A person plans his course,
but the Lord directs his steps.

Proverbs 16:9

We've all made plans.  I will get my degree, get a great job, get married, have kids and live happily ever after.  But what happens when our plan A doesn't turn out so well.  What happens when you finally get the degree you wanted, but can't find a job in the field?  Or you get that job and you end up working endless hours for someone who may not appreciate you? What happens when you come home from work only to find a note from your spouse saying "This isn't working! I'm leaving!"?  For many of us, we focus so much on plan A that we have no plan B, so when plan A doesn't work the way we envisioned, we get angry at Abba and sometimes just give up.

Think about this, Abba told Jonah to go to Nineveh and tell them unless they changed their ways Abba was going to destroy the city.  Well, this was NOT Jonah's plan A!  In fact, it was not Jonah's plan of any letter.  So what did he do?  He formulated his own Plan A and took a ship in the completely opposite direction.  Guess how well that worked out for him? The fact is, Abba's plans for us are so much better than ANYTHING we could possibly imagine. 

First, Psalm 57:2 says, "I cry out to God Most High, to God who will fulfill his purpose for me."  When Plan A doesn't work out like we planned, take it to Abba and talk with Him about your frustrations, anxieties, disappointments, and ask Him to lead you to His plan for you. Understand that Abba has a purpose for your life and has numbered your days accordingly, and here's the best part, He WILL fulfill that purpose in your life!

Second, understand that Abba is not mad at you nor is He a bully, but He does have the best for you. Jeremiah 29:11 reminds us, "'For I know the plans I have for you,' says the Lord. 'They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.'"  If Abba was truly a big mean bully, why would He have plans for GOOD, why would He give us a FUTURE and HOPE?  The fact of the matter is we tend to view Him as being mad and even hating us when OUR plans fall through.  There have been many times in my life when I thought Abba was just some big creep who enjoyed tormenting me, but I'm learning He really does love me.

Third, understand that when Abba's purpose for us has been fulfilled, we WILL hear Him say, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’ - Matthew 25:23. 

Here's my point: We CAN trust Abba to do what's best for us, even when we don't like it or agree with it.  Abba never promised us an easy care-free existence on this marble.  He DID promise that He would never leave us and that He would fulfill His plans for our life.  We can trust Him!  We can talk with Him!  Because He loves us more than words can express.

Think about it!

What's My Purpose?

“Arise, and go down to the potter's house, and there I will let you hear my words.” So I went down to the potter's house, and there he was working at his wheel. And the vessel he was making of clay was spoiled in the potter's hand, and he reworked it into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to do." - Jeremiah 18:2-4

Have you ever watched a potter work with clay? It's pretty interesting. The potter has to make sure the clay doesn't get too dry; has to make sure the wheel spins at just the right speed; has to make sure the right pressure is applied in the right places at the right time to form the vessel.

I remember hearing this story in Sunday School. I had been discouraged and after hearing this story I told my pastor that God must be turning me into a dog dish. My pastor, whose keen wisdom had a way of clarifying even the most muddled minds, told me, "The potter makes whatever he wants out of the clay, but every piece he makes has a purpose to serve. You think you are being made into a dog dish? When we put food in the dog's dish we are showing the dog that we love them. So if God wants you to be a dog dish, share that love with every dog you see."

What is God turning you into? God makes each of us for a purpose. God has never made a mistake or a worthless pot, and He's not going to change that record for you.

I Have A Purpose?

 

I cry out to God Most High,
    to God who will fulfill his purpose for me.

Psalm 57:2 

 

I was born a worrier.  I was always concerned about doing the right thing so I could find out the purpose God had for me.  I knew, from church, that God has a purpose for each of us and the sooner we were able to discern that purpose the better our life would be.  And so, I struggled trying to figure out how I could discern God's purpose for me.

 

Eventually, I just gave up and quit trying.  In fact, that's when my life became much less stressful because I quit caring.  I figured that if God actually had a purpose for me, He would have let me know so I wouldn't have wasted so many years messing up.  So I quit trying and quit caring.  Well, THAT didn't help me find my purpose either.

 

I figured God's purpose for me would be bringing HUGE numbers of people to Christ like Billy Graham.  Or perhaps pastoring one of those Mega Churches who have multiple "Campuses" and the sermon is broadcast to them.  I just KNEW God's purpose for me was going to make a giant difference!  Then I had a talk with one of my mentors, who loved me enough to be completely and brutally honest with me.  He reminded me that I am an introvert and that my personality was one of caring and empathy rather than outgoing and gregarious.  Honestly, that stung like a hive full of bees had been dropped on my head!

