Moving in your purpose…

Matthew 5:13-16

You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Genesis 1:26-28 says that we were created in God’s image and that He had us on His mind when He created us all. From there, Jeremiah 1:5 says that God knew us before we were even formed in our mother’s womb and that He had us set apart at that time. Further, in Jeremiah 29:11, God says that He knows the plans that He has for our lives and that the plans are for our good and not our demise. Lastly, as we learned from the last lesson, God is intentional in all that He does. So why then do we doubt that God has a purpose for our lives?

Much like a designer as he designs and creates a new dress, God carefully crafted and formed every inch of our lives for one specific purpose. Every pain, test, and tribulation that we encounter serves a purpose in our lives, as it guides us along and towards the purpose that God has for us.

As we travel along our journey with Christ, we all make a stop at the same fork in the road known as Purpose.

What does God have for me?

Is this what He wants me to do?

Will this bring me happiness/fulfillment?

Will this be pleasing in His sight?

When we arrive here, we all ask God, “what is Your purpose for my life?” Yet when He speaks, we hesitate with moving in the purpose that He has set before us. We often allow our fears and the fears of others to paralyze us and prevent us from walking into our God-given destinies.

Beloved, we must stop this now!

In order to move in your purpose, begin with these three steps:

1. 1. Ask God to reveal His purpose in you life. Matthew 6:33 “But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” Honestly, this is the easiest part of the three. In God’s word, He tells us repeatedly to seek Him and let Him take our load. When we diligently seek Him, He will adjust and align everything else in our lives. Ask God what He has planned for you and He will tell you. He is not a man that He would lie and He said in His word that He would not withhold any good thing from us… so ask Him.

    

   2. Wait and listen as He reveals His answer. Habakkuk 2:3 “For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end- it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay.” Here comes a difficult part… having patience. When we petition God for anything, we expect that He will answer immediately… and that the answer will be something favorable towards us. If we ask God for financial assistance, we tend to want Him to send a cash cow to us within the next few minutes of our prayer. (If you think I am making things up, scroll through your Facebook timeline and count how many posts say, “do this and God will bless you with the next few hours.”) However, God’s time is NOT our time and we must wait for Him to respond how and when He chooses. His response may not be what we expect, and we may not get it when we want it, but He will answer. We must remove all distractions in our life and wait as He provides an answer to every question and petition asked.

    

   3. Move in your purpose. Proverbs 16:9 “A man’s heart plans his way, But the Lord directs his steps.” This scripture here is everything and then some! When I read this, I recall the saying “if you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans.” We tend to make our own plans for our lives without giving consideration or thought to what God has planned for us however, if we would only seek God, He would guide every step of our lives. God knew the purpose for our lives before we were even formed in our mother’s womb. Even though our hearts may make plans, God will always [and ultimately] direct our steps. As such, when we move in our purpose, we are allowing ourselves to be used, most appropriately, by God.

Reflection…

Beloved, we each have a Divine purpose for our lives. With that, we must fulfill and live in our purpose because the lives of others depend on our obedience. I have heard that saying so much in my life but it was not until I began sharing my testimony that I realized what it meant. My testimony and my purpose are linked and intertwined; as I share my testimony, I am fulfilling a portion of God’s purpose for my life. Furthermore, as I fulfill my purpose, I am helping others heal and come closer to Christ.

Beloved, what is your purpose? No, I am not asking what your occupation is or what you like to do or even what you are good at doing- I am asking what your God-given purpose is. Ask this question of yourself and tell God your answer.  Then when you know the answer, move in your purpose.

Be blessed.