Many of us envy the lives of others, their parents, their look, or sometimes their success. Many people feel purposeless, loveless, unhappy, and despairing. This bitterness sometimes leads us not to accept ourselves, our parents, or the jobs we are occupying, but the truth is no one is an accident and we are all on earth for a purpose.
You are not an accident
Whatever inclination you might have, remember your birth was no mistake or mishap, and your life is no fluke of nature. Long before you were conceived by your parents, you were conceived in the mind of God, he thought of you first. It is not fate, chance, luck, or coincidence that you are breathing at this moment. You are alive because God wanted to create you! The Bible says, “The LORD will fulfil his purpose for me.” God prescribed every single detail of your body. He deliberately chose your race/tribe, the colour of your skin, your hair, and every other feature. He custom-made your body just the way he wanted it. He also determined the natural talents you would possess and the uniqueness of your personality. Because God made you for a reason, he also decided when you would be born and how long you would live. He planned the days of your life in advance, choosing the exact date and time of your birth and death. God also planned where you would be born and where you would live for his purpose. Your race and nationality are no accident. He planned it all for his purpose. Most amazing, God decided how you would be born. Regardless of the circumstances of your birth or who your parents are, God had a plan in creating you. It does not matter whether your parents were good, rich, poor, bad, or indifferent. God knew that those two individuals possessed exactly the right genetic makeup to create the custom “you” he had in mind. God never does anything accidentally, and he never makes mistakes. He has a reason for everything he creates and one has just to live a purpose-driven life.
Benefits of living a purpose-driven life
Knowing your purpose gives meaning to your life. We were made to have meaning. When life has meaning, you can bear almost anything, without it, nothing is bearable. Without God, life has no purpose, and without purpose, life has no meaning. Without meaning, life has no significance or hope. The greatest tragedy is not death, but life without purpose. Hope is as essential to our life as air and water. You hope to cope. You may feel you are facing an impossible situation, but the Bible says, “God is able to do far more than we would ever dare to ask or even dream of-infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, or hopes.”
Knowing your purpose simplifies your time. It defines what you do and what you don`t do. Your purpose becomes the standard one used to evaluate which activities are essential and which aren`t. You simply ask, “Does this activity help me fulfil one of God`s purposes for my life?” Without a clear purpose, one has no foundations on which he/she bases decisions, allocates his/her time, and uses his/her resources. One tends to make decisions based on circumstances, pressures, and his/her mood at that moment. People who don`t know their purpose try to do too much and that causes stress, fatigue, and conflict. Purpose-driven living leads to a simpler lifestyle and a saner schedule.
Knowing your purpose focuses your life. It concentrates your effort and energy on what`s important. You become effective by being selective. It`s human nature to get distracted by minor issues. Many people have gyroscopes, spinning around at a frantic pace but never going anywhere. Without a clear purpose, you will keep changing directions, jobs, relationships, churches, or other externals-hoping each will settle the confusion or fill the emptiness in your heart. One thinks, maybe this time it will be different, but it does not solve your real problem- a lack of focus and purpose.
Knowing your purpose motivates your life. Purpose always produces passion. Nothing energises like a clear purpose. On the other hand, passion dissipates when one lacks a purpose. Just getting out of bed becomes a major challenge. It is usually meaningless work, not overwork, that wears us down, saps our strength, and robs our joy.
Knowing your purpose prepares you for eternity. Many people spend their lives trying to create a lasting legacy on earth. They want to be remembered when they`re gone. Yet, what ultimately matters most will not be what others say about your life but what God says. What people fail to realise is that all achievements are eventually surpassed, records are broken, reputations fade, wealth is left behind, and tributes are forgotten. Living to create an earthly legacy is a short-sighted goal. A wiser use of time is to build an eternal legacy. You weren`t put on earth to be remembered. You were put here to prepare for eternity. One day all of us will stand before God, and he will do an audit of our life, a final exam before we enter eternity. God will ask us two crucial questions:
What did you do with my Son, Jesus Christ? God won`t ask about your religious background or doctrinal views. The only thing that will matter is, did you accept what Jesus did for you and did you learn to love and trust him?
What did you do with what I gave you? What did you do with your life -all the gifts, talents, opportunities, energy, relationships, and resources I gave you? Did you spend them on yourself, or did you use them for the purpose God made you for?
Whatever you are going through or yearning for, remember you are not an accident, just live a purpose-driven life.
Part of this piece is an extract from Rick Warren`s book titled ‘Purpose driven life’.