 

Then he took me to his shop and asked me to help him put his lawnmower engine back together.  Still steaming, I followed.  When we finished putting the engine back together, I noticed that we had one rubber gasket left over.  I told him about it and said it probably didn't matter if we left it out.  Then when he cranked up the motor, it didn't take long to realize that the one small gasket we had left out kept the oil from leaking out.

 

I love it when I can learn from the things of daily life.  My mentor told me that, though I may think of myself as just a small gasket, God still has an important part for me to play.  Then he reminded me that a single grain of sand that irritates and aggravates an oyster is turned into a beautiful pearl.  God may have a HUGELY public purpose for you, but His purpose for me is much more subtle.  God's purpose for me is to care, listen, love, and share....and to be honest, that's the perfect niche for me.  Ask God about your purpose!  You DO have a purpose, you know. 

I Have A Purpose?

The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me;
    your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever.
    Do not forsake the work of your hands.

Psalm 138:8 

Finding our purpose in life isn't easy.  Some have searched their entire lives for that one special purpose for their existence, and are still searching.  Guess what?  Perhaps it's time to stop spending so much time searching and start asking God to show us.  

God has promised that He has plans for us.  God has promised that He will continue to work in us until His purposes for us are fulfilled.  So why do we expend so much time, effort, frustration, and anxiety stressing over finding the purpose God has for us?

Our purpose may not be something grandiose like winning some "prestigious" award or changing the world.  God's purpose for us might be something more subtle, like befriending someone who is hurting, or being a true friend to someone, or sharing a smile and kindness to someone.  Our purpose won't always be earth shattering.  But our purpose will include instilling hope and caring in a world devoid of hope and caring.

Primary Purpose

If we live, it’s to honor the Lord. And if we die, it’s to honor the Lord. So whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.

Romans 14:8 

 

 

As believers, we have a Primary Purpose for existing...to honor God! That is our primary reason for being. I can here it now: "But what about helping others?"  "What about love?" "What about all the other stuff?"  Yeah, I had those questions too.

 

But remember what Jesus said was the greatest commandment? "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength."  And the second greatest is tied to the first because when we love God that much, we will be able to "Love others as you love yourself."  And in doing that, we honor God!

 

The Apostle Paul also reminded us, "So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."  So you see, our every action, thought, word, and our very existence is for the primary purpose of bringing glory to God!

On Purpose

When God created us, is was ON purpose and FOR a purpose.  Before God ever spoke the first speck of the universe into existence, He had already worked out His plan for each of us.  He already knew all we would face and need and had a plan in place, as well as, people available to help us.

We are God's handiwork and no one else's!  God created each of us as a masterpiece...HIS masterpiece.  Each of us has been perfectly created for God's purposes. NO ONE can take that from us unless we let them.

If nothing else you remember from this bit today, burn this on your soul: God has a plan for each life, so we must choose to rebel or live and look to Him to fulfill His plan in us. 

What Is Your Quest?

I cry out to God Most High, who will fulfill His purpose for me.

Psalm 57:2 

 

I admit that I'm a bit of a nerd with a dash of geek tossed in.  I thoroughly enjoy "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" even though the ending was rather a let down for me.  But one scene in particular has wedged itself into my memory and, believe it or not, God has used it to remind me that He has a purpose for me.  

 

The Knights of the Round Table arrive at a bridge which is guarded by a rather sinister yet amusing old man, who informs the knights that they must answer three questions before they are allowed to cross the bridge.  The first question is rather easy: "What is your name?"  The second question is the one that sticks out in my thoughts: "What is your quest?"  And this is the question I have asked myself and asked of God repeatedly over the course of my life.  Why am I here?  What is my purpose?

 

These are questions we wonder about more than we care to admit.  Why did God, creator of all, create me?  Why am I here?  What is my quest?  These are not always easy or cut and dry.  Until, during my quiet time this morning, I got an answer.  I was, once again, talking with God about my purpose, my reason for being, my quest, and I was suddenly struck with "Why are you so concerned about that?"  The more I thought about it, the more I realized that I have been wasting so much time and energy trying to figure it out when I should have been focused on God and let Him show me as He needs.

 

My conclusion? God has the plan for me (Jeremiah 29:11), my job is to focus on Him and be available and ready.  When God brings someone into my life that needs my help or whose help I need, His plan and quest for my life in that time is fulfilled.  I don't believe our lives have a single purpose or quest, I believe God has a series of quests and purposes for us and will do whatever He must to fulfill each one in our lives.

Purpose Is In The Details

⁶ And there was Jacob’s Well. Jesus then wearied in the journey, sat thus on the Well: it was about the sixth hour.

