Psalms 37: 4-7 "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun. Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him; do not fret when men succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes."
I had coffee last night with a wonderful young women in our church. I wanted to encourage her and felt God prompting me to give her these words...PURPOSE, PASSION AND POT-HOLES. As I shared them with her I realized they were for me as well. These words, these ideas, can change your life forever What is the purpose of your life? What is your God given passion? AND what are the pot-holes that could keep you from living these out?
I know for me it began with seeking God and His will for my life early on. In the times when we question where God has put us, or where He has allowed us to be, we sit and wait on Him. I was sharing that I knew God was calling me to SOMETHING back in the days of early motherhood. When I would sit at the feet of Jesus and think-I see glimpses of what I think You are calling me to, but I know it is not yet and I WILL NOT run ahead of You and I will not step out of where You have placed me right now, in the midst of diapers, dishes, and dog hair. For many reasons, that is exactly where God wanted me. In finding our eternal purpose, it is most important to follow God today. Not to step ahead of what He is doing in the present. It is very easy to push forward with seemingly good, spiritual, even eternal plans we think we are being called to, when God really wants us to wait with Him while He works in our hearts, our souls, to do what we cannot fathom. The work done in silence, the growth that happens when pain takes us to our faces in our bedrooms, the time spent in The Word in the early morning hours, is not wasted. Precious are the things that God does in the quietness of our hearts without the applause of men distracting us. Being in the background with God is better than being in the spotlight without Him. God is so good that He would want to prepare us, to prepare our hearts to receive the purpose He has for us. If we trust Him and surrender with complete abandon. Ephesians 1:18-"I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe."
The passion that comes from that stirring in our souls during the preparation and in the revealing of our purpose is fueled by one thing...time spent with Him. Time spent worshiping a God that would include us in His will, in His plan, here on this earth for things that are anything but earthly, is an honor. The passion for not only what God has called you to but the passion for what is more important....following the ONE who has called you. We follow Him and Him alone, not a mission, not a project, not an organization, not a feeling, we follow Him. That kind of passion will never fizzle, never go flat! We will always be in His will if our passion is for Him first! Then, we can go and do all that He has called us to do! Philippians 4:13-"I can do everything through him who gives me strength."
Then we are on the road, right? We have our purpose, our passion, let's go! Well, the pot-holes that Satan will put in our way will fill the road we walk. We need to be aware of the traps, the pot-holes that will be dug in front of us. Things to distract us, pull us away, bring us down. These holes are filled with things we want in life, or things that give us fulfillment or fill voids, things that while are not all bad (though some are!) are not included in the plan God has for us. Voices from the past, urges that desire to be fulfilled, emptiness that asks for a cure. And the sneaky thing about Satan is that some of these pot-holes will even be filled with Christians or church things, or enticing answers to needs we want met. But we walk with One who is greater than he who is in the world! By knowing Him, knowing the One who is victorious, we can also be victorious! We can claim the promises of God and lean hard on Him who gives us the strength and courage! For we fight not against flesh and blood!
That is what I claim today, as I have climbed out of a pot-hole myself, pulled up by the hand that walks with me, the hand of my Father in Heaven. For He is mighty to save. We are still on this earth because our work here is not done. My purpose-to do God's will for my life. My passion-to love the Lord my God with all my heart, all my mind, and all my soul. Those pot-holes-well, they might slow me down, but they WILL NOT hold me back!
