Conversations on Purpose for Women : 10 Appointments That Will Help You Discover God's Plan for Your Life

by Katie Brazelton, Bestselling Author and Founder of Life Purpose Coaching Centers International

• ISBN13: 9780310256502
• ISBN10: 031025650X
• Format: Spiral Bound
• Copyright: 2005-04-01
• Publisher: Harpercollins Christian Pub

Summary

This 60-day prayer experience encourages readers to ask God to mentor them in their life's purposes. Included are insights from modern-day role models, examples of biblical characters, and an eye-opening analysis of their life pattern purposes and patterns.

Table of Contents

How to Use the Pathway to Purpose™ Series	9	(2)
Series Foreword	11	(4)
Kay Warren
Part One The Power of Conversations on Purpose
Understanding the Power of the Process	15	(10)
Part Two Purposeful Appointments
Assessing Your Readiness for More Purpose	25	(12)
Agreeing about the Basics of Your Purposes	37	(14)
Unearthing Blockades to Your Purposes	51	(14)
Enjoying the Fun Side of Your Unique Purpose	65	(12)
Discussing Good Predictors of Your Future Purposes	77	(12)
Answering Some Tough Questions	89	(8)
Taking a Laughter Break	97	(4)
Part Three Seeing the Bigger Picture
Making Perspective Work for You	101	(10)
Surrendering	111	(8)
Following God's Pathway to Purpose	119
Appendixes
Purpose Partner Tips	133	(4)
Fresh Start with Jesus	137	(2)
Prayer and Praise Log	139	(3)
Acknowledgments	142	(2)
How to Contact the Author	144

Excerpts

Conversations on Purpose for Women
Copyright © 2005 by Katherine F. Brazelton
Requests for information should be addressed to:
Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530
ISBN 10: 0-310-25650-X
ISBN 13: 978-0-310-25650-2
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible: New International
Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission
of Zondervan. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked NASB 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 NLT are taken from the Holy Bible: New Living Translation, copyright
© 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked MSG are taken from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995,
1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.
Scripture quotations marked TLB are taken from The Living Bible. Copyright © 1971 by Tyndale
House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked CEV are taken from the Contemporary English Version. Copyright ©
1995 by American Bible Society. Used by permission.
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Part One
Show me the path
where I should walk,
O LORD;
point out the right road
for me to follow.
(PSALM 25:4, NLT)
UNDERSTANDING
THE POWER OF THE PROCESS
Your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained
for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.
(PSALM 139:16)
All people seek purpose in their lives. Our human nature drives us to search
for meaning and significance, to believe that life matters. That’s why my pastor,
Rick Warren, touched such a deep nerve across the globe in his bestselling
books, The Purpose-Driven Church and The Purpose-Driven Life. In them he
explains the five purposes for the church and for our lives, based on the Great
Commandment (Matthew 22:37–40) and the Great Commission (Matthew
28:19–20): fellowship, discipleship, ministry, evangelism, and worship.
I have personally experienced the discovery, hope, focus, and freedom of
living with purpose, as the Bible describes. And through years of serving and
teaching women, I have seen many of them also embrace their life purposes.
But perhaps, like me, you have wondered, “Once I discover my purposes,
how will this change me? How does change—progress—happen in my life?
How do I move from merely hearing new information to actually thinking,
perceiving, and behaving in new ways? How can I apply the principles of God’s
purposes in my life? How do I connect the dots between living amidst the
details of my life and living out God’s purposes for my life?”

This workbook will answer these questions. Filled with conversation
starters, Scripture verses, comments from role models, and self-assessment
exercises, it’s a tool to help you live the life God intends for you to live—asking
him to reveal his plan, doing it his way in his timing, because he is God of
all. If you try to demand or invent answers because you are tired of not having
any answers, or if you try to get ahead of God in your planning, you will
miss his best for your life. Instead, patiently let his Holy Spirit give you answers
through prayer, Scripture, reflection, and conversation with another Christian
woman as you progress through this book.
AN OVERVIEW: WHERE WE’RE HEADED
After I explain some basics in this chapter, the real fun begins. Part 2 will
take you through six carefully planned conversations with a Purpose Partner
(more on her in a bit). You will be asked to do approximately forty-five minutes
of preparation in your workbook prior to each conversation, so that your
time with your Purpose Partner is spent discussing your answers, not reading
and writing while she watches you deeply ponder your life. The best advice
you can live by during the conversations is to have fun, trust the process, and
trust the Holy Spirit. The final “conversation” in this section is to take what
I call a laughter break: to go somewhere with your Purpose Partner for the
distinct purpose of not thinking about purpose, but enjoying each other’s company.
Relaxation, pacing yourself, and friendship are key elements of your
journey.
Part 3 will surprise you by revealing logical vision out of what may have
seemed random exercises in Part 2. In three additional conversations you will
analyze the data bits you have been storing up in your workbook, thus allowing
you to draw some conclusions about God’s general and distinct purposes
for your life.
The most important thing you can do is to pray for your complete surrender
to God’s will by the end of the book. Other than that, just keep following
the book’s directions, week by week, without trying to figure out how
each step contributes to the whole process as you go along.

UNLEASHING THE POWER
I like to call this introductory chapter the power chapter for three reasons.
First, it explains the power of the pen in moving your ideas onto paper. Second,
it discusses the primary power of God who gives perspective about his plan
for your life. Third, it talks about the power of two women working together
through prayerfully guided conversations!
Power of the Pen
As you jot down your answers to workbook questions during your private
preparation time, you will notice a budding clarity over the weeks. Without this
process of putting pen to paper, your ideas likely would stay jumbled up inside
your head. Expect your written answers to shock you at times and delight you
at other times. Write whatever comes to mind first. There are no right or
wrong answers, so go with the flow!
Power of a Godly Perspective
You gain new perspective when you climb to the top of a mountain to view
landscape impossible to see from ground level. Similarly, God can use this
workbook as a vantage point to help you see your life as a whole, allowing you
to spot patterns and trends about how you operate. This new primary perspective
will encourage you to decide objectively if you are happy with what
you see, and if you’re not, to ask yourself what you’re going to do about it.

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Excerpted from Conversations on Purpose for Women: 10 Appointments That Will Help You Discover God's Plan for Your Life by Katie Brazelton
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