--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Life with God is an individual matter…" description: "\"Life with God is an individual matter, and general formulas do not easily apply.\" — Philip Yancey" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/764/philip-yancey-840_formulas_life-with-god-is-an-individual-matter-an_1873200.png" --- # Life with God is an individual matter, and general… ![“Life with God is an individual matter, and general formulas do not easily apply.” quote by Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/764/philip-yancey-840_formulas_life-with-god-is-an-individual-matter-an_1873200.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/764/philip-yancey-840_formulas_life-with-god-is-an-individual-matter-an_1873200.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/764/philip-yancey-840_formulas_life-with-god-is-an-individual-matter-an_1873200.png) > “Life with God is an individual matter, and general formulas do not easily apply.” [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Spiritual life is personal; universal formulas rarely fit individual experiences. **In simple terms:** Faith is personal, not formulaic. Key Takeaway Seek personal connection with the divine. Themes spirituality individuality faith philosophy theology Mood reflective contemplative Type theological philosophical When to use this quote - Counseling - sermons - personal journaling - interfaith dialogue - education Key Concepts Existentialism personal narrative subjective experience Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance personal faith with community? - What guides your personal spiritual decisions? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on individuality may ignore communal aspects. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life With God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-with-god/) ## Related quotes > [ “They \[Old Testament\] taught me about Life with God: not how it is supposed to work, but how it actually does work.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/they-old-testament-taught-me-about-life-with-god-not-how-it-is/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [“Death is not an means to an end but the beginning of life with God”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-hoover/death-is-not-an-means-to-an-end-but-the-beginning-of-life-with-god/) Jennifer Hoover > [“The normal Christian Life is not supposed to be an exhausting wrestling match with a dead man, but is an abundant, joy-filled life with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kris-vallotton/the-normal-christian-life-is-not-supposed-to-be-an-exhausting/) [Kris Vallotton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kris-vallotton/) > [“Everything is interim. Everything is a path or a preparation for the next thing, and we never know what the next thing is. Life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shauna-niequist/everything-is-interim-everything-is-a-path-or-a-preparation-for-the/) [Shauna Niequist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shauna-niequist/) > [My main job is to live with deep contentment, joy, and confidence in my everyday experience of life with God. Everything else is job…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg/my-main-job-is-to-live-with-deep-contentment-joy-and-confidence-in-my/) [John Ortberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg/) > [A Tough life with God is better than a good life without Him](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-asscherick/a-tough-life-with-god-is-better-than-a-good-life-without-him/) David Asscherick > [Life with God is not immunity from difficulties, but peace in difficulties.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/life-with-god-is-not-immunity-from-difficulties-but-peace-in/) [C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/) > [“The best place to start doing life with God is in small moments.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg/the-best-place-to-start-doing-life-with-god-is-in-small-moments/) [John Ortberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg/) > [“Worship isn’t something other, external, compartmentalized, or confined. It is life with God, lived unto God for his glory and our pleasure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-cosper/worship-isn-t-something-other-external-compartmentalized-or-confined/) [Mike Cosper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-cosper/) > [Grace saves us from life without God-even more it empowers us for life with God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-j-foster/grace-saves-us-from-life-without-god-even-more-it-empowers-us-for/) [Richard J. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-j-foster/) > [“I will never be able to reduce life with God to a formula for the same reason I cannot reduce my marriage to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/i-will-never-be-able-to-reduce-life-with-god-to-a-formula-for-the/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [Like all good things, prayer requires some discipline. Yet I believe that life with God should seem more like friendship than duty. Prayer includes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/like-all-good-things-prayer-requires-some-discipline-yet-i-believe/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [“I believe Christians walk a mental tightrope and are in constant danger of falling in one of two directions. On this subject, errors in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/i-believe-christians-walk-a-mental-tightrope-and-are-in-constant/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [The development of faith in the Lord is an individual matter. Repentance is also an individual matter. Only as an individual can one be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-m-nelson/the-development-of-faith-in-the-lord-is-an-individual-matter/) [Russell M. Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-m-nelson/) > [The individual (no matter how well-meaning he might be, no matter how much strength he might have, if only he would use it) does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/the-individual-no-matter-how-well-meaning-he-might-be-no-matter-how/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) ## More by Philip Yancey > [“God reproduces and lives out His image in millions of ordinary people like us. It is a supreme mystery. We are called to bear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/god-reproduces-and-lives-out-his-image-in-millions-of-ordinary-people/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [Curiously, the righteous Pharisees had little historical impact, save for a brief time in a remote corner of the Roman Empire. But Jesus' disciples…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/curiously-the-righteous-pharisees-had-little-historical-impact-save/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [Jesus never met a disease he could not cure, a birth defect he could not reverse, a demon he could not exorcise. But he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/jesus-never-met-a-disease-he-could-not-cure-a-birth-defect-he-could/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [Love deems this world worth rescuing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/love-deems-this-world-worth-rescuing/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [People instinctively know the difference between something done with a profit motive and something done with a love motive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/people-instinctively-know-the-difference-between-something-done-with/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [In a nutshell, the Bible from Genesis 3 to Revelation 22 tells the story of a God reckless with desire to get his family back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/in-a-nutshell-the-bible-from-genesis-3-to-revelation-22-tells-the/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [You can know the law by heart without knowing the heart of it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/you-can-know-the-law-by-heart-without-knowing-the-heart-of-it/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [“I have marveled at, and sometimes openly questioned, the self-restraint God has shown throughout history, allowing the Genghis Khans and the Hitlers and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/i-have-marveled-at-and-sometimes-openly-questioned-the-self-restraint/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [C. S. Lewis observed that almost