What is the first step in finding my purpose?

Like what you see? Please "Like" & "Share" with your online friends. Want to read more? Go To: preciousprodigal.com

Today's Precious Prodigal's Post = http://bit.ly/1FwR720

Title: What is the first step in finding my purpose?

#walkhumbly #itsnotaboutyou

- - - - - -

Genesis 1:1 “In the beginning God…”

When the “roof has fallen in” and we are totally broken, where do we go from there? In The Sound of Music, Maria and the children sing the “Do-Re-Mi” song that begins, “Let’s start at the very beginning/A very good place to start…” Since God’s mercies are new every morning, maybe we can start looking at our purpose at the beginning because it really is a good place to start.

When we look at the beginning, it was God and only God. (Gen 1:1) And He had a plan before He laid the foundations of the earth. While that plan includes you and me, the plan was never about you and me. It was and is and ever will be about God. And God’s primary and ultimate purpose for you…for me…is that He will be glorified in and through our lives. Our lives will never make sense until we see that one basic truth.

That means our primary purpose is to glorify God in every part of our lives and in everything that happens in our lives. (1 Cor 10:31) And that means in the good times and in the bad times. But wait a minute! I’ve lived for the Lord, done my best to serve Him, raised my children to honor Him, been faithful in every way I could, and I’ve done those things consistently.

Think about that for a minute. God is our Creator, our Redeemer, our Savior, and the Master of all things. He is the One “in [whom] we live, and move, and have our being.” (Acts 17:28) Would we really try to put that Creator God in our debt by our “virtuous living?” Let’s look at that again.

One thing I know for sure is that, however good I may look on the outside, my own heart is “deceitful above all things and desperately wicked.” (Jer 17:9) And in the unlikely event that I did live consistently for the Lord, is that anything less than my “reasonable service?” (Rom 12:1) To think that God owes me anything is as ridiculous as Shirley McClaine standing by the ocean screaming, “I am God!”

But doesn’t Romans 8:28 say, “All things work together for good” when you love the Lord? It does indeed say that, but we can’t separate that from the next verse that says God’s purpose and the way all things “work together for good” is that those “things” will conform us to the image of His Son. (Rom 8:29) God doesn’t care about our comfort; He cares about our character.

Knowing that ALL things are working together to accomplish God’s purpose should give us hope to face even the worst things. Why? Because although God doesn’t cause evil, even that is subject to His will and will accomplish His purpose…whether we understand it or not. And His will is that every circumstance will be for our good and His glory.

I don’t know what burden you’re carrying today or what fears or what grief. But I can tell you with complete confidence that God hasn’t gone on strike. He’s still on the job, and it’s going to be ok. It doesn’t even matter if the people you love are doing things that frighten you or break your heart. Our God is faithful even when we don’t understand. He has a plan, and you and I can cling to His promise that His plan is not to harm us but to give us hope and a future. (Jer 29:11 NIV)

Challenge for Today: What might happen if we, just for today, reminded ourselves that our primary purpose is that our lives will glorify God?