Sacred Singleness , livre ebook

Harvest House Publishers, Inc. - Leslie Ludy

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97 pages

English

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Leslie Ludy, popular writer and speaker, has a powerful message for today's single adults. Through personal experience and in interaction with thousands of young women over the past fourteen years, she has found that most Christian young women fall into one of two categories: those who are discontent and unfulfilled, constantly searching for the "right one," and those who are consumed by a passionate romance with Jesus Christ and are living joyful, satisfied lives. Her desire is to help readers move toward the totally surrendered and fulfilling experience rather than one of striving and disappointment.Leslie shares firsthand stories and testimonials of modern-day single women who may sometimes struggle with loneliness and personal desires but who, in following God's plan for them, have discovered a deeper delight, purpose and true joy in their lives. Sacred Singleness gives every single woman the inspiration to live counter to the culture and find amazing opportunity in this sacred season.

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Publié par	Harvest House Publishers, Inc.
Date de parution	01 août 2009
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9780736934633
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0646€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

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SACRED
singleness
LESLIE LUDY

HARVEST HOUSE PUBLISHERS
EUGENE, OREGON
Unless otherwise indicated, all verses are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Verses marked KJV are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.
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 NIV are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION . NIV . Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by the International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.
Verses marked ESV are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Verses marked Y OUNG S are taken from the Young s literal translation of the Bible.
Cover by Abris, Veneta, Oregon
Cover photo Senthil Kumar / Comet Photography / Corbis
Published in association with Loyal Arts Literary Agency, LoyalArts.com
SACRED SINGLENESS
Copyright 2009 by Winston and Brooks, Inc.
Published by Harvest House Publishers
Eugene, Oregon 97402
www.harvesthousepublishers.com
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Ludy, Leslie.
Sacred singleness / Leslie Ludy.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-0-7369-2288-3 (pbk.)
1. Single women-Religious life. 2. Christian women-Religious life. I. Title.
BV4596.S5L84 2009
248.8 432-dc22
2008049429
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
09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 / VP-SK / 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Contents
Author s Note
Part One
First Love
A Romance with the One Who Fills All In All
1. Forsaking All
My Story of Surrender
2. The Pattern of True Christianity
Applying the Gospel to Singleness and Marriage
Insider Secrets to Radiant Singleness
Am I Enough?-Kelly s Story
Insider Secrets to Radiant Singleness
My Sister s Wedding Day-Melody s Story
3. Finding Romantic Fulfillment
Discovering the Ultimate Bridegroom
Insider Secrets to Radiant Singleness
A Love Story with Jesus-Giovanna s Story
Part Two
The Dangers of Modern Voices
The Gift of Singleness Redefined
4. The Modern Church and Singleness
A Breeding Ground for Discontentment
5. Contentment in Christ
Is It Really Possible?
Insider Secrets to Radiant Singleness
My Soul s Husband-Annie s Story
6. Giving God a Hand
Isaac or Ishmael?
Insider Secrets to Radiant Singleness
Holding Out for God s Best-Kristina s Story
7. Marriage Above All Else
Exploring the Issue of Idolatry
Insider Secrets to Radiant Singleness:
Overcoming Self-Pity-Jessica s Story
8. Doesn t God Want Me to Be Happy?
Understanding God s Heart for Singleness
Part Three
Living a Poured-Out Life
A Sacred Season Awaits!
9. The Sacred Opportunity of Singleness
Learning to Look Beyond Self
10. Sisters of the Common Life
Real-Life Inspiration from Modern Single Women
11. Getting Started Changing the World
Resources and Opportunities
Final Thoughts
Bonus Section
An Interview with Krissy on Radiant Singleness
Notes
www.setapart(girl).com
Other Books by Leslie Ludy
About the Publisher
About the Author
Author s Note
W hen I first began contemplating writing a book on singleness, I felt a little nervous. After all, my own season of singleness was relatively short, which might seem to disqualify me from this subject. For the past 14 years, Eric and I have spoken to countless thousands of unmarried young people about God s plan for this season of their lives, and along the way I ve encountered plenty of single young women who look at me with a fishy eye. The vibe I get from them is, Don t talk to me about being content with my singleness, honey, while you are happily married!
I understand their chagrin. I mean, you wouldn t want someone who has never driven a car giving you pointers on how to operate a motor vehicle. Or someone who has never used a stove giving you tips on the best way to fry an egg. But this is not merely a book about my own singleness experience. And it s not a book in which I flippantly declare, All you single young women out there should stop complaining about how hard it is to be single! (as I sit here blissfully married).