⁷ There came a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus said unto her, Give me drink.

⁸ For his disciples were gone away into the city, to buy meat.

John 4:6-8

Believe it or not, Jesus always had a purpose for everything He did regardless how seemingly insignificant.  In today's passage, Jesus and the Disciples walked to Samaria to Jacob's Well.  It was then that Jesus told His Disciples that He was hungry and they needed to go find something for Him to eat.  What's the significance of this?  Jesus needed the Disciples to be out of the way so He could talk with the Samaritan woman without the Disciples freaking out because Samaritans and Jews did not usually interact or even like each other.

The Disciples went off into this "foreign" land in search of something kosher for Jesus to eat (and good luck with that search.  That's like sending the newbie mechanic to find a left handed ratchet set.)  Once they were off on their mission, Jesus sat on the well.  Now, here's where a bit of controversy comes about; many of the older translations of this passage have Jesus sitting ON Jacob's Well, while the later translations have Jesus sitting near or next to Jacob's Well.  What does it matter?  Good question.  If Jesus sat beside Jacob's Well or near Jacob's Well, He could have been easily brushed off and ignored.  However, since He sat ON the well, He had to be acknowledged (being "in the way").

Therefore, when the Samaritan woman came to get water from the well, she HAD to interact with Jesus.  Now it's also interesting that this woman came in the heat of the day to get water when most of the others came early in the morning to get their water.  This is an indication that this woman wasn't particularly accepted by the others. And Jesus was at the well at the precise time this ostracized woman came to get her water, just so He could talk with her.  

It's also noteworthy the reason Jesus sat on the well, scripture tells us that Jesus was weary from His travels.  Jesus, being human and prone to the same human limitations as we, was tired of walking and stopped to sit down and rest a bit.

And here's the good part: Jesus knows all about our human frailties because He was just like us when He was here, so He gets it.  But Jesus also has a plan for us and will make sure that the plan is completed in our lives before we are called home.  To be honest, that brings me a lot of relief (from trying to be perfect) and comfort (knowing that Jesus knows ALL about my struggles).

You Have A Purpose

“I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb.
    Before you were born I set you apart
    and appointed you as my prophet to the nations.”

Jeremiah 1:5 

 

Remember being asked "What do you want to be when you grow up"?  My answers included such things as "cowboy" and "pirate" or "mad scientist" and such as my young mind tended to bounce from thought to thought.  Never did I ever think that I would be where I am and doing what I do now.  BUT God had planned His purpose for me before I was even a thought.

 

I've heard many people ask "Why am I here?".  While I can't tell them their purpose in life, I can tell them that God does have a purpose for everything and promises that everything will work out for our benefit and His glory.  

 

So.....what's your purpose?  Let's start with a few of the daily purposes we have: encourage others, share our lives, serve others, bring comfort where needed, add to the celebration as needed, build each other up, listen, care, love.  These are just a few of our daily purposes.  God has promised that He has appointed a purpose for each of His children.  We miss opportunities to help others when we focus on trying to figure out what God's ultimate plan is for us, when that answer is simple...to accept His grace and mercy; love Him with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength; and to love others as we love ourselves.  God will bring the rest to pass at the right time.

God Has A Purpose For Your Life, Part 3

III. Think About This

But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. ~Romans 5:8

*  God NEVER said, "Wait until you are 'good enough' before coming to Me." He already had a plan.

 

But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.
    They will soar high on wings like eagles.
They will run and not grow weary.
    They will walk and not faint.

~ Isaiah 40:30

* When your focus is on Loving God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, you will find that you have a renewed sense of purpose.

 

For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. ~ Ephesians 2:10

* God has NEVER made anything other than masterpiece and THAT includes YOU!  I may not be the best looking part of His Kingdom, but I am still one of His masterpieces!

So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.

~ 1 Peter 5:6-7

*  When we remember that God is God and we are not, our perspective on everything else changes and we realize that God wants us to unload our burdens to Him so He can remind us how much He loves us!

God Has A Purpose For You, Part 2

II. God’s Purposes And Plans Take Time

Wait patiently for the Lord.
    Be brave and courageous.
    Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.

~Psalm 27:14

  

Ever wondered what your purpose for being on this Earth could possibly be and wish God would just go ahead and show it to you?

May I be honest with you?  Too bad, I'm going to be honest with you anyway.  If God had shown me at age 7 what I would be doing at age 54, I would have become catatonic!  I NEVER imagined that God's purpose for me would be to try to get to know some of the most suspicious people ever, ride with them as they deal with the worst incidents imaginable, attempt to help them realize that they do have love to share with others (especially their families), try to help them make some sense of what they deal with, and try to be God's representative of love and caring for them in the face of all that is portrayed in the media outlets.

