You’ve given your heart to Jesus, and now you’re crying out for God to use you: “Here I am, Lord. Send me!”
But where? What does God want you to do with your life on this earth? How do you settle into your Kingdom destiny?
God has given you many gifts and talents and many ways to use them, but because of these wide-open possibilities you may become overwhelmed and confused, wondering “Lord, where do I even begin?”
Well sis, here are five things I’ve discovered as I began to seek and settle into my life’s purpose.
1. You have to “go through it” with God.
Once you begin your journey of seeking out your purpose with the Lord, don’t be shocked if you find yourself in the trenches.
You’ll find yourself digging in, getting messy, and navigating hard seasons while holding on to Him. You’re fighting everyday battles and spiritual warfare, learning to take up your weapons, and growing weary but not giving in.
This is where I started training myself on how to trust God. I had to experiment with my faith, taking leaps, or risks, as they would sometimes feel like, as I learned to stand on His Word. Here is where your journey of “going through it” actually begins; when you take action based on what God has promised and not your own understanding.
How will you know when you’ve truly gone through it with God?
Your faith in Jesus will become more real than your circumstances. It’s when your conviction of His faithfulness outshines that job loss, heartbreak, negative diagnosis; all the questioning and wondering. It’s when your vision of Christ becomes clearer.
2. You start to put the puzzle pieces together.
Because your vision is clearer, the Lord begins to show you mysteries, or the puzzle pieces related to your purpose.
He shows you certain things about what He’s called you to do. He’s given you visions, dreams, strong desires, and prophetic words from others. At first, everything can seem disjointed; which can leave you wondering how it all fits together. But somewhere along the way, you start to see the bigger picture.
You notice how one gift brings glory to God, or another fills you up spiritually. And after weeks, months…even years of this process, you wake up and realize that your heart and soul are at rest. You’ve found your place in Him.
3. You find your place in Him.
At this stage, you’re no longer seeking and searching. By now, God has given you enough puzzle pieces to visualize your life’s big picture, and how it fits into His Kingdom.
Those old dreams hidden in your heart – Jesus opens your eyes to them as He did for me when He reminded me that I was called to write.
He revealed the hidden desire my heart had been longing for. (And it wasn’t more money…lol).
God told me I was a writer after years of pursuing everything else. Because as a kid, I always carried a book with me. I was lost in every story, marveling at how each page brought my imagination to life.
This call to write was revealed while in His presence. This is the beautiful mystery. In His presence, our faith is simplified and our questions fade. We become more childlike, trusting that every next step toward our purpose is hidden in Him.
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. -Matthew 11:28
This is where you discover Jesus has become your all in all. When I found my place in the Lord, He became my treasure; my exceedingly great reward. Whatever my purpose, my calling, – while doing it, I was meant to serve and worship Him.
4. You give your calling back to God.
As you’re at rest, enjoying this place of settling in…this place full of joy knowing where you fit in, you begin to hold onto your call with a loose grip. You enjoy settling in, but you understand the need to stay in a posture of serving and worship; guarding your heart daily against letting other things get in the way. Like when God asked me to lay down my blog…and I cried, snotted, and panicked! Oops.
Remember Abraham so faithfully offered up Isaac, his long-awaited promise. In this step, we allow God room to ask for the dream back; our career or ministry. Because anything can become an idol and shift our focus off of Jesus; who always holds the key to our purpose.
5. You settle into your ultimate purpose.
Your true purpose in this life is to love the Lord.
Jesus said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ Matthew 22:37
As you go along this journey with Jesus, this one purpose will pursue you. And when you do start that business or dream job, you find that your motives have changed. For example, I pursue music so I can worship God. I pursue blogging so I can help people know and experience God for themselves.
I think of the twenty-four elders surrounding the throne of God. These are some pretty important beings, the most important I would say, after Jesus; these elders with their own thrones. What are they doing right now? They’re falling down on their faces and worshiping Jesus.
This is their one pursuit; and our most important assignment in all creation – our life’s true purpose.
I encourage you not to be anxious about finding your purpose and possibly missing the mark.
Whatever the specific call, your purpose is wrapped up in God’s perfect Will: His plan of redemption and restoration for all creation.
When you go through it with God, put the puzzle pieces together, find your place in Him, and hold on with a loose grip, you will discover the beauty of why you were truly created – to love the Lord with your whole being, serving and worshiping Him.
So as you settle into entrepreneurship, or that new ministry or career, God will faithfully pursue His dream of leading you towards your ultimate purpose. He does this time and time again.
Be blessed and encouraged.
