The greatest tragedy in life is living without a purpose. Purpose is God’s will, counsel, decree, or original intent for your life. There is a purpose, a reason for which you were created and for which your life matters. If God had nothing in mind for you, He would not have created you. Your purpose is the destination for your life while your plan is the map to reach it. Without a purpose, plans are useless. The purpose of God for your life is not a decision, but a discovery you make. God gives the purpose, but it is your responsibility to discover what that is. Sometimes the discovery of your purpose may take time; so, you must be faithful with whatever God has put in your hands right now as He progressively unveils His purposes for your life. Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your strength (Eccl. 9:10).
God is more interested in you fulfilling your purpose than in giving you comfort. He may permit you to go through pain in order to fulfil your purpose. God is obligated to finance His purpose – not your plans. He will not fund anything outside of His purpose. This is why it is important that you understand and pursue your purpose. You cannot be doing your own thing, pursuing your own dreams, and expect God to provide for you. Your provisions are only guaranteed in the place God has assigned you (Jer. 29:11 & Prov. 19:21). God will pay for everything He has assigned and instructed you to pursue.
Any time God begins something, He has already finished it. He has begun a work in you and will be faithful to complete it. God is committed to His purpose for your life and will enable you to fulfil it. Nothing can stop God’s purpose in your life but expect an enemy to attack your God-given purpose (Isaiah 46:10-11). Understanding your purpose gives you strength and courage to confront your enemies and a reason to live. You will only find fulfilment in life by discovering, pursuing, and fulfilling the assignment God has for you. Your purpose fuels your passion and pursuits in life.
To Understand your purpose, it is vital that you answer the following questions clearly with conviction:
- Who are you? – You are a child of God before anything else. Find your identity only in
Christ and be secure in the Father’s unfailing love for you. - Who has God called you to be? – You cannot be an effective farmer, teacher, and musician at the same time. What causes are you willing to give your life to? What would you be doing if money was not an issue? What would you want to be remembered for?
- Where has God called you to? – Prayerfully discern those you have been assigned to.
These are the people, groups, places whose problems God has called you to solve. Those
who unlock your compassion are the ones God has assigned you to. - With whom has He called you? – Identify the people God has assigned to you and celebrate them. Do not spend your time and energy pursing people God has not assigned to you. Those God has not assigned to you will create problems for you and frustrate your purpose.
The problems that infuriate you are clues to the problems God has appointed you to solve. What bothers you the most is a sign of what God has called you to correct. Your purpose is God’s calling on your life; the assignment He created you for or the problem He designed you to solve. The most important thing you must know in life is your calling. Your purpose or calling will determine the training or preparations you need to fulfil it. The length of your training and preparations for your specific purpose will be determined by how much you are yielded to God’s processes in your life. You are not useful to God until He has moulded you to suit His purposes.
The God who calls is the One who trains and qualifies you for the assignment He has for you. It is not in your place to qualify or disqualify yourself. God does not necessarily change your personality for you to accomplish your purpose; instead, He moulds you to be suited for His purposes. Moses is a perfect example of an outstanding personality shaped by God. God did not change who or what Moses was; He did not give Moses new abilities and strengths; He took Moses’ characteristics and moulded them until they were suited to His purposes. You do not have to become someone else to fulfil your purpose because God designed you for His purposes for your life. When you yield to God, He will mould and use your unique characteristics to achieve His purposes for your life.
