Pondering Purpose

I got saved in 2005.

The first book I read, in addition to the Bible, was The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren. Those two books forever changed my life and set me on a path towards purpose that has helped me continue to burn for Him for twenty years.

So many people are living without a real understanding of what their purpose is in this life.

This one feels heavy on my heart today.

I feel like I need to encourage somebody with this …

You don’t have to be either/or.

You don’t have to be ministry OR marketplace.

You don’t have to be ONE thing all the time.

God created each of us with so much uniqueness and beauty. No two of us are alike.

I believe God’s people have been boxed in for far too long. We need more of His children shining bright and changing the world for His glory … one soul, one heart, one mind, one life at a time … all it takes is just one spark to start a wildfire of revival in the earth.

Not long after I got saved, the Lord spoke these words to me, “Take your leash off of the Creator of the Universe.”

Think about that.

How many of us have God on a leash? How many of us are trying to tell HIM what to do and where to go? How many of us actually think we are in control of this little life we have been given? In the grand scheme of things … we have no clue how BIG God is, how utterly out of control we really are, and how much we need to let go of our small mindsets in order to truly tap into HIS greatness.

This is not just about THINK BIG, DREAM BIG. This is about PURPOSE.

Purpose is the place where your DNA meets God’s plan for your life.

In other words … you are the only YOU that will ever exist. There will never be another YOU. You have an eye print, a voice pattern, DNA, a heartbeat, and a fingerprint that have never been (and will never be) duplicated. God must have something special for YOU to do in this life. And if YOU don’t do it, no one else can … because they are not YOU.

Purpose is more than simply choosing a vocation or yoking yourself with the right tribe (although that is critical and necessary to fulfilling your destiny). Purpose is about identity. It is about discovering, at the deepest level, WHO you are and WHOSE you are.

Purpose is about knowing you were built for something BIGGER THAN YOU.

It is about discovering that spark inside of you that ignites fires in others when you talk about it and do it.

It is about believing that you are not a mistake. You are not an accident. Your life is intentional, and you are here for a reason.

Your purpose, when fully discovered and pursued, will send ripples through your circles of influence because when you are walking in purpose, people can sense it. They feel it. They notice there is something different about you, and they want what you have.

Purpose is not at all about religion. In fact, religion has choked the very life and purpose out of far too many people. Purpose blazes forth from an authentic relationship with Jesus Christ, the Lover of your soul.

When you step into purpose, you will feel God’s presence more and more. He meets you in that place. Fear cannot stand in that place. There is peace and there is rest in that place. Even in the midst of the strongest storms and most vicious battles, there is a knowing deep in your spirit … this is where I belong.

So as I ponder purpose today, I am reminded that we have each been given gifts, talents, personality, experiences, skills, education, connections, and opportunities that empower, enable, and equip us to move forward with tenacity and exuberance.

Yes … exuberance.

There is a fire in your bones, Beloved. You have to seek God to ignite it … and when you do … no one can ever extinguish it.

NO ONE.

No drama or trauma can quench it.

You are the only one who can choose not to live it out. It is a choice - day by day, step by step, yes by yes - to live with passion and purpose.

My prayer for whomever is reading this right now is that you will chase purpose. I pray you will have a zeal to live fully alive and fulfill ALL the will of God in your life.

One of my favorite scriptures is 1 Chronicles 17:2, “Do all that is in your heart, for God is with you.”

Do it ALL. Not just some of it. Don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t. Don’t believe the lie that you are unqualified or disqualified. Take your leash off of the Creator of the Universe and allow Him to lead you forward.

Nothing is impossible if you believe.

You are created for greatness, Beloved. It is already inside you. It is up to YOU to let it out.