What has God purposed you to do?  Maybe it is to show just one person that they are loved.  Perhaps it is to reach out to help someone who is struggling.  Could be that you get in the trenches with someone and walk with them through a tragedy.  But the one purpose we all have is to BE the reflection of Christ in an ever darkening world.

God Has A Purpose For You Part 1

I.  God Made Us With Purpose And A Plan

You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body
    and knit me together in my mother’s womb.
Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
    Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.
You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion,
    as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.
You saw me before I was born.
    Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
Every moment was laid out
    before a single day had passed.

~ Psalm 139:13-16

Think about this, before you the God spoke creation into being, He had already looked down the plane of time and saw YOU.  Not only did He see you, but He loved YOU.  Not only did He love YOU, but He made a plan specifically for YOUR life!  As a matter of fact, before He gave you your first breath, your purpose was already being worked out.  

Now....consider this:  The same One who so carefully planned everything planned YOU for a specific purpose!  Everything in your life (good, bad, seemingly neutral) leads you toward your purpose.  And it all starts with "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. And love your neighbor as yourself."

How can you care for others if you don't let them care about you? Just food for thought.

Are You An Exhibitionist?

Be careful! When you do good things, don’t do them in front of people to be seen by them. If you do that, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.

Matthew 6:1

Ever known anyone who was so self-important that they wanted EVERYONE to notice all the good things they have done?  Ever known anyone who make a great show of doing good, not so much because they are doing good, but because it will draw attention to them?

Yeah, I know a few like that too.  They are everywhere and, sadly, churches are full of them.  They cannot do a good deed without letting as many people know as possible.  And sadly, the "good" act is almost always a one-and-done situation where the act is done, applause, applause, camera flashes, lots of smiles, and then they are off to the next attention getting act.

In today's passage, Jesus is reminding us that we ARE to do good things for others, but we are NOT to do them for the purpose of self-promotion!  If the only reason we do good is so we can receive accolades, then we are doing it for the wrong reason and the accolades are our reward and we are nothing more than exhibitionists.

You see, IF we truly love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, then we will love others as we love ourselves, and THAT will make doing good things naturally be part of our normal personality.  But if we have to do good for the purpose of making sure others know we have done good, we need to make sure that we aren't trying to take God's place.  

In the Old Testament, Jeremiah writes: More than anything else, a person’s mind is evil and cannot be healed. Who can understand it? Which means it is our INTENTION that will reveal our true purpose.  

What's Your Purpose?

But it is a spirit in people,
the breath of the Almighty,
that makes them understand.

Job 32:8

Remember Moses? He led quite the charmed life for a long time as the adopted son of the Pharoah.  He was privileged and enjoyed all the comforts and courtesies of being a Prince of Egypt.  And then he killed an Egyptian slaver driver for beating an Israelite.  So he ran away to the desert to hide.  While he was there, he settled into the rough, but routine life of a shepherd tending the flocks of his father-in-law.  

Then God stepped in and told Moses, "Your purpose is to go to Egypt, tell Pharoah to let My People Go, and then lead them to the land I promised them."  That's a pretty hefty purpose!

How many times have we tried to figure out why we are here?  How many times have we tried to determine our purpose in life?  Some people wander around the world trying to "find themselves" or trying to "find my true path."  Some people search for their purpose for their entire lives without accepting it.  That's right, we tend to reject our purpose because it's not grand enough, or flashy enough, or popular enough, or because no one will notice, or, and here's the usual suspect, we don't want to do it!  It might make us uncomfortable.  It might mean we actually have to step out of our comfort zone.  It might mean we have to speak to people we don't particularly want to deal with.  

Moses was full of excuses trying to tell God, "I appreciate the offer, but I really don't want to do that!"  God didn't take NO for an answer from Moses, from me and He's not taking NO as an answer from you either.

When I knew beyond a doubt that God had called me to ministry, I said "NO" many times and in as many ways as possible.  Guess who won that debate?  God then pushed me to minister to Law Enforcement, again, being stubborn, I said "NO" many times and many ways, and still God won.

There have been times when I have been faced with a situation that I found overwhelming and I was expected to help the officer involved.  In my heart of hearts I shook my fist at God and shouted, "YOU DID ME TO THIS!  SO NOW WHAT?".  The Apostle Paul refers to the "peace that defies our understanding" and he wasn't kidding.  In the midst of all of my feeling overwhelmed, God's peace washed over me like a tidal wave and I learned (and am still learning) what it means to rely on God and not my own understanding.

