GOD'S PLAN FOR YOUR LIFE

"What is God's purpose (or plan, or will) for my life? How can I be certain of it?" These questions trouble many minds, and sometimes seem most difficult to answer. Someone recently emailed me inquiring as to whether a dailywhitt on such a topic might be possible. This topic could easily go on for sometime. Maybe in the future we'll give it all the attention it deserves. For now let me name a few things that I do to find, or remind myself about God's purpose in my life.

Read Your Bible
That would be the 66 books, generally found in KJV, NIV, ESV, and a variety of three-capital letters! Despite what your average atheist-apologist may tell you about contradictions and what not, the Word of God is true, alive and effective. I mean, if there really is nothing to it, why bother trying to convince people? Just leave us to our "blind faith!"

The Bible is full of examples of those who were called for specific tasks. We can learn from their successes and failures, their challenges and joys. Start with the most, purpose-driven (is that term copyrighted?) person: The Lord Jesus Christ!

Pray, Pray, Pray!
I remember when the words to the "Lord's Prayer" first kicked into overdrive for me. Where I was living, nothing in Music Education seemed available for full time. I was out of college, working as a substitute teacher during the day, and teaching piano lessons a couple of evenings each week. One morning, while driving to one of my schools, I thought about those words, "Your kingdom come, Your will be done..."

I decided to try and apply that to my own life.
"Lord, Your kingdom come and Your will be done in my life" "Lord, Your kingdom come and Your will be done in this job situation" "Your kingdom come and Your will be done in my relationships" "Your kingdom come and Your will be done in my finances (especially those student loans!)" "Your kingdom come and Your will be done in the purpose and direction of my life"

Pretty much whatever I could think of, I wanted God's will to be done there. You may call me crazy, but praying this prayer in faith, believing, "Crazy" started seeing changes take place! Opportunities made themselves available and doors opened for me to walk through. I wasn't instantly glorified, or exalted to super-sainthood, but my life really did take a turn for the better!

Look For Open Doors
Believers are often fearful of success. When opportunity slaps us in the face, we often turn the other cheek, and walk away in a desire to stay humble. Sure, if it's going to cause you to miss every time your local church fellowship is meeting, and you'll never see your family again, it may be a trick of the enemy. But generally speaking, "...you, O Lord, are a shield that surrounds me. You are my glory. You hold my head high (Psalm 3:3 - GW)." God desires to point you in the right direction and see you succeed!

Be Who and What You Are
Beethoven may have made a great painter. Based on his handwriting, I think he made a better musician. God has made you to be who and what you are. The influence of the flesh, the world, and the devil has tainted that. When you come to Jesus, he begins the process of flushing all of that garbage out of your life. So, if you're doing what you love what you have a passion for, not including those previously mentioned influences, you're probably on the right path. Think of it this way:

YOU + GOD - THE GARBAGE = AWESOME!

Do Whatever You Know to Do
You may be unsure about everything regarding God's plan for your life. But is there at least one thing you know you can be doing in the meantime? Find it and do it with all your might! While you're busy doing that, you may find yourself slipping into God's calling for your life.

Do Whatever Your Hand Finds to Do (Ecclesiastes 9:10)
The "work of the hands" in the Bible is talking about skill and ability and gifting.
If you are an artist what do you paint with? (besides a brush!) Your Hands
If you are a musician what do you play that instrument with? Your Hands
If you are a quarterback, what do you use to catch and throw? Your Hands
If you’re a driver, plumber, woodworker, or farmer you use your hands.

When it says, whatever you hand finds to do - I believe you could say, “whatever your God-given ability finds to do, whatever your skill finds to do, whatever you gifting finds to do, then do that - not something else but that - with all your might.” What are you good at? Find it and do it!

Be Open to Change and Diversity
Looking at Jesus as our example, we learn that someone can have more that one purpose in life.
Click the Link for "Reason for the Season" to see a fairly large list of why Jesus came to this world. You probably have more than one reason for being here. Be open for the transition from one into another. Also, be open for doing more than one at a time.

Study Purpose-Related Fiction
Legend, folklore, allegory and parable can reveal much truth about the human condition in general. Studying works that deal with purpose can often help you discover what yours is, or isn't.

Lord of the Rings is one of my favorite book trilogies and movies. I try to make a point of watching the Peter Jackson film around the end of each year. One of the things I took away from this past viewing was how purpose plays into so many aspects of our lives. Some people's purpose is to aid in ridding the world of the One Ring that can bring doom to middle earth! For others, purpose is simply taking care of the spouse and kids, while maintaining gainful employment. For Samwise Gamgee, both of these tasks seemed to occupy purpose. This takes me to the next point:

Do Small Things Well
While saving the world should always be in our hearts and thoughts, we don't want to overlook the little tasks that make great impacts on the lives around us. By simply doing average things at a higher level, many people have discovered their purpose in life. What's so wonderful about frying chicken? Well, if you're like Colonial Sanders, you might wake up someday with a chicken revelation! Who knows, that small thing you do may contribute to saving the world someday.

Look at the Fruit
If it helps others, provides goods or services, or just improves the general well being of people, that's a good sign. What "fruit," does your work produce?

Don't Worry About It!
Not only is worry a sin, but it's never listed anywhere as one of the steps to finding out who you are, or God's plan for your life! Questioning as to the certainty of of your calling could simply be a lack of trust in God. You just don't have time to do everything you know to do and then bite your nails wondering whether God is in it.

I hope this helps. I am certainly not writing this from beside the crystal rivers of heaven! I have much to learn myself, and hope to do so in the coming years. But if you find one nugget of truth in this hold on to it. If one seed seems to get your attention, sow it into your life by prayerfully, faithfully acting upon it!

What do you think? Feel free to tell me, by clicking on the word, "comments" at the bottom of this post!