GUEST POST: The young man was short, friendly, and had a smile on his face. As we began chatting over some tea, I was intrigued to know he was an economics student. I asked him about the subject and his reply was short and uninterested. I asked him what he planned to do with his B.A. in economics.
Silence.
I continued to ask in different ways about what he planned to do. Maybe in this cross-cultural situation we somehow were not connecting. I asked him what people with a B.A. in economics normally end up working as, but he had no clue.
After some time, his face lit up and he said, “I know.” I was delighted to hear some response from him. Then he said: “With a B.A. in economics, you can study an M.A. in economics.”
Although I wasn’t too excited with the answer, I was glad to get some kind of response from this poor soul. So now I asked what he would do with an M.A. in economics.
Silence.
Bloggers Note: This is a guest post by pastor, teacher, and writer, Alexi George. Alexi’s a self-professed recovering people-pleaser who enjoys helping people live their potential so they can be free and focused. Follow him on his blog or connect with him on Facebook or Twitter.
Again I continued with questions similar to the previous ones, now focused on the M.A. in economics. Finally he said, “Yes, I know. With an M.A. in economics, you can teach.” So I asked him if he likes to teach, he simply said: “No.”
Now I asked him, “If you had no limitations, what would you do with your life?” Then his response surprised me: “You see, if I set out to do something I want and like, I may never attain that and I would be disappointed. You just can’t expect for anything to happen in your life.”
After this amazing conversation, I began thinking more about purpose in life. In fact, I began thinking more about MY purpose in life. I’ve always believed that God has set me here for a purpose and I need to live that out. But I often find myself just running around here and there, just trying to “maintain” my life. I need to think beyond all of that and move toward God’s purpose for my life.
When you live with purpose, others benefit from your focus.
Photo Credit: krystian_o via Compfight cc
Here are three things I’ve learned:
When you live with purpose, you have direction in life
Like the young man in this story, we move on with life just performing the usual functions of daily living. These are common things most people do, so we do that as well. We continue with life step-by-step, with no apparent purpose other than just living and making it through the day.
I often find myself in the same trap. I’m just busy trying to make it through the day. How can I keep up with all the requirements for the day? I can’t think any further than survival on a day-to-day basis. I’m so packed with things to do. In fact, we spend years just plodding along unsure of where we are going.
But God created us with a purpose. When we seek out and live for God’s purpose, we have direction in life. It is only then that we can think beyond the mundane and common struggles of life.
The struggles are real. We cannot deny that. But without a purpose, we simply get tangled up in our day-to-day struggles. Then, we stay in that tangled up mess. Then we call that life!
When you live with purpose, others benefit from your focus
Focus is our greatest benefit when we live with purpose. But without focus, we spend lots of energy, and often on the wrong things. We spend so much time, effort and energy on those things that don’t matter.
Even without focus, we want our lives to count for something. So we shift focus like shifting shadows. One day we are interested in one thing, and the next day, everything changes.
Those who suffer most from an unfocused life is our families. They get caught up in the middle of the constant mess we get ourselves into as a result of our unfocused life.
When we are unfocused, we are unsure of ourselves and become timid. It becomes difficult for us to make decisions and to move forward with certainty.
When you live with purpose, God’s purpose is fulfilled
The greatest investment into our lives was from God himself. He gave us his one and only son to die for us as a sacrifice. God requires a return on His investment into our lives.
Our purpose should be focused on God’s overall plan for our lives. That plan cannot be ignored and should be considered at all costs.
Take that plan of God and begin to categorize it according to your stage of life. For example, while you are a student, there is a way to live out God’s purpose. But when we are further on in life, things look different. Your family becomes an important priority. Your career cannot be ignored. Your relationships are a great value to you.
So, in each stage of life, you need to determine how you will live out God’s purpose. God’s purpose remains the same for us, but the way we live it out will depend on numerous factors that are vital.
In all of your activities, what are the ways you could live out God’s purpose for you? Make an assessment and take the plunge. Live with purpose. Apart from those things that are essential in your life, cut out the excess from your list of activities.
Live your purpose.