micanbe

Living On Purpose

I sat in my bed crying. It was not the first time that I found myself crying my eyes out. ” God, why is this happening to me? All he said was, ” Why not you?”
I had nothing more to say. I just continued to cry.

There were many times, I found myself wishing there was a door I could walk through that would take me out of this world. I didn’t want to kill myself or anything, I just wanted to escape to a place called paradise, where ever that was. It is hard to keep living and not know why you are living, because after awhile life just seems hopeless. There has to be more to life than just getting up day after day breathing in oxygen. We work because because we have bills to pay. The job might not be fulfilling but we keep going because it serves a “purpose.”
We are all here for a purpose they keep telling us. The problem is most of us spend a life time never discovering what that purpose is. We get so caught up with life and all that comes with it. Our survival instincts tells us, just get through this thing, then that thing happens. The cycle just never seems to ends. Before we know it ,we are old and grey wishing we had taken the time to do more meaningful things with our lives.
“For I know the thoughts I have towards you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you and expected end.” Jeremiah 29:11
I read that passage of scripture for many years. I wanted to believe it was true for my life, but my reality told me a different story.
I am not sure when the answer came. That’s a lie. The answer came to me yesterday! After all this time, praying and seeing, it took writing this blog for the answer to be revealed ( I tell you, become conscious of the journey you are on, and things will begin to unfold).
I have been looking for purpose in all the wrong places. Purpose is not a single event, but a series of events that reveals itself over our life time. We are drawn closer to our purpose by the things we encounter. The loss of a loved one, the break up of a marriage the loss of a job, house, child you name it are all events that takes us closer to purpose. The good Lord saw it fit for us to go through some stuff, and still stand for a reason. The problem is we tend to only focus on the bad, and not see the good in our situations.
I read a story about a young man named Joseph. His brothers hated him because he was their father’s favorite. To make matters worse, Joseph told his brothers that he had a dream in which they were all bowing down before him. They were so mad, they wanted to kill Joseph, but instead, they sold him into slavery. While in slavery, his master’s wife told a lie on him that landed him to prison. While in prison he interpreted the dreams of two of Pharaoh’s officials that came through. Joseph begged Pharaoh’s cup bearer not to forget him when he got out of prison, but of course he did, until Pharaoh had a dream two years later which no one could interpret.  Long story short, Joseph interpreted Pharaoh’s dream and he was ultimately placed in a leadership position second only in command to Pharaoh. The purpose for his life – to save his people, when the famine came.  While going through,  Joseph could have had the wrong attitude and felt sorry for himself, like we often do. But instead he chose to learn something from every situation he found himself in.
Want to discover your purpose, look at what you have been through or going through and use it to serve others. For example, if you have lost a loved one, find purpose in honoring the memory of that person by volunteering your time to a cause that meant something to the person. Like myself, if you are divorced seek to see how you can serve other divorcees making the transition. Know of a couple going through a hard time in their marriage, serve them by offering a constructive perspective on resolving their conflicts. Never recommend divorce or speak ill of the other person.
Look at your life and use your pain to serve others. You will be amazed at the doors you will open, and how fulfilled you will become, just by giving yourself away.
Always remember, your ultimate purpose will be revealed to you on the journey. Finding purpose is not complicated. We have tied our purpose to money, and because we keep telling ourselves we won’t be able to survive, we neglect to pursue true purpose. You already have the answer within. You getting up everyday is purpose. Someone is dying, and waiting for you to speak life back into them. What will you do with that revelation?
The final chapter of your life
Imagine it’s your funeral and everybody close to you is there. One by one they give speeches. What would you like each of the speakers to say about you and your life? What kind of a friend or family member were you? Colleague? What characteristics would you like them to have seen in you? What contributions would you have made? What achievements would you want them to remember? Look carefully at the people around you, what difference would you have made in their lives?
Notice, when you die it’s not what you had that will be remembered. But how you lived, and that my friend is living on purpose.
Until we meet again.
Stay positive. Be inspired.

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micanbe