Transcript:
Hello, welcome to Walking in Step with God. I am Steve McDonald. Today we explore the topic “Live with Daily Purpose” as the next installment of our series “Daily Doses of Meaning”.
In this series, we plan to lay out tangible, achievable steps to a rewarding and fulfilling life with God, be it for the very first time or after many years of actively growing in faith.
Today, we want to explore ways that we can find and maintain our purpose day to day. We all have activities and responsibilities over the course of our day. Work, family, and education can be all consuming, but I also believe that with God’s help, we can find ways to bring together our responsibilities and purpose. I want to say upfront, this is not an easy thing to do, but with God at our side, nothing is impossible. He truly desires for each of us to find and know our purpose in life.
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Welcome back. Let’s continue in our discussion of ways to live with purpose each day.
Ask God
The first step to learning your purpose is approaching your Creator. You were wonderfully and beautifully made by God and He has planted gifts within you to fulfill a purpose and plan that He has crafted especially for you.
More than likely, you have a pretty good idea of the skills and attributes that make you, -you-. You have an idea of the things you are good at and the things which you are not. That being said, I think it would be fair to say that no matter how much you think you know yourself, God knows so much more.
As the One who created you, God knows the number of hairs on your head. He knows the skills you have learned, and He knows the skills you have yet to learn.
I invite you to ask God to show you everything there is to know about you. Ask Him to show you your strengths and your weaknesses. Ask Him to reveal to you the parts of yourself that are meant to shine for everyone to see and the opportunities to strengthen and grow.
Most of all, I invite you to ask God to show you your purpose. So many of us pursue goals and dreams from our heart, not knowing our actual purpose. Many will find happiness and even joy.
I would argue that finding your purpose has the potential to reveal a type of joy that you have never experienced. Finding the thing that God has designed just for you is a treasure that you will never forget. You will learn that you will feel a level of enthusiasm and motivation that keeps you engaged with little interest in benefiting on your own.
Ask Him to guide you to your purpose today.
Trust God
So far today, we have learned the importance of approaching God to ask Him about His plans for us, asking Him to guide us to our purpose in life.
What you learn may surprise you, or it may be exactly what you hoped. Either way, the next step in this process is to place your trust in God.
When we learn our purpose is in a different direction from our goals, we have a choice to make. Do we go after what we want, or do we pivot to what God says?
One of the most difficult things to do is turn away from what we know is familiar. Turning away from what we have pursued for our goals has the potential to bring anxiety and doubt. What I have learned from my own experience is to trust God. When we are faced with a choice of what we know to be familiar and pursuing something new, we should consider God may be willing to bring together His purpose for our lives alongside our own goals and dreams.
All we need to do is ask!
Remember, when we find our sense of purpose, it has the potential to bring a level of joy and fulfillment – more than any other activity than we have sought out on our own.
We invite you to place your trust in God. He knows your heart’s desires, hopes, and dreams. Only he can help you craft a life that plugs you into your intended purpose as well as allows you to experience the things that give you joy. You need only ask Him.
Serve God
So far today, we have learned how to approach God and ask Him for the plans and purpose He has for our lives. We then discussed the importance of trusting God with what He reveals, even if it is not what we had in mind.
The next step in this process is to take what we have learned and move forward in -serving- God.
You may find that walking into your purpose feels natural and straightforward. You may also find yourself questioning your purpose, especially if it does not align with what you know about yourself.
The good news is that God has equipped you with everything you need to pursue and fulfill your purpose. Some of what you need lies within you. Your gifts, both known and unknown, will play a crucial role in living out your purpose. God will also equip you with everything you need. As you walk forward in faith to live out your purpose, God will orchestrate events in your path to align with your purpose. You will meet new people. You will learn new things. God will mold your environment to align with your purpose in ways that you never could.
Serving God is a choice. Pursuing your purpose is a decision that will impact your life. Trust me when I say, there will be days that you know of your purpose and you just don’t feel up to it. You will face challenges and setbacks. You will encounter obstacles and distractions. You will have seasons of low motivation. The good news in serving God is that He knows you are only human and will encounter these moments even as you seek to pursue your purpose.
You need only keep your eyes on God, asking Him to equip you, strengthen you, and guide you step-by-step to your purpose – day by day, moment to moment.
Wrap Up
In today’s message, we have discussed ways to live our life with purpose, partnering with God to live a life that aligns us with God’s perfected plans and purpose.
First, we explored the importance of -asking- God to reveal His plans and purpose for us. It is perfectly natural for most of us to spend a good part of our lives pursuing hopes and dreams that our hearts desire. What our heart desires is not necessarily the same as God’s perfected plans and purpose for us. The good news is that we can ask God to align our lives with His plans. In our ask, God already knows the desires of our heart and He may reveal a plan to you that incorporates your heart’s desires with His purpose for you. The important thing to consider is this: If the purpose that is laid out to you does not align with your current goals and dreams, keep in mind that God knows you and your potential better than you know yourself. Yielding to God’s will may be a difficult thing to do, but in the long run may end up being the most rewarding decision in your life.
Next, we discussed the importance of trusting God. As I just mentioned, we may find that our purpose is not what we had in mind. In these situations, we must do our best to place our trust in God. God would not lead you down a path that is not best for you. It’s difficult to believe this if it appears that your purpose is conflicting with your day-to-day reality. We must remember God knows every detail of your life, including things you know nothing about. He knows your potential – both the gifts you already know and the gifts you have yet to know. For these reasons, it is important to place your trust in God, knowing that He knows all and will guide you to a path that will lead to fulfillment and joy in ways you could not have imagined on your own.
Lastly, we explained the importance of serving God. You have asked and you have received your instructions. Now comes the time to execute. In this moment, you might find it overwhelming if you realize your purpose will need resources that you do not have. The good news is that God will supply you with what you -need to fulfill your purpose. In the course of pursuing your purpose, you will certainly experience moments of doubt, confusion, obstacles, and so on. You will have questions and concerns, progress and setbacks. The good news is that you only need to keep God front and center as you serve. Ask Him each day to guide you and the works of your hands for His purpose for your life. You will find Him providing for you in ways you would not have expected or imagined.
Living a life of purpose is rewarding on a level that we could not achieve on our own. With God, we can be led to a life of purpose that is finely tuned to everything He knows about us – even before we know ourselves.
Trust God to lead and guide and order your steps and lead you to a fulfilling life of purpose today.
Are you interested in discovering more about the guidance offered in this message? Learn more in the companion article Going Deeper with the Word: Embrace Authenticity
