Jodi Detrick - The Settled Soul: Tenaciously Abiding with a Tender God

THE
SETTLED
SOUL

TENACIOUSLY ABIDING
WITH A TENDER GOD

JODI DETRICK

Copyright 2020 by Jodi Detrick

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Published by Gospel Publishing House

1445 N. Boonville Ave.

Springfield, Missouri 65802

No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any otherexcept for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Names have been changed in instances where it has been necessary to protect the privacy of the individuals mentioned.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation. 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Publishers, a Division of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken 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. The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.

Scripture quotations marked (MSG) are taken from THE MESSAGE, copyright 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers, a Division of Tyndale House Ministries. KJV refers to the King James Version which is in the public domain.

Cover design by Beyond Creative

02-4240

ISBN: 978-1-60731-633-6

24 23 22 21 1 2 3 4

Printed in the United States of America

To Joanna Weaver,
my dear heart-friend, writing mentor, and beloved sister-in-soul:

The deep conversations weve shared,
our times of wrestling with theological concepts
and what they mean in the real world,
and especially those honest,
from-the-gut prayers weve prayed together
these have watered the soil in which this book has grown.

Thank you, sweet friend, for showing me what it looks like
to have a settled soul through your steadfast example
of tenaciously abiding with our tender God.
In knowing you, Ive learned to love Him more.

To Kay Burnett
Through your wise, loving leadership, women everywhere can
see the beauty and sweetness of the abiding life. This book is just one
small crop of fruit, among so many, from your godly influence
sewn into the lives of others. Thank you, kind friend.

CONTENTS

Ill admit it. There are days when writing about the truly important things, matters that affect the deepest parts of our spirits and carry a heavy freight of God weight, seems a bit presumptuous. Im an ordinary woman who lives in a world of waiting laundry and too many emails in my inboxof the simple joys of sharing coffee and conversation with a friend, texting with my grandgirls, and listening to an audiobook while I fold sweet-smelling laundry that finally had its meetup with my faithful, old washer-dryer twins.

Then I remember a God who came to be with us. A God settled into folds of human skinwho blinked His eyes awake each morning and raised a calloused hand to shade His face from the glare of the afternoon Judean sun. I remember how Jesus walked on common, dusty roads and had to stop, no doubt, to shake out a pebble from His worn sandals now and then. I remember how He talked of ordinary thingsseeds and soil, pearls and pigs, feasts and farmersall with the breath of eternal truth forming each word.

I recall how He came to be with me, a wisp of a girl (oh, for those days of wispiness again), often scared of her own shadow but with so many dreams and longingshow He welcomed my ordinary, often restless life to permanently settle within the strangely beautiful walls of His abiding presence. I look back and see how, even when I distanced myself, He is a God who came to stay.

Settled. Ah, this simple, almost-homey word carries a world of meaning when it comes to knowing and growing in God. It shifts my endless, wearisome striving to make my life count by my own efforts to a peaceful, growing intimacy with Jesus where fruitful significance is the natural (or should I say, supernatural) outcome. Instead of just doing things for God, I get to do life with Godliving, loving, and serving out of the limitless resources of His nature, character, and power.

So, that settled-soul life sounds compelling, right? But what does it look like to be tenaciously abiding 24/7/365 with the God who came to stay? How would my life look different if I lived it out of a settled-in-Jesus soul? What would change? What would deepen? What would need new definition and recalibration?

In John chapter 15, Jesus uses a metaphor we can all understand to talk about things we might not: what it means to abide, remain with, settle in with Him. In the process, He offers a magnificent invitation to experience breathtaking intimacy and enduring fruitfulness, even for ordinary lives like mine.

I get it. There are lots of ways you could spend the next six weeks of your life, and yeah, that to-do list seems to be on automatic reload just when you think youre finally getting down to the last few items. But I cant think of a better way to make these transitory moments of earth life count than to invest a few days in cultivating a soul that settles into the God who came to live within us.

So welcome, friend. Im pretty sure our ordinary lives are in for some true God adventures in the weeks and pages ahead! Im with you and Jesus is with us. Lets get startedthe laundry can wait.

This Might Help

In the next six weeks, we will be deep diving into John 15:117. Reading that short passage all the way through at least once a week, perhaps in different translations of the Bible, will help imbed its truths into your heart and till the soil for what God wants to plant there.

Journaling is a great way to process what youre learning in this study and to interact with what God is saying to you through His Word. Just keep it simple and for your eyes only so you can be completely honest. Heres an easy format to use (but feel free to journal in a way that fits you). Pick one or more of these to respond to throughout your week:

An aha moment Ive had is:

This word or phrase stands out to me:

This confuses meI have questions:

Im learning this about God:

Im learning this about myself:

I think God wants me to do this:

This is one thing Ill do:

This is one thing Im thankful for:

Here is my prayer for today:

For the best outcome (both as a learner and one who lives out what youre learning), commit to faithfully showing up with an open, hungry heart (which God loves to give us when we ask, by the way!) and doing the work part of this study. The discovery questions are designed to deepen your thinking and to help you personalize what youre learning. If youre doing the study with a group, be there each weekyour study sisters need your input and you will benefit from theirs. Plus, its so much fun to learn and grow with others!

Each weeks study offers a So, this is interesting section that provides historical and/or biblical context and maybe a fun fact or two.

Each week provides a guide for four days of personal study, plus a Bonus Day Five study as an option.