PurposefooledSample

We long for a unique role in God’s kingdom. We long for a story that people will write books about one day. We long to know our unique place in history, but it’s not our place to determine how we will be used or how we will be remembered. The Bible never gives us a command to figure out what to do with our lives. Not once does it tell us to look inside ourselves to see how we might be best used by God in this life. The Bible simply calls us to obedience.

When it comes to what we should do with our lives, we are not called to introspection but to action. We are not called to figure it out but simply to follow God. At the end of the day, the thing dictating the course of our lives is not our unique purpose but Christ. I am not made for unique tasks, I am made for a Person, and it is that Person I follow, not anything unique in me.

Ironically, it is often our desire to have a unique purpose that keeps us from obeying Him. Whatever we determine is our unique purpose often becomes our lord, the driving force in our decision-making.

But there’s only one Lord—Jesus Christ. He alone should be in the driver’s seat. Our great call is not to figure out our lives but to follow Christ. Jesus alone is to be the Lord of our lives, and he ought to have full freedom to lead us however He wants, even if that’s into seasons where our unique skills, abilities, and capacities are not being utilized. We follow Him wherever He leads because we were made for him and His glory. The call for the Christian isn’t to follow your dreams, it’s to follow Christ.

Jesus warns us that following Him is not for the faint of heart. He warns us that it will not feel pleasant but costly. According to him, it will feel like death. It will feel like a loss. It will feel like a cross. If following him doesn’t feel a little bit like dying, we should ask," is it him we’re following"?

Following Jesus is not for the faint of heart. Losing our lives to follow Jesus is painful and terrifying. But death, for the Christ-follower, is always a good thing. It’s the only path to a truly fruitful and effective life. Death is the only doorway to freedom and fruitfulness, so don’t avoid it. Don’t follow your dreams, follow Jesus, even when it hurts because the resurrection life you want is on the other side. The purpose-filled life you long for is on the other side. Take up your cross, friend, and follow Him. It’s worth it.

Prayer

Father, please help me to follow you today, not my own desires. I want to follow you and live a truly fruitful life, no matter what the earthly cost may be. Thank you for your promise of eternal life! Amen.