Jackie Kendall - Lady in Waiting: Becoming Gods Best While Waiting for Mr. Right

Copyright 2012Jackie Kendall and Debby Jones

All rights reserved. This book is protected by the copyright laws of the United States of America. This book may not be copied or reprinted for commercial gain or profit. The use of short quotations or occasional page copying for personal or group study is permitted and encouraged. Permission will be granted upon request. Unless otherwise identified, Scripture quotations are taken 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 marked NIV are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society, specifically the 1984 edition. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked PNT are taken from The New Testament in Modern English, J. B. Phillips, trans., Copyright New York: The Macmillan Company, 1960. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked ICB are taken from the International Childrens Bible. Copyright 1986, 1988, 1999 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the King James Version. Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All emphasis within Scripture quotations is the authors own. Please note that Destiny Images publishing style capitalizes certain pronouns in Scripture that refer to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and may differ from some publishers styles. Take note that the name satan and related names are not capitalized. We choose not to acknowledge him, even to the point of violating grammatical rules.

DESTINY IMAGE PUBLISHERS, INC.
P.O. Box 310, Shippensburg, PA 17257-0310
Promoting Inspired Lives.

Previously published as Lady in Waiting by Destiny Image
Previous ISBN: 0768423104
Previously published as Say Goodbye to Shame by Treasure House
Previous ISBN: 0768421616

T his book and all other Destiny Image, Revival Press, MercyPlace, Fresh Bread, Destiny Image Fiction, and Treasure House books are available at Christian bookstores and distributors worldwide.

For a U.S. bookstore nearest you, call 1-800-722-6774.
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Reach us on the Internet: www.destinyimage.com.

ISBN 13 TP: 978-0-7684-4106-2
ISBN 13 Ebook: 978-0-7684-8860-9

For Worldwide Distribution, Printed in the U.S.A.

W e dedicate this book to all the Ladies in Waiting, especially our daughters Jessica, Christen, and Lauren, who are seeking to become women of God.

I s this just another book for singles? No! We believe this book is unique because its emphasis is not on a womans status (single, married, divorced, or widowed), but on the state of her heart. We want to direct a womans attention toward the One who really understands the longing of her heart. Too many women grow up believing that the inconsolable ache in her heart is for a man. To love a man, get married, and then have children is thought to be the only script that will satisfy her hearts deepest longing. But no man, woman, or child can appease this longing; it can only be satisfied by the ultimate Bridegroom, Christ Jesus. This book nudges a woman closer to God, while acknowledging any longing she may have to be loved and cherished by a man.

Lady in Waiting is not about finding the right man, but being the right woman. Thus it focuses on ten qualities of a godly woman that are found in the Book of Ruth. These qualities will not only enhance your love relationship with your heavenly Bridegroom, but also guide you as a single woman, guard you while you date, support you in marriage, and comfort you if you are ever widowed or divorced. As you read you will see these characteristics beautifully displayed in the life of Ruth. She recklessly abandons herself to the Lordship of Christ, diligently uses her single days, trusts God with unwavering faith, demonstrates virtue in daily life, loves God with undistracted devotion, stands for physical and emotional purity, lives in security, responds to life with contentment, makes choices based on her convictions, and waits patiently for God to meet her needs.

What are you waiting for? Is it for that perfect job, the ideal relationship, a home, a career, a child? What if you get what you are waiting for? Will it truly bring the fullness of joy you long for? Anything other than a love relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, regardless of how good that thing may be, will bring you discouragement and disillusionment. So come and explore the life of Ruth and learn what it really means to be a godly woman, a lady in waiting.

Chapter 1
Lady of Reckless
Abandonment

T he big day is over. Your roommate married a wonderful guy, and you were the maid of honor. You shared your roommates joy, but now you wrestle with envys painful grip. As the happy couple drives to the perfect honeymoon, you sit alone in an empty apartment, drowning your envy and self-pity with a half-gallon of Heavenly Hash ice cream.

Does this scenario sound familiar?

Have you assumed that your ultimate fulfillment would be found in marriage? Have you privately entertained the notion that the only satisfied women are married women? Have you been expecting your career to satisfy you until you are married? If you have answered yes to any of these questions, then you have a prospect of disillusionment looming in the future. On the back cover of the book Learning to Be a Woman is a key quotation about fulfillment as a woman:

A woman is not born a woman. Nor does she become one when she marries a man, bears a child and does their dirty linen, not even when she joins a womens liberation movement. A woman becomes a woman when she becomes what God wants her to be.

This priceless truth can help keep your perspective clear in relation to true fulfillment in life. Too many Christian women think that the inner longings of their heart relate only to love, marriage, and motherhood. Look a little closer and see if that longing isnt ultimately for Jesus. Gary Chapman once remarked in a sermon:

I feel very strongly that marriage is not a higher calling than the single state. Happy indeed are those people, married or single, who have discovered that happiness is not found in marriage but in a right relationship with God.

Fulfillment for a Christian woman begins with the Lordship of Christ in every area of her life.

A college professor (wife, mother of seven children, singer, and author) told a group of young women that when she was eight years old, her mother told her a secret that has guided her perspective on life. The most important thing her mother would ever tell her was, No one, not even the man you will marry one day, can make you happyonly Jesus can. What a profound statement for such a little girl. This secret allowed her to grow up following Jesus with reckless abandonment.

Are you still convinced that having Mr. Right will chase away the blues? Thats not surprising. On the front of a national magazine, the lead story said, Hollywoods hottest newcomer is selling more records than Madonna and filling her dance card with movie offers. All that is missing is Mr. Right! Such a mindset bombards singles daily. How can you renew your mind and rise above this stereotype? You can be an exception through understanding the secret of the alabaster box.