Reclaiming: 4. Purpose
Part 4 of 4
By Rachel Theunissen
Over the last three weeks we’ve looked at different ways we can Reclaim our relationship with God. We already looked at Reclaiming our identity, our wellbeing, and our power. Today, we’ll finish by looking at reclaiming our purpose.
When we think of purpose we can think of it as the same thing as our identity. Or you can think of your purpose as some ethereal thing out there that we’re trying to attain. Like putting a destination into a sat nav, we tap into what we want to be and work out how to get there.
Our purpose is often a part of stepping into who we are, and who we’ve been made to be. The first and most important thing we’re all called to do is to Love God and to Love others. This was Jesus’ answer when asked what the most important commandment was. We see this reiterated in 1 Corinthians 13 when Paul talks about how we can do incredible things, even die as a martyr but if we do it without love it’s worth nothing.
That’s not the glamorous answer that the world is looking for. It doesn’t bring you fame and fortune. It might not even bring you gratitude and appreciation on earth but Jesus says that our Father in heaven sees what is done in secret and rewards it.
We’re called children of God and so we’re caught up in God’s plan to advance His Kingdom on earth. This means as we see His Kingdom come we’ll see an increase in the fruits of the spirit, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. As His kingdom breaks out we’ll see more freedom, physically and emotionally, we’ll see healings, and deliverances, we’ll see clarity come from disorder, we’ll see creativity and beauty.
What’s incredible is that this Kingdom is within us and so we carry it with us wherever we go. Each of us has individual, unique gifts given to us to demonstrate aspects of God’s character and uniquely bring God’s kingdom.
Our calling is so much more than what we do in a church on a Sunday morning. It affects everything about us in every different season of our lives. Our identity remains the same, we are loved, accepted, and secure In Christ but our purpose may change.
Some seasons may be more visible than others. When I was at home with small children I was serving God’s call just as much as when I’m bringing God’s word on a Sunday morning at church. There isn’t a hierarchy of serving God.
David was called to be a king as a teenager but he had to wait to see that calling come to pass. In the time he was waiting he wasn’t grouchy or complaining. He got on with what God had put in front of him. He looked after the sheep, he took lunch to his brothers, and he played the harp for the king. He used the gifts God had given him to serve where he was.
We might have a prophetic word over our lives that we haven’t yet seen fulfilled but we can still pursue God’s purpose by following what he’s given us to do right now.
We might be in a valley season where life is really tough and it’s hard to see the next step, let alone a purpose in this. But we can find God in those Valleys. He has promised to never leave us or forsake us. Psalm 23 says ‘Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.’
Reclaiming our purpose is ultimately loving the person in front of us and serving God in whatever we have to do right now. Dreaming and planning for the future with Him without forgetting to be purposeful in loving and serving today.
In all areas of reclaiming our relationship with God, our goal is not to gain control but to surrender it to our loving Father who knows the plans he has for you, plans to give you a hope and a future. Seek Him wholeheartedly and you’ll see Him ultimately work things together for good.
This blog post was first published at www.racheltheunissen.com
