Elizabeth George - Following God with All Your Heart: Believing and Living Gods Plan for You

Elizabeth George

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 NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, IL 60189 USA. All rights reserved.

Verses marked PHILLIPS are taken from J.B. Phillips: The New Testament in Modern English, Revised Edition. J.B. Phillips 1958, 1960, 1972. Used by permission of Macmillan Publishing Company.

Harvest House Publishers has made every effort to trace the ownership of all poems and quotes. In the event of a question arising from the use of a poem or quote, we regret any error made and will be pleased to make the necessary correction in future editions of this book.

Italics in Scripture verses indicate author emphasis.

Cover photo Thomas Dobner / Alamy; back cover author photo Harry Langdon

Cover by Dugan Design Group, Bloomington, Minnesota

FOLLOWING GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART

Copyright 2008 by Elizabeth George

Published by Harvest House Publishers

Eugene, Oregon 97402

www.harvesthousepublishers.com

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

George, Elizabeth.

Following God with all your heart / Elizabeth George.

p. cm.

ISBN-13: 978-0-7369-0504-6 (pbk.)

ISBN-10: 0-7369-0504-9 (pbk.)

1. Christian womenReligious life. 2. Christian lifeBiblical teaching. 3. Joshua (Biblical figure) I. Title.

BV4527.G4585 2008

248.8'43dc22

2008017250

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, digital, photocopy, recording, or any otherexcept for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Printed in the United States of America

08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 / VP-NISK / 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

I m often asked what prompts me to write a certain book, and you may be wondering the same thing as you hold this book in your hands. I usually point to several landmarks along my spiritual journey with God.

As a brand-new Christian at 28 years old, I was challenged to begin memorizing Scripture. I dutifully began to memorize Bible verses by carrying packets of them around to read whenever I had a spare moment. Every one of the verses Ive learned by heart is precious to me, but some of them regularly come to my rescue or spur me on each time I encounter a crossroad while seeking to follow God with all my heart.

The six verses I emphasize in this book have been my particular and constant advisors for the past three decades. Theyve seen me through many an anxious moment and motivated me to obedience as I stared at the unknown and when everything in me wanted to balk at doing what God was asking of me simply because Id never done it before.

As I began to grow in Christ, I learned that I, like all Christians, was saved for a purpose. I had a mission from God, so to speak. He wanted me to worship Him and serve Him. I also began to realize God had a plan for my life. While this was exciting, it was also frightening. The usual scenario went like this: I had dreamsbut I was afraid. I had opportunitiesbut I was afraid.

The six verses spotlighted in this book once again came to my rescue and continue to do so. They not only supply solid encouragement, but they give me insights into the second half of my missionto serve God and live out His plan.

Then I encountered the issue of obedience. Following God and fulfilling His mission to serve Him wholeheartedly is sometimes a struggle. People are sinful. We are lazy. We are fearful. We are foolish. Even the apostle Paul admitted to such struggles. He wrote, I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want (Romans 7:1819 NIV).

Well, friend, these six precious verses have helped me stay focused in my desire to pursue God totally, without reservationto trust Him, to step out in faith, to take the risks, to do the growing, to follow His leading, and to seek and live His plan and His will day by day. They have helped me gain victory in my quest to believe and live out Gods purposes. They have given me the assurance that I can trust God and move forward toward fulfilling His plan for my life with success, courage, strength, humility, contentment, and confidence.

Im offering you my special handful of scriptures with a heartfelt prayer that they will change your life. That they will challenge you to greater levels of spiritual growth and maturity. That they will help you move forward in your desire to become, by Gods grace

a successful woman (Joshua 1:8)

a courageous woman (Joshua 1:9)

an exceptional woman (Romans 12:2)

a humble woman (1 Peter 5:56)

a contented woman (Psalm 84:11)

a confident woman (Philippians 4:13)

And now, my beloved [sister], be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord (1 Corinthians 15:58). May you

Trust in the Lord with all your heart.

Seek Him with all your heart.

Love Him with all your heart.

Praise Him with all your heart.

Follow Him with all your heart.

Serve Him with all your heart.

And live His will with all your heart

and live it to the hilt!

In whatever man does without God, he must fail miserably or succeed more miserably.

GEORGE MACDONALD

This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it.
For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.

JOSHUA 1:8

A s I begin this book about following God with all our hearts, I just came in the house after standing in the driveway waving to my daughter, Courtney, and her four little ones. Theyre driving to the navy base at Pearl Harbor to finalize their move to Hawaii. And, I might add, this is the third hectic day in a row theyve come and gone. But no matter. We all just witnessed a double rainbow! That incredible sight and the fact that my daughter is happily following her navy husband as he serves his country and pursues his career makes me glad. Why? Because she is living what Im writing about in this book. In her different and sometimes difficult roles of wife to a submariner and mother of four young children, Courtney is successfully following God with all her heart.