Pathway to Purpose for Women: Connecting Your To-Do List, Your Passions, and Gods Purposes for Your Life

259 Pages·2008·2.31 MB·English

by  Katie Brazelton

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“This is an exciting book! Katie tells us how to break
through the barriers that prevent us from knowing and ful-
filling God’s purpose and encourages us to persist. I found
this practical, step-by-step guide tailored to a woman’s heart
to be life-changing!”
—RUTH GRAHAM, Author of
—In Every Pew Sits a Broken Heart
“This book combines the best of foundational truth, honest
stories of the author’s search for significance, practical ques-
tions for personal and spiritual growth, and motivating
action steps for changing your life for the better.”
—CAROL KENT, Speaker and Author
“Katie encourages those of us who dare believe we are meant
for more to actively discover our unique, God-given pur-
pose. Doing so will change our lives forever!”
—BECKY TIRABASSI, Author and President
—of Becky Tirabassi Change Your Life®, Inc.
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Pathway to Purpose Series
Pathway to Purpose for Women
Conversations on Purpose for Women
Praying for Purpose for Women
Pathway to Purpose for Women Abridged Audio CD
Other Books
Character Makeover
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Pathway to Purpose for Women
Copyright © 2005 by Katherine F. Brazelton
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the
required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of
this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse
engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by
any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express
written permission of Zondervan.
AER Edition January 2009 ISBN: 978-0-310-29781-9(cid:13)(cid:10)
This title is also available in a Zondervan audio edition. Visit www.zondervan.fm.
Requests for information should be addressed to:
Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530
Softcover Edition: 978-0-310-29249-4
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Brazelton, Katie, 1950–
Pathway to purpose for women : connecting your to-do list, your passions, and God’s purposes for
your life / Katie Brazelton ; foreword by Kay Warren.—1st ed.
p. cm. — (Pathway to purpose series)
Includes bibliographical references.
Summary: “This book uses true personal stories to provide stepping stones for discovering
purpose in life. With discussion guide”—Provided by the publisher.
ISBN 978-0-310-25649-6 (hardcover)
1. Christian women—Religious life. 2. Vocation—Christianity. I. Title. II. Series.
BV4527.B683 2005
248.8'43—dc22 2004028853
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Ver-
sion®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan.
All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked NKJV in this publication are from The New King James Bible Version.Copy-
right © 1979, 1980, 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc.
Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the King James Versionof the Bible.
Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible,New Living Translation,copyright © 1996,
2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked MSG are taken from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000,
2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.
Scripture quotations marked TLB are taken from The Living Bible.Copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Pub-
lishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked AMP are taken from The Amplified Bible,Old Testament. Copyright © 1965, 1987,
by the Zondervan Publishing House. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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To my precious daughter, Stephanie,
who encouraged me for fifteen years,
“Mom, God wants you to do this.”
For endless months, you did my chores,
ran my errands, bought our groceries,
and even did a hospital visit for me!
To my remarkable son, Andy,
who constantly said in words
and countless kind gestures,
“Don’t you dare give up.
What you’re doing for women matters.”
To Julie, Andy’s amazing wife,
who has been a jewel to me
during this writing process.
You three precious souls kept me amply supplied
with prayers, love, hugs, notes, and hope.
Because of you three, I lacked no good thing.
I thank you for being Jesus to me as I answered
God’s call on my life.
I love you to pieces. May your witness
of the unfolding of God’s purposes in my life
vividly remind you that he has an unparalleled plan
for you as well. My prayer is to be used by God
day-by-day as “wind beneath your wings.”
May you each soar on wings like eagles.
Isaiah 40:31
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You’ve got my feet on the life-path,
with your face shining sun-joy all around.
(ACTS2:28, MSG)
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CONTENTS
How to Use the Pathway to Purpose Series . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Series Foreword by Kay Warren. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Part One
STEP TOWARD THE PATHWAY
CHAPTER1 Is Your Life Out of Sync? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
CHAPTER2 Leave Your Past Behind . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Part Two
NEVER WALK ALONE
God’s Fellowship Purpose for You: To Connect with Others
CHAPTER3 Do What Matters Today. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
CHAPTER4 Love Others as Jesus Loves You . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Part Three
FOLLOW IN JESUS’ FOOTSTEPS
God’s Discipleship Purpose for You: To Know Christ and Become Like Him
CHAPTER5 Pursue Peace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
CHAPTER6 Repent of All Your Offenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Part Four
GO THE EXTRA MILE
God’s Ministry Purpose for You: To Serve Others
CHAPTER7 Wash One Another’s Feet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
CHAPTER8 Walk with Integrity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
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Part Five
RUN TO JESUS
God’s Worship Purpose for You: To Magnify Him with Your Life
CHAPTER9 Expect the Desires of Your Heart. . . . . . . . . . . 149
CHAPTER10 Surrender Your Daily Life to God . . . . . . . . . . 165
Part Six
POINT OTHERS TOWARD THE PATHWAY
God’s Evangelism Purpose for You: To Complete His Mission for Your Life
CHAPTER11 Anticipate God’s Vision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
CHAPTER12 Take Courage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
CHAPTER13 Bring Glory to God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
APPENDIXES
Group Discussion Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
Fresh Start with Jesus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
Acknowledgments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
How to Contact the Author. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253
About the Publisher. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256
Share Your Thoughts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257