep on asking ourselves these questions, answering truthfully, and repenting to bring about a real transformation in our relationship with the Lord.
- What fills up most of your thoughts each day?
- Who is the subject of most of your thoughts?
- I say that I am seeking God, but am I really?
- Do I act indignant toward God and others as if I am entitled to something?
- Am I more concerned about seeking after what I want or seeking after God?
- Am I on the throne of my life, or is God?
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