Make Christ the Center by Living with Purpose

“the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground
and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life,
and the man became a living being.”
Genesis 2:7

The first time I read this verse, I understood “how" God created us. The rest of my life has been figuring out “why.” He create us.

My understanding of “why” starts in Isaiah 43:6,7 where the LORD says, “Bring my sons from a far and my daughters from the ends of the earth – everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.”

I am created to give glory to the LORD. Maybe creating me was enough. I glorify the LORD just because He created me. But if that is enough, why give me a soul? He could have made me like the rest of creation: the sun and the stars and the earth and the plants and the animals. My existence would glorify Him enough whether I have a soul or not.

When Rick Warren's book, “The Purpose Driven Life,” came out, I read it. I was delighted to find that he said what I always believed, our primary purpose is to glorify the LORD.

I believe there is more to it than that. Jesus told the crowd to “let your light shine before men, that they may see you good deeds and praise (or glorify) your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16)

I believe the LORD has always had a purpose for my life.

General Purpose

God has a general purpose from my life. Whatever I do, I need to work at it with all my heart, as working for the Lord, not men (Colossians 3:23). God expects me to work hard. Like I am working for Him, not for people.

Whatever I do, I need to do it all for the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31). Even if it is eating and drinking. I want God to get the credit, not me. He gave me everything I have. My body. My abilities. My personality. My gifts. My resources. I couldn't accomplish anything unless God allowed me to.

I can work hard to do all for the glory of the LORD no matter what my work or play is. I can glorify the LORD as a farmer, or as a salesperson, or working in food service, or driving a truck. The important thing is to focus on doing the work as an act of worship to the LORD. I can also play as an act of worship to God.

On the other hand, I can be a pastor or a missionary, and do it for my own glory. Not for the glory of God.

It is not the work I do, but the reason I do it and the focus of who gets the glory.

Specific Purpose

I also believe God has a specific purpose for my life. Paul told the Ephesians “we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10)

God has made me for my purpose. He has not made me for some one else's purpose. I am a unique blend of my personality, my spiritual gifts, my skills, my experiences, and my interests. My uniqueness makes me perfectly suited for the specific purposes God has for me.

How To Find Purpose

Once I realized I have a specific purpose to serve for the LORD, I started figuring how what it was.

Personality

I took some tests to figure out who I was. I took the Myers-Briggs Personality Test. I took the DISC Profile work habits test. I took the Keirsey Temperament Test. I began to observe my life to see what I enjoyed and what I didn't enjoy. To see what I did well, and what I didn't do so well.

In addition, a friend told me I could figure out what values were important to me by noting when I got mad. When I got angry, he said it meant one of my important values had been violated.

I realized that being on time was important to me. I got mad when unforeseen circumstances caused me to be late. I began to take the steps necessary to make sure that nothing but the most extreme unforeseen circumstances would make me late.

I got upset when someone lied to me. I realized telling the truth was an important value.

I got angry when some one cheated or stole from me. I realized honesty was an important value.

Now, I still get angry, but I stop and try to figure out what value is being violated. If I can determine what it is, I can deal with it. Sometimes I just need to agree we all have different values and accept and love people any way. Sometimes it is a very strong value and I need to take steps to remove myself from the situation that violates that value.

Spiritual Gifts

I think Christians today over emphasize the importance of spiritual gifts. They refuse to serve in any capacity that is outside their spiritual gifting. Jesus emphasized serving over spiritual gifts. I don't have the gift of childcare, but I can serve in the nursery. I don't have the gift of cleaning, but I can serve on work day. I don't have the gift of teaching, but I can take my turn leading a Sunday school class.

Having said that, there is some profit to understanding my spiritual gifts. The understanding is important when used correctly. I took my first spiritual gifts test after I had been a Christian for five or six years. Fortunately, I had been an active follower of Jesus Christ. Therefore, the spiritual gifts that were identified were pretty accurate.

People take a spiritual gifts test when they do not have enough experiences for the test to be meaningful. For instance, if a person has never shared the gospel or their testimony, how do they know if they have the gift of evangelism? If a person has never tried to organize a Bible study or a Bible reading group, how do they know if they have the gift of administration? If they never tried to speak in front of a group or help an individual grow, how do they know if they have the gift of teaching? Experience is needed before a gifts test will be accurate.

Twenty five years after my first gifts test, I took another test. The results were almost identical. I also asked my friends, who had seen me in action, what they thought my spiritual gifts might be.

Understanding my gifts helps me understand why I find spiritual tasks enjoyable and why I find some difficult. It helps me understand why I am different than others. They will have success and enjoyment in areas where I will struggle. I will have success and enjoyment in areas where they will struggle. Its important not to compare myself with other people because I am different from them.

Skills

I like working on my skills. I also like to acquire new skills, like web site development. ;-) I believe all my skills contribute something to helping me fulfill the purposes God has for me. In high school I learned to cook food and live in the woods. In college I learned to mop floors, weld, and paint and roof a house.

I have learned to work on my car, change a diaper, build a fire, re-condition a shotgun, grow a garden, give a speech, write a book, negotiate a contract, tell a joke, find a deal, make a deal, and many more things. I have varying degrees of expertise with each of these skills. I believe all my skills make me who I am. They are important for me to fulfill the purposes God has for me.

I may not be required to use the skill itself. Maybe it is the self-discipline I needed, or the perseverance, or the joy of the process, or the sense of accomplishment, or the need to rely on God that will be required. Or maybe it will be the transformation that took place in my life as I learned the skills. I don't know what it will be, but I believe the LORD will use it all to help me accomplish His purposes through me.

Experiences

The older I get, the more experiences I have. Experiences help make me who I am. Occasionally, I try to remember and list my most enjoyable experiences. I use this list to help point me toward the next set of experiences I should pursue.

Interests

I am naturally curious. There are a lot of things I would love to learn about. But time is limited and I need to be selective. Like experiences, I keep of list of interests that the LORD brings back to mind over and over again.

The interests that the LORD has given me are directly related to His purposes for me. Since my earliest days as a Christian, I have had a desire to help other people grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ. That interest has fueled my interest in growing in my own personal relationship with Jesus Christ. That interest has fueled my interest in reading my Bible, scripture memory, praying, and sharing the gospel with people.

Putting It All Together

After I invested some time contemplating who God had made me to be, I tried to write a mission statement for my life. I have been reviewing and revising it for over a decade. In its current state it reads:

A friend of mine told me that if I really embraced my mission in life, I would be able to communicate it in two words. He stated his mission as “Open the Bible.” He wanted to make the truths of the Bible accessible to people. I would state my mission as “Love the LORD.”

Practical discipleship for you to do:

1. God has a purpose for you now. Start now! Use what you have to do what you can now! Don't wait. Later, you will use what you have then to do what you can then. But the time is now. Start now!

2. Ask three friends what three words best describe you. Write it down. Ask yourself if you agree with what they said.

3. Take a personality test. God made you who you are. He can use you how He wants. Let Him!

4. If you have enough experience, take a spiritual gifts test. If you don't have much experience, get some. Look at the lists of spiritual gifts in the Bible. Try some of those things and see which ones God blesses.

5. Write a mission statement for your life. Try to write it in one sentence of twenty (20) words, or less. Now try to reduce it to two words. Review it at least every month. Revise it every year until you have captured what you believe is the essence of your purpose.