Rather, this book is about laying down your life for Jesus Christ; surrendering every hope, dream, desire, and ambition to Him. Exchanging your own agenda for His. Awakening to His glorious purpose for this sacred season of your life. It s a message about the true Gospel.
And that is a subject I understand quite well-both through personal experience and through interacting with thousands of young women for the past 14 years. I have found that single young women typically fall into one of two categories: those who are consumed with their own desires, and are discontented and unfulfilled in their singleness, and those who are consumed by a passionate romance with Jesus Christ, and are radiantly and joyfully pouring out their lives for Him. It is my hope and prayer that this book will equip you to be among the latter; to discover the amazing opportunity, unmatched joy, and abundant life that awaits every fully surrendered young woman. Because this world is in desperate need of young women who are willing to take up their cross and follow their King.
Modern Christian culture has been flooded with messages that sell the true Gospel short. It s not about becoming a living sacrifice for Christ anymore; it s about finding your heart s desires and living your best life. The area of singleness and marriage has been no exception. We ve been trying to glean all the benefits of Christ while avoiding the cross. This book takes a stand against that kind of self-focused Christianity. It s not just a book about finding fulfillment in your singleness. It s a book about applying the Gospel of Jesus Christ to your singleness. It s not an easy message, but it s a glorious one.
In the pages of this book I candidly share the journey God took me on as a single young woman, and the truths He has continued to teach me about a fully surrendered life as a married young woman. These are timeless truths that I believe can radically impact you, no matter what season of life you are in. In addition, I ve included many firsthand stories and testimonials of modern-day single young women who are living radiant, joyful, Christ-consumed lives and being mightily used for the kingdom of God. They are everyday young women who struggle with loneliness and personal desires just like you and me-and yet they have allowed the amazing power of Christ to turn their challenges into triumphs. I believe you will be inspired, uplifted, and encouraged by their examples. There is also a bonus interview with Krissy, my amazing sister-in-law, who, in case you haven t read any of my other books, is a veteran at radiant, Christ-centered singleness!
It is my hope that the message of this book will awaken you to the incredible plans and purposes God has for this solo season of your life-whether you are 17 or 57. He sees your every heart s desire. He knows your every fear. And He is waiting to meet your every need and make your life into a beautiful display of His glory, starting today.
Part One
First Love
A Romance with the One Who Fills All In All
1
Forsaking All
My Story of Surrender
the fullness of Him who fills all in all .
E PHESIANS 1:23
God has made us for Himself, and our hearts can never know rest and perfect satisfaction until they find it in Him .
H ANNAH H URNARD
H is name was Kyle.
He was a perfectly nice guy. Attractive, clean-cut, polite, moral. An upstanding Christian guy who went to church and believed in saving sex until marriage. The kind of guy my youth pastors and parents approved of.
Kyle liked me. I wasn t really enamored with him, but I was lonely. I hadn t had a boyfriend in about a year, and I was beginning to feel insecure and impatient. I loathed being single. I hated the stigma of not having someone in my life. It made me feel ugly and second rate. Not having a guy in my life was like being the kid on the playground who didn t get picked for the dodgeball team-alone, rejected, and overlooked.
So after three rather shallow conversations, Kyle became my boyfriend. We started talking on the phone every night, going out to dinner a few times a week, meeting for coffee on weekends, holding hands, sweetly kissing each other good night. It was all very innocent. We even talked about God. We went to church and Bible studies together and discussed what we were learning.
On the outside, it looked like a great Christian relationship-healthy, pure, and Christ centered. But in reality the only reason Kyle was in my life was because of my loneliness and insecurity.
I knew that a romance with Kyle wasn t God s highest for me. Kyle didn t lead me closer to Jesus Christ. Sure, he talked about God and did all the right Christian activities. He didn t smoke, cuss, drink, or have premarital sex. But selfishness was at the core of Kyle s existence. He didn t live for God s glory-he lived for his own agenda. Christianity was just an afterthought to him-not the primary purpose of his existence. He wasn t a bond servant of Jesus Christ. He was simply a churchgoer, enslaved to his own whims and desires. Kyle didn t wake up each morning thinking, How can I love, serve, and honor Jesus Christ today? Rather, his attitude was, How can I serve my own agenda today, and still somehow stay within proper Christian boundaries?
Truth