Lisa Whittle - I Want God: Forever Changed by the Revival of Your Soul

Lisas case for a heart revival provokes thought, inspires change, and spreads a hopeful message: God is not hiding; he wants to be found by those who want him. Lisa vulnerably guides the reader toward this truth, which fosters a deeper love of God, a more intimate knowledge of who he is, and an understanding of why we want him.

Mark Batterson,

New York Times bestselling author of The Circle Maker

This book resonates with the deepest cry of my heart.

Sheila Walsh,

Bible teacher and bestselling author

I turned the first page, devoured the rest, and here I amspeechless. The reading of I Want God is a wrecking and a revival and a resurrection, all at once.

Jill Kelly,

New York Times bestselling author and speaker

Reconstructive heart surgery. I Want God not only provides new life for your weary, worn-out soul, but it motivates you to exchange a lesser life for one that hungers after true joy. Written by a flawed and honest pilgrim, Lisa Whittle has walked this path toward soul revival before, and like a kindly guide, ushers us toward the renewed life in Jesus weve always longed for.

Mary DeMuth,

author of The Wall Around Your Heart

Lisa Whittles writing strikes to the center of who we are meant to be. I am inspired and moved and deeply grateful for how she pours her heart out on every page. This book is no exception.

Annie F. Downs,

author of Lets All Be Brave

This is not an easy read, and that is the highest compliment I can pay Lisa in her carefully penned but drastically bold work I Want God. If you feel like you have everything and at the same time you have nothing, read this book. It is a proclamation, a manifesto, and a rally-cry for those of us who are weary and hungry. Be warned: saying I Want God will require much of you. In return, God will bring a revival to your heart and an abundance of Himself to the empty spaces around you. He will bring healing and hope.

Anne Marie Miller,

Bible teacher and author of

Permission to Speak Freely and Lean on Me

HARVEST HOUSE PUBLISHERS

EUGENE, OREGON

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken 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.

Verses marked MSG are taken from The Message. Copyright by Eugene H. Peterson 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

Verses marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Cover by Harvest House Publishers, Inc., Eugene, Oregon

Published in association with the literary agency of The FEDD Agency, Inc., PO Box 341973, Austin, TX 78734.

I WANT GOD

Copyright 2014 by Lisa Whittle

Published by Harvest House Publishers

Eugene, Oregon 97402

www.harvesthousepublishers.com

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Whittle, Lisa.

I want God / Lisa Whittle.

pages cm

ISBN 978-0-7369-5920-9 (pbk.)

ISBN 978-0-7369-5921-6 (eBook)

1. Christian womenReligious life. 2. SpiritualityChristianity. 3. God (Christianity) I. Title.

BV4527.W4984 2014

248.8'43dc23

2014002435

All rights reserved. No part of this electronic publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, digital, photocopy, recording, or any otherwithout the prior written permission of the publisher. The authorized purchaser has been granted a nontransferable, nonexclusive, and noncommercial right to access and view this electronic publication, and purchaser agrees to do so only in accordance with the terms of use under which it was purchased or transmitted. Participation in or encouragement of piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of authors and publishers rights is strictly prohibited.

I can no other answer make but thanks, and thanks; and ever thanks.

Shakespeare

Scotty, Graham, Micah, and Shae , my four favorite people on the planet: You were the family I dreamed of when I was a little girl. Lets keep having fun, together.

Family and Friends : I love you. Thank you for praying and cheering.

LaRae : For so many years Ive liked you. Now we get to partner. Pure joy .

Kathleen: You were God-sent. Thank you for words of affirmation and honest critique. I adore you, woman.

Esther: This was the right book with the right people at the right time. Thanks for tirelessly pursuing it with me.

Women at New Vision Church in Murfreesboro, Tennessee: I stood before you and promised if this became a book I would put you in it. Thanks for being willing to hear the message first. I think of your faces and stories, often.

Reader: Whether you bought this book or someone gave it to you, its now in your hands. Thank you for investing your time in its pages. May God speak loud and clear.

And yesterday, today, and forevermore, thanks be to my Jesus. As long as I can remember, its always been us. Thank You.

To Momma

Who has always wanted God most

Contents

I spend the first three months after my last book, {w}hole , releases picking emotional shrapnel out of my skin. It is a hard book to write; I honestly do not know if I ever want to write again.

When something is hard it is an instinct to get lost in the tall-tree forest of the dailyto hide behind carpool lines, grocery store visits, texts, smartphone games, and washing dirty laundry. We settle into predictability, like standing trunks that dont change. The days we live look exactly like they did many days before.

But then I remember what living in the tall trees before has helped me learn: The only way I know to get better is to focus on God harder.

So I come out of hiding and write this book.

Since you are reading I Want God , I imagine one of four things to be true of you. Either you are in a place of lack the starving, desperate, need-God-to-consume-you-more-than-what-is-currently-consuming-your-life place; you are in a place of plenty but it is not satisfying and you still want more; you are spiritually dead and have no clue how to change it; or you are on a search for what you think may be the missing piece of your life. It doesnt matter which. Your soul is in need of revival.

Join the crowd.

There are a lot of us, Christians, out there today. We are short and tall and blonde and dark-skinned and happy and sad and good and sometimes mean as a snake. We park our cars in parking spaces, buy milk at the store and convenience store Cokes, plant flowers in our yard and lay some of them on loved ones gravestones. We work at jobs, stand in unemployment lines and sit in dentists waiting rooms, ride roller coasters with arms in the air and on different days, worship God in big church rooms and small family rooms with arms lifted there, too. We are living, yes. But many of us arent living very well when it comes to our relationship with God.

For some of us Hes there but not really, makes the short list but not #1. We visit Him on Sundays, preach Him on Twitter, bake cookies to take to neighbors in His name but never find the right moment to talk to them about Who and what and why. For others of us, life is good and we are busy. Or life is hard and we are wounded by the saviors we trusted to do the job, but didnt.