I recently saw a picture of a teenager sitting on the floor, in the dark, with his computer in front of him and a face that only displayed despair. I forget the title of the article, but it was about a generation without a purpose.
Purpose means: “doing something that has a positive effect on others, giving or sharing something that has a strong practical and emotional benefit to yourself and others.”
But if you are a Jesus follower, there is more to it than that. There is an understanding that there is a Divine purpose for your life. It wasn’t until I was an adult that I fully realized the hand of God was on my life with purpose, even from the time I was a child.
True purpose is not all about you; it is about others and how you relate to others. It is about how God works all of that out in your life.
Purpose always comes out in community. The world we live in is not virtual. It’s about real flesh and blood people that talk, emote, and think. At times, all community has conflict. It’s where all the joys and sorrows of life are played out. It’s where fellowship and conflict co-exist.
Conflict is not all bad. It makes us aware that we don’t all think alike. Views that are different than mine help me remain in balance both mentally and spiritually.
The “screens” of our time have given us an opportunity to speak without being challenged. To criticize without pushback. To express anger without control, to hit delete, to close the chat, to walk away from any form of discomfort. But in that environment, you don’t have any community.
True purpose is not all about you; it is about others and how you relate to others.
Not too many years ago the only thing you could do with discomfort was either suck it up or leave the room! Inevitably, you talked again and found common ground — sometimes after a lot of words. Community takes a lot of work.
We can walk away from God, people, church, and workplaces when we are challenged. “I don’t feel safe.” That’s the catchphrase of our time. It means almost anything you want it to mean. Once it described physical, emotional danger. Now it has evolved to include anyone who makes me think or questions me or disagrees with me, or causes me negative emotions.
We are far too self-oriented. If you are primarily concerned with you, your place, your plans, your thoughts, your own space, your rights, and your feelings, you will eventually be alone. If that is the only place you feel completely safe, loneliness and despair will become your companions. Just you and your screen — which you control. NOT A PURPOSEFUL LIFE.
This is a purposeless vacuum. The photo I saw was disturbing to me. We are in a world of purposeless, lonely humanity. A recent Gallup poll found that 25% of the world’s population is lonely. Think about that: 1 in 4 people.
There is no chance for a purposeful life that does not include a relationship with God and others. If you are not committed to pursuing God, you will never be fulfilled. If you have no sense that God is at work in your life, the emptiness will make you totally self-absorbed. You will not affect anyone else positively.
To find your purpose, give everything to Jesus. Your life, your dreams, your plans. Understand that God has a purpose for you. It is only in pursuing God and a living relationship with Him that you will find what God has purposed for you.
Oh God, may my life reflect the purpose for which you have called me!