A Purpose Driven Life Chapter 1 - Its Not About Me
Chapter overview: God has a purpose for my life. I need to figure out what His purpose is for my life to find true fulfillment.
2011 (40 years old)
I just find this so hard for many reasons.- I don't necessarily trust my ability to hear from God
- I'm afraid my expectation of an answer for 'What God's purpose for my life is' will not be what I'm looking for. (I would love a full life/job description after I hear from God. I'm almost sure I'm not going to get an answer like this. Yet it seems that what happened with most of the 'big' people in the Bible. I really have problems with that difference).
- I see inklings, ideas, pieces, parts of potentially what God has gifted me to do. How does that align with His purpose for me?
- If my expectation of realizing what God's purpose for my life is met, I'm concerned with how it will impact my marriage and family, my finances, and my work.
2016 (45 years old)
Reading this again. Richard Graham is preaching about the Supremacy of Christ in church so this chapter fits nicely into that. I am seeing a new image of God lately - full of grace, love, freedom and acceptance. My mind goes several different directions in thinking of an answer to the question at the end of the chapter.- The first direction is 'works' related. ...I remind myself that life is really about living for God, not myself... I think, 'Ok, so then what I can do for God?' I don't think that is the right tact for me right now. It is all about him, but its not about 'doing' things for him. I need to be a human being, not a 'human doing'. Its about focusing on him and understanding my position and standing with him.
- The second direction is 'If I am to do anything of benefit for God, I desperately need His help, because I can't seem to do anything meaningful, influential, or impactful without his help. I was thinking in church yesterday that I need to be filled with the spirit as I have nothing valuable to say without his help
2022 (51 years old)
The question at the end of the chapter was: 'In spite of all the advertising around me, how can I remind myself that life is really about living for God, not myself?' The verse that went along with that was: 'Everything got started with Him and finds its purpose in Him' Col 1:16b
Two answers come to my mind currently for this question:
- Be thankful. Advertising is all about 'what I need or want.' If I'm thankful that God is my shepherd and I shall not want because He's looking after me, advertising doesn't have the same influence. And being thankful has other great benefits: I know I'm in God's will when I'm thankful in all things (1 Thess. 5:18), and I'm not nearly as anxious or concerned (Phil 4:6-7)
- Learn to love better. I've been meditating on 1 Cor 13 lately (the love chapter). The Message version says 'Love doesn't want what it doesn't have.' If I'm learning to receive and embrace God's love for me, and then extend that love and acceptance to others, what they have, or what I don't have doesn't bother me as much. Whatever I do, say, think... if it isn't done in love, its pointless and meaningless. It ultimately has no purpose. Love and purpose are closely connected, according to 1 Cor. 13.
For background on what these 'Purpose Driven Life' posts are about, click this link.
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