2013, 2014 by Sarah D. Jakes, LLC
The 2014 edition is expanded from the 2013 edition
Published by Bethany House Publishers
11400 Hampshire Avenue South
Bloomington, Minnesota 55438
www.bethanyhouse.com
Bethany House Publishers is a division of
Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan
www . bakerpublishinggroup . com
Ebook edition created 2014
Ebook corrections 06.03.2016
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meansfor example, electronic, photocopy, recordingwithout the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
ISBN 978-1-4412-6494-7
Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible, New International Version. NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www. zondervan.com
Scripture quotations identified NASB are from the New American Standard Bible, copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
Scripture quotations identified NKJV are from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations identified NLT are from the Holy Bible , New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Cover design by LOOK Design Studio
Author is represented by Dupree/Miller & Associates
Because I needed to believe I wasnt alone, I found a woman who went ahead of us all and showed that grace survives our most broken moments.
Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Introduction
1. Life Doesnt Always Go As Planned
2. Unmasking the Lone Ranger
3. Keep the Faith
4. Dont Let Life Change Your Name
5. Stick With What You Know
6. Do What You Can
7. You Never Know Whos Watching
8. Your Enemy Becomes Your Footstool
9. He Knew You Before He Blessed You
10. Surpass Them All
11. There Will Be an Overflow
13. Extra Protection
14. The Beginning of the End
15. Its Time to Try Again
16. Respect Those Who Came Before You
17. Be Vulnerable
18. Your Blessing Is in Your Obedience
19. Those Who Love You Will Protect You
20. Relationships Are Investments
21. Wait Patiently
22. God Will Put Like-Minded People in Your Life
23. Set Your Standards
24. Be Honest
25. Its Already Done
26. I Know You, and I Still Chose You
27. Witness the Redemption
28. From Redemption to Restoration
29. Its Not About You
30. Collide With Your Destiny
About the Author
Books by Sarah Jakes
Back Ads
Back Cover
Introduction
N ow that were adults, my brother and I have created this new tradition. Whenever we stay at my parents home, we take the opportunity to spend some quality time together. He loves being an uncle to my kids, and I love for them to get to know him. So after the kids have finished their homework, had supper, and taken their baths, we all settle in to relax together. Whether its watching something on television, spending time talking about each others day, dancing around to music, or play fighting, we always have fun.
Sometimes we even turn our hanging out into a team sport! Yes, the girls versus the boys, sibling teams versus sibling teams, or school versus school. Everything except for the play fightsthat comes down to Malachi, my son, and Dexter, my brother. I just commentate or instigate, proving an important role in the morale of the fight.
One evening recently, we were trying to teach Malachi the art of boxing. Dexter and I would emulate the proper stance, bounce, and posture. But we also stressed the most important factors: heart and attitude. Turning the family room into a makeshift boxing ring, we all burst into laughter as my six-foot-four little brother and five-foot-three son playfully squared off. Imitating Floyd Mayweather and Muhammad Ali, they both turned it all the way on!
After they engaged in this lighthearted contest, I again tried to show Malachi a boxers stance. At ten years old, he had never seen an actual fight, so he had no clue what to do.
Watch this, I said and gave my best Laila Ali impression. Bounce, bounce. Bob, weave. Uppercut. Jab, jab. Bounce. Weave. My son, timid in nature, looked up at me with wide eyes.
But, Mom, I cant even reach his face! he exclaimed.
I looked at him and smiled. But before I opened my mouth to reply, I heard, I CAN REACH HIS FACE, MAMA!
I looked down at my three-year-old, three-foot-high daughter, Makenzie. In perfect Laila Ali stance, down to the rhythm of her bounce, Makenzie was prepared to take on Dex. She had been watching us the whole time. Never recognizing their differences in size, she was ready to face the challenge.
Makenzie had no concept of how much smaller she was in comparison to her competition. All she knew was that she had the heart to fight the battle. It didnt occur to her to be intimidated by someone bigger.
What if we dared to believe with the heart of a child?
Somewhere along the path of life, we start to size up the competition. We start to look at how big the challenge before us is and get discouraged. Little by little, the punches of life begin to bruise our hope. We stop fighting as hard as we once did because we dont believe we can win anymore. We dont block very well because were expecting the knockout that will end it all. We stop living, out of fear.
Fear is the most shameful ghost of them all. Painful memories of past fights convince us that some things are not worth the risk of fighting at all. We allow our past to dictate our every move. We stand in place and wait for life to hit us again.
Certainly were taught to always keep the faith. But when lifes blows rock us to our core, its hard to remember that our pain has a purpose. When the aches of what happened, what should have happened, and what could have happened haunt our every decision, keeping the faith can be a challenge.
If disappointments have kept you from being your true self, then this book is for you. My friend, please allow me to share with you the story of Ruth all of her story , not just the happy ending. We often hear of Ruth having her Boaz, but we rarely discuss the collisions she faced on the road to her destiny. While its imperative that we remember her legacy, we can only give it value if we see the price she paid for it.
Could it be that if you dare to live again, your story doesnt have to be associated with what broke you? That by doing whatever it takes to survive, you will sow seeds of redemption into your future?
Ruths story begins with her being an outcast. Shunned in her homeland of Moab because she left the religion of the land and embraced her husbands beliefs, Ruth remained committed to her new husband and new God. And then again, when she returned to her mother-in-laws hometown, Bethlehem, she was shunned for being a foreigner from a pagan land. She carried the burdens of both who she was and who she used to be.
When Ruth worshiped with her husbands family in her hometown, there was a religious differentiation that caused her to be an outcast. She no longer bowed to their idols or prayed to their false gods. In Bethlehem, she was talked about because of her mystery. It was what people didnt know about her that intrigued them the most. She seemed like them, but on the inside she was not the same.
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