Carry the Soundنموونە

Carriers of His Purpose 

Have you ever opened your eyes in the morning with the thought: "What am I doing with my life?" It's quite frightening, I know. If you're anything like me, you read super bold Bible passages like the one above and think, "Geez, I don't think I'll ever have the honor to stand in front of a king, much less aggressively disagree with him!" Maybe it's just me and my seemingly endless struggle with insignificance or it's actually a silent plague steadily taking over our world with this restless standard of meeting everyone else's digital highlight reel. I'm sure it's a mixture of both, but if we get stuck in this narcissistic rabbit hole, we're missing out on the fact that this statement by Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego points to a deep-rooted purpose that we carry as well.

As Israelite exiles from the tribe of Judah, I can't imagine how many times these men woke up in that Babylonian royal palace asking the same question. After all, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego weren't even their real names. Their real names were Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah respectively, (Daniel 1:7) and they were hand-selected by King Nebuchadnezzar's chief court official to serve in the royal palace after the besiege of their land. What a weird scenario. I'm sure they were flooded with confusing emotions as they were forced out of their homes and country only to eat from a foreign king's table in luxury. If there was ever a time to abandon their heritage, they were living in it. It would've been so easy to forget their past and just embrace the Babylonian culture, but they couldn't forget their real names. They couldn't forget their real God who promised to never leave nor forsake them. They couldn't deny the very blood coursing through their veins that would later bring forth a Savior for all the world. So, when the subject matter of worship arose, there was no questioning whose side they were on. In one brief moment of defiant faith, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah forever sealed their statement in history. God did the rest. (Read the entire chapter of Daniel 3 for the full victory story. It's amazing!)

Romans 8:28 (NIV) says, "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose."

What if our life's greatest purpose is actualized when we start living His out? What would happen to our anxiety and fear of failure if we didn't feel the need to defend our significance anymore? What kind of victories would we see in our world today if we weren't afraid of the exiled places? What would happen in our dreaded temp jobs? Our unexpected trips to the hospital? Our relational conflicts? What kind of miraculous breakthroughs would we see in the darkest areas of our communities if we made ourselves available as faithful carriers of His purpose?

- Aus

Carry the convo:

1. What are the most frequent areas of complaint and/or anxiety in your life? Pray aloud and repurpose them for the glory of Jesus.

2. Oddly similar to our world today, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were forced into a weird paradigm of living out God's purpose for their lives in a foreign king's palace. How do you not give way to the tug-of-war on your soul? What joy is there to be found in knowing that you're not alone?

3. What name or title has been spoken over you that contradicts your heritage as a child of God? Have you been living in its shadow? Pray aloud and realign your significance with the honor and privilege it is to be a carrier of His purpose.