"What" - Life has a Purpose
The most fundamental question we
ask in life is, "What's my purpose?" Even if you don't ask it overtly, your
heart is searching for the reason in subconscious ways. I've heard believers
say that it's to glorify God. I'm not sure what that actually means. I've also
heard things like loving God, serving God, and worshiping God. That list is
often distilled down to going to church on Sunday. The more advanced version is
inviting others to do the same (evangelism). And, perhaps the highest version
of this formula is to start a church. So the purpose of life is going to
church, inviting others to church or starting a church. OK, I'm not excited
either!
I want to suggest two principles
that will enable your personal life purpose to show itself.
1.
Dreams do come true.
2.
It happens by flowing with the desires of your
heart. God wrote them there.
Most of us come from a tradition
wherein the only worthwhile purpose in life is God's will, and that the way we
relate to God's will is to find out what it is and obey it. But purpose,
passion, and spiritual maturity are never defined by obedience alone. Servants
don't have a purpose; they just satisfy the desires of another. Kings, on the
other hand, look for their life's purpose in the desires of their own heart.
They find the overlap between their heart's desires and the desires of God's
heart. They position themselves with God and over their circumstances. Servants
position themselves under God and under their circumstances.
I no
longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's
business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned
from my Father I have made known to you.
You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear
fruit - fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in
my name. This is my command: Love each
other. John 15:15-17 NIV
...the Lord
your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. Deuteronomy
28:1 NIV
and God
raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in
Christ Jesus. Ephesians 2:6 NIV
Why?
People in general, and Christians
in particular, have a huge resistance to believing that their "dreams can come
true." The reason is too much internal focus - The kingdom is built by people
willing to dream, work toward their goals and receive promotion and prosperity.
We are ambassadors of the King and doing exploits that bless nations, cultures,
cities and people is "normal." We, and our business initiatives add "value" at
many levels. God wants to make your name great! (Gen 12:2-3)
Servants pride themselves in
being void of purpose and initiative. To change that dynamic, our hearts need a
reason why life or God or we would want our dreams to come true. It just sounds
too good to be true, yet it is exactly the recipe for building the Kingdom.
Here's why:
God wrote His desires in your
heart. They show up in terms of your passion and dreams. He designed you
specifically for a great purpose in the Kingdom. This is "good news." In fact,
it's so good that your heart won't believe it until it understands the "why."
It's because that's how God chose to relate to us in maturity. He can be your
school master and you can be the servant until you mature, but He wants you to
accept his request for friendship as a King. He wants your heart to work with
Him, not for Him. He wants you to dream and create and initiate. He's not
afraid of a few mistakes.
So now that you know the "why,"
give your heart permission to dare and dream and desire and create and have a
ball. That's just the way the Kingdom works. It's fun!
How
OK, I got the general idea: find
the desires of my heart, get a confirmation with the Father's heart and go for
it. But, I'm not sure what that is. "How" is all about having your mind, your
heart and God's heart on the same page... aligned, integrated, holistic,
single-minded. It's getting that dream defined and working on it and seeing
fruit from it. It's building a bridge between your dream, your mind, your
heart, your vocation and your cash flow. Everything gets connected and directed
toward your and God's personal dream. That when His power starts to work... in
us... to make dreams come true... immeasurably beyond all we can ask or imagine.
It's amazing!
Now to
him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according
to his power that is at work within us. Ephesians
3:20 NIV
I've written, taught, shared,
taped and preached this concept for a decade now. Here's what I've learned.
1.
Not everyone is ready, so we just work with
people who want to pursue their dream. It's OK to be a servant until you're
ripe. I stopped trying to pick unripe fruit. There's way too much ripe fruit
and willing hearts anyway.
2.
Discipleship has always been relational. We all
need someone to take us by the hand and show us how. Sermons have never been
enough to effect change in hearts or behavior or dreams. Yes, we can "ask whatsoever"
to make dreams come true, but the same passage suggests we love each other for
a reason (John 15:15-17). We all need the help and encouragement at a heart
level.
3.
We have the information base covered in
Releasing Kings, Desire to Destiny, our conferences, and in the 400
newsletters. All that stuff is good. But, the final ingredient that we all need
is a friend to show us how... how to dream, how good it feels when the dream
comes true, how much fun the whole process is, and how to prosper.
4.
Lastly, every dream is a stretch. It's always a
step of faith; a calculated risk. Instead of letting fear control and defeat
us, we let it motivate us to discern our path forward. We are "disciplined" to
count the cost with wisdom, to seek the counsel of others, and to consider the
options. But, in the end, it's just God and me and deciding to go for it with
the encouragement of those who love me. Give yourself permission to define your
dream and make a wise decision. Others can encourage you and show you the what,
why and how. No one else can do it for you.
For God
did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of
self-discipline. 2 Timothy 1:7 NIV
So Here's my Suggestion
Get your dream in writing and
start making it happen. How? We've developed a heart plan and a network of
coaches to help. You are welcome to "self-help" through this process. I've just
found it to be much more effective and faster with a coach who is practical and
prophetic. If you can articulate your dream, the rest of us can help you make
it happen.
John Garfield
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