Do you believe that you have a God-given purpose? In the last post, we shared the three steps to uncovering your purpose. They were to:
2. Understand who you are
3. Discover what you were created to do.
We discussed in part 1 of this article the first step to uncovering your purpose which is knowing ‘whose you are.’ This is to know and accept how fully and utterly you are loved. In Isaiah 49:15-16 the Lord says that a mother may forget the child she birthed and nursed but the Lord will not forget us, we are “inscribed on the palms of [His] hands”.
As our Father’s beloved, the scripture reveals that He has had a specific and unique plan for you from before you were born. Psalm 139: 15-16 says:
My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
And in Your book they all were written,
The days fashioned for me,
When as yet there were none of them.
All the days of your life were written out before you were born. You are not a mistake! You are not on this earth by chance. Your parents may have birthed you and brought you up, however, everything else about you was orchestrated by God for a specific purpose.
Can you sit with this for a moment?
You are specifically and intricately created – with the perfect combination of gifts, talents, abilities, physical appearance, statue, gender and nationality for a specific purpose written down by the Lord before you were born!
The second step in uncovering our purpose is to understand who we are. “The value of identity, of course, is that so often with it comes purpose.” – Richard R. Grant.
Some of the key hindrances to fully stepping into the power and authority we have as children of the living God and our purpose is that:
a. We feel too unworthy to have a purpose in Christ
If we do not know our identity in Christ, we live with guilt and condemnation believing that we are not worthy or good enough to have a purpose. However as born-again believers we need no longer walk in any guilt or condemnation – we are the righteousness of God in Christ!
2 Corinthians 5: 21 says “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”
When Jesus died for our sins, He died once for ALL our sin for ALL time. Hebrews 10:12 reveals this. “But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God”. ALL our sin is under the blood, we are washed clean, and stand before the Lord in our new identity sanctified and justified – just as if we had never sinned.
1 Corinthians 6: 11 says, “But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.”
We need to no longer walk in the guilt and the condemnation that satan uses against us to distract us from focusing on our purpose in Christ. We will fail from time to time, but because of Jesus’s sacrifice, we can bring it to the throne of grace, lay it at the Lord’s feet and feel clean and whole again. Hebrews 4:16 says: “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”
The question is: Do we believe that the Lord’s sacrifice on the cross was enough to cover all of our shortcomings making us worthy?
b. We don’t appreciate our gifts and talents
Our focus or the camera of our mind is pointed at longing for gifts, talents, appearance, height etc.. of other people. Instead, we need to stop and start pointing our cameras to appreciate the treasures that the Lord has put within us.
Thomas A. Edison said that “If we did all the things we are capable of, we would literally astound ourselves.”
Romans 12:6-8 reveals to us that “In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.”
In uncovering your purpose it is important that you take time to consider:
· What are the specific gifts or talents the Lord has put within you?
· What do you love to do? What gives you energy?
· Could you get some feedback from trusted friends, colleagues and family on your specific gifts or talents? Sometimes we do something so naturally that it does not appear to be a talent to us but others can see the gift more clearly!
c. We limit who we are to the different roles we play
So often our identity is linked to the different roles in our life – our job title, that we are a parent, husband or wife, daughter or son, our position in society or financial standing – to name a few. These roles are significant in our lives and can be a big part of our purpose, however, we need to ensure that our responsibility to these roles does not limit us from seeing the Lord’s bigger purpose for us. We can sometimes feel guilty when we pursue the dreams or desires the Lord has put on our heart because we have bills to pay, the responsibility to take care of our parents or build financial security for our children. But if the Lord has a specific purpose for you to fulfill on the earth, will He not also provide the resources, support, wisdom and guidance on how to bring this purpose to fruition? Will he not give you the wisdom on the “how”?
1 John 2:27 says, “But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.”
You have an anointing from the Lord to fulfill His specific purpose and this anointing from the Holy Spirit will teach you and show you ALL things! The Holy Spirit will show you how to balance all of these roles and even let a few of these roles go, so that you can follow the Lord’s purpose for your life. The Lord will not give you a mandate and then leave you without support.
There is so much to discuss on identity, but these are the key points I would like to leave you to consider on your journey to uncover your purpose:
a. You are the righteousness of God in Christ. Come boldly to the throne of grace, seeking the Lord to reveal His purpose for your life.
b. Consider the gifts and talents the Lord has put within you. Appreciate and notice the things that bring you energy and joy.
c. Don’t let your dreams be limited by the responsibility you feel to the different roles you play.
My prayer for you as you read this article is that you always remember whose you are and who you are! 1 John 4:17 clearly tells us that “because as He is, so are we in this world.”