all crimes of Christian history have come about when religion is confused with politics. Politics, which always runs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/c-s-lewis-observed-that-almost-all-crimes-of-christian-history-have/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [Having spent time around "sinners" and also around purported saints, I have a hunch why Jesus spent so much time with the former group:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/having-spent-time-around-sinners-and-also-around-purported-saints-i/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [We preach sermons, write books on apologetics, conduct city-wide evangelistic campaigns. For those alienated from the church, that approach no longer has the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/we-preach-sermons-write-books-on-apologetics-conduct-city-wide/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [I begin with confession not in order to feel miserable, rather to call to mind a reality I often ignore. When I acknowledge where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/i-begin-with-confession-not-in-order-to-feel-miserable-rather-to-call/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [Jesus reserved his hardest words for the hidden sins of hypocrisy, pride, greed and legalism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/jesus-reserved-his-hardest-words-for-the-hidden-sins-of-hypocrisy/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [“What greater gift could Christians give to the world than the forming of a culture that upholds grace and forgiveness?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/what-greater-gift-could-christians-give-to-the-world-than-the-forming/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [“For us who are Christians, the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is proof positive that love is stronger than hate, that life is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/for-us-who-are-christians-the-death-and-resurrection-of-jesus-christ/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) [Explore all 351 Philip Yancey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) ## More Formulas quotes > [A Light exists in Spring Not present on the Year At any other period - When March is scarcely here A Color stands abroad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-dickinson/a-light-exists-in-spring-not-present-on-the-year-at-any-other-period/) [Emily Dickinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-dickinson/) > [What people tend to forget is the journey that I had getting to Formula One. There were plenty of years where I had to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-hamilton/what-people-tend-to-forget-is-the-journey-that-i-had-getting-to/) [Lewis Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-hamilton/) > [A bad artist almost always tries to conceal his incompetence by whooping up a new formula.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/a-bad-artist-almost-always-tries-to-conceal-his-incompetence-by/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [It is amazing how may drivers, even at the Formula One Level, think that the brakes are for slowing the car down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-andretti/it-is-amazing-how-may-drivers-even-at-the-formula-one-level-think/) [Mario Andretti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-andretti/) > [I understand the formula that producers hire directors and directors are hired to direct and actors are hired to act. I don't have any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-trejo/i-understand-the-formula-that-producers-hire-directors-and-directors/) [Danny Trejo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-trejo/) > [The rationale which accompanies that imposition of male authority euphemistically referred to as 'the battle of the sexes' bears a certain resemblance to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-millett/the-rationale-which-accompanies-that-imposition-of-male-authority/) [Kate Millett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-millett/) > [You ask everybody you know: How long does it usually take to get over it? There are many formulas. One year for every year…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junot-diaz/you-ask-everybody-you-know-how-long-does-it-usually-take-to-get-over/) [Junot Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junot-diaz/) > [I think social networks are really working for the drivers, because we're able to talk directly to fans and they get first-hand information. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenson-button/i-think-social-networks-are-really-working-for-the-drivers-because-we/) [Jenson Button](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenson-button/) > [There is no secret formula--only a life committed to a close walk with God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dillon-burroughs/there-is-no-secret-formula-only-a-life-committed-to-a-close-walk-with/) [Dillon Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dillon-burroughs/) > [This formula of Love is universal; all the laws of Nature are its servitors. Thus, gravitation, chemical affinity, electrical potential, and the rest -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleister-crowley/this-formula-of-love-is-universal-all-the-laws-of-nature-are-its/) [Aleister Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleister-crowley/) > [The unique essence of being an artist is dying. Eveything looks the same. Now there’s a formula. And it works. - But it takes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/usher/the-unique-essence-of-being-an-artist-is-dying-eveything-looks-the/) [Usher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/usher/) > [If you are out to describe the truth, leave elegance to the tailor. On being reproached that his formula of gravitation was longer and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/if-you-are-out-to-describe-the-truth-leave-elegance-to-the-tailor-on/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [The bourgeois thinkers of the eighteenth century thus turned Aristotle's formula on its head: satisfactions which the Greek philosopher had identified with leisure were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/the-bourgeois-thinkers-of-the-eighteenth-century-thus-turned/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [How do you spell peace? P-R-A-Y-E-R! Anything you believe you need is available to you through prayer. We are not talking here about a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iyanla-vanzant/how-do-you-spell-peace-p-r-a-y-e-r-anything-you-believe-you-need-is/) [Iyanla Vanzant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iyanla-vanzant/) > [Unbelievable how silly this Formula 1 is these days, with this stupid overtakes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-vettel/unbelievable-how-silly-this-formula-1-is-these-days-with-this-stupid/) [Sebastian Vettel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-vettel/) Browse all 845 Formulas quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Life with God is an individual matter, and general formulas do not easily apply.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Philip Yancey" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/life-with-god-is-an-individual-matter-and-general-formulas-do-not/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Formulas" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/life-with-god-is-an-individual-matter-and-general-formulas-do-not/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/764/philip-yancey-840_formulas_life-with-god-is-an-individual-matter-an_1873200.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/764/philip-yancey-840_formulas_life-with-god-is-an-individual-matter-an_1873200.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/764/philip-yancey-840_formulas_life-with-god-is-an-individual-matter-an_1873200.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Life with God is an individual matter, and general formulas do not easily apply.” — Philip Yancey", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Philip Yancey", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Life with God is an individual...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/life-with-god-is-an-individual-matter-and-general-formulas-do-not/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/life-with-god-is-an-individual-matter-and-general-formulas-do-not/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```