Job wrote that it is the very breath of the Almighty, the same breath that brought to life, that brings us to understanding that God has a purpose for us and is not going to stop directing us toward that purpose until it is fulfilled.  No matter how long it takes.  If took me 43 years to actually surrender to God's call to ministry.  Took another 2 years to realize that Law Enforcement was where God wanted me to minister.  And I'm still learning!

What's your purpose?  

Unlikely!

For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

Ephesians 2:10

 

I like movies that make me think.  I like books that make me think.  I like to think.  Hmmmm....there seems to be a pattern here.  Be that as it may, I enjoyed watching "The Imitation Game" over the weekend, which is the story of Alan Turing.  

 

Alan Turing was a mathematician, exceedingly brilliant, socially awkward, and broke the German Enigma code during World War II with a machine of his own creation.  His computer was so far ahead of its time!  Yet to look at Alan Turing or to attempt to interact with him, you would not be impressed at all.  Why?  He was not outgoing.  He was not personable.  He was not jovial.  He could not tell a joke.  He was very serious and focused.  His life was numbers and logic.  He was rather like Mr. Spock from Star Trek or Sheldon Cooper from The Big Bang Theory.  Had the British Military not recruited Alan Turing, it would be very unlikely that his computer would have been developed.

 

Confession:  I have over 53 years of doing life wrong.  If there was a way for me to mess up, screw up, or just do it wrong....I did it, thought it, or said it. 

 

 If someone had told me 40 years ago that I would be in ministry, I would have looked at them in disbelief.  

 

If someone had told me 30 years ago that I would be working in a job I loved, I would have told them where they could insert such rubbish.

 

 Even 10 years ago, if you told me that I would get to interact with the most amazing heroes I have ever known.....I would have thought you were drunk.

 

BUT, the fact is God has been preparing me for this purpose since before time began.  How do I know this, because He has proven it to me over and over and over.  Every joy, every tear, every lesson learned, every experience, every dream has been God's hands preparing me for His purpose.  Although, I still don't use Algebra or Geometry, so I don't get that part except maybe to strengthen my patience.

 

Time after time we wonder what our purpose is in life.  We want to know because we like having quick, easy-to-understand answers.  We are not patient at all.  We forget that God has all the time in the world to get us ready to prepare us for what He has purposed us to do.

 

I wish I could tell each person that it's easy to figure out why we are here, but I'm not God.  I wish I could tell people that waiting for God to let us know our purpose is not painful at times, but that would be a lie.  I wish I could tell people that God's purpose for us will jump out at us like a large friendly dog, but what I have figured out.....when we try to focus on reflecting Christ in our lives every day, we will begin to see our purpose take shape.

 

My point: Reflect Christ as you travel through this life.   

God Is How Big?

And we know that God causes everything to work

 together for the good of those who love God and are 

called according to his purpose for them.

~Romans 8:28

 

 

This verse seems to be unclear for many, so let's take a look at it.  How big is God to you?  Is God only God when you think you need Him?  Is God only God when you find yourself on the horns of a dilemma? Is God the one you say "thank you" to at mealtime?  Is God the one you call to when things are not going according to your plan?  Is God surprised by the things we do, think, or say?  Is God ever taken off guard?  Can we hide from God?

 

Let me be blunt...

     * God is the God who spoke the entirety of everything into creation.  

     * God is the God who took dust, shaped it, and breathed life into it and called his breath bag "Adam."  

     * God is the one who told the sea that they can only come so far and no farther.  

     * God is the one who named every single star.  

     * God is the one who knows exactly how many hairs you have.  

     * God is the one who satan has to report to, and God also has set limits on satan (not to mention has already defeated him). 

     * God is the one who knows everything about everything because He made everything.

     * God is the one who tells us not to worry because He has everything under control.

     * God is the one who reminds us to let Him fight our battles for us.

     * God is the one who has never lied.

     * God is the one who cannot be defeated.

     * God is a LOT smarter than we could ever hope to be.

     * God is ALWAYS with us even when we can't see Him because we are focused on our storms.

     * God is the God who takes our screw-ups, mistakes, blunders, and outright defiant rebellion and works it all for OUR good.

     * God is the one who woke you up this morning (and let you see the world around you).

     * God is the one who created all those amazing place we dream about going to relax.

     * God is the one who put the mountains in their place in such a way as to direct the winds.

     * God is also the one who put beaches at the edge of the ocean to draw us there.

     * God is the one who CALLS US BY NAME and loves us more than we will ever understand or appreciate.  He loves us IN SPITE of ourselves.

 

So let me ask you again, "Just how big is YOUR God?"