Some books come along in our lives at just the right moment.

A few weeks ago, I prayed for help in living a more devoted life, more fully connected with God. I needed guidance to jumpstart my spirit by hearing God deeper. I felt a yearning to live like Jesus did, as he called us to in the Sermon on the Mount.

Then Tricia Goyer’s newest book arrived.

Walk It Out – Book Overview

Walk it Out – a Radical Result of Living God’s Word One Step at a Time is an inspirational, practical read. I love how she weaves her honest life stories amidst real-life ideas, actions steps, and thought provoking questions. As we search for where God is leading us, Tricia also offers great suggestions to balance our lives without doing too much.

Walk It Out reminded me once again life isn’t just about me.

“Sometimes in the busyness of our Christian walk, we forget that our ministry is not all about us and what we have to offer God. Many of us think it’s up to us to figure out God’s purposes for us. So we take personality inventories and spiritual gift tests to identify our gifts and strengths, and to determine what kind of service match our natural bent. God may use such things. The problem comes when we learn what we’re good at and think that’s all God will call us to do. And that’s just not the case. Many people in history have shied away from God’s call at first…. Along the way, I discovered a new dream and purpose – to simply read God’s word, do what it says and follow Jesus to place He was already at work in the world. Purpose I’ve discovered isn’t something we need to figure out ahead of time Instead it is something we often recognize in hindsight, as we follow Jesus one step at a time.”

Powerful quote to ponder, isn’t it?

Another place her words challenged me was this:

“As believers, we often have our morning devotions, go to Bible study with friends, faithfully attend church and listen to sermons, read Christian books, and stream Christian music and podcasts. Yet we are missing Jesus. We forget to pay attention to the thing that are breaking God’s heart, and instead we order our world as much as possible, for ease, comfort, and success.”

Ouch. I am guilty of living this way.

Walk It Out – Tips

So how do we discover living more like Jesus? Here are a few ideas/questions I gleaned from the book to pray about:

1. Create space in your life to unclutter and hear God. I wrote about this on this post last year and find that periodically I need to do this again. Good timing as this month’s Tending the Holy Thursday series that will begin this week is about letting go.
2. Consider our own life story. We all have a story worth telling. What are my life’s major highs and lows and themes that thread through life? Using the spiritual practices of reflection and journaling – what have I learned in my journey, especially in the low, challenging times, that now can be used to help others?
3. Dig into the scriptures – study how Jesus lived. What lessons are emerging for me at this time?
4. What inner nudges/God whispers are reverberating in our souls right now?
5. “What if instead of waiting for good enough things to happen to us, we could be the good thing to happen in someone else who is waiting?”  powerful quote by Ann VosKamp.
6. Who are the vulnerable people in my life God is inviting me to care for?

I know deep down I want to live a life fully for God. I connect so much with the Erma Bombeck quote:

“When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, ‘I used everything you gave me’.”

You can see I am pondering quite a bit with this post, this book, and my restless thirst for more of God.

What one thing is God inviting you to do or to try even though you prefer to stay in your comfort zone?