Day 3/40: What Drives Your Life?

“You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast because he trusts in you.”
Isaiah 26:3

The purpose driven life, what does that really mean. It means a life guided, controlled, and directed by a purpose but not just any purpose...God’s purpose. What drives your life and mine? Rick Warren lists the top 5 things that control people’s lives (I love lists!!).

1. Guilt: running from regrets, hiding from shame, manipulated by memories. We are products of our past. Our past shapes us into who we are right now and who we will, or will not, become in the future. We don't have to be prisoners of our past. This has taken me a long to see and if I am honest with myself I am still a work in progress. I was in a past relationship where the person made me feel as though I was constantly falling short due to his expectations of what my past should have looked like. Yes, I have made mistakes. Yes, I have sinned. But the amazing part, the part that he never reminded me of (hence the reason why it was a past relationship) is that I am forgiven! God forgives me. He sent his one and only son to die a horrific death on a cross so that I can have every mistake and sin erased from my past! Psalm 32:1 says "Happy are those whose sins are forgiven, whose wrongs are pardoned." We do not have to live as prisoners to our past but rather live as those who have been given a purpose by our God.

2. Resentment and anger: good point he makes- “those who have hurt you in the past cannot continue to hurt you now unless you hold on to the pain through resentment” How true! That relationship I mentioned in number 1, it took a lot not have resentment for constantly making me feel as though I was not forgiven. Once I let that resentment and pain go I was able to live freely!!

3. Fear: always playing it safe and never taking risks

4. Materialism: possessions only provide temporary happiness, “real security can only be found in what can never be taken from you-your relationship with God”

5. Need for approval: this one is me big time! Always wanting to please everyone and never wanting to fail

“Without a purpose, life is motion without meaning, activity without direction, and events without reason. Without a purpose, life is trivial, petty, and pointless.”

Whoo hoo, another list! There are five benefits of living a life driven by purpose-not guilt, resentment, anger, fear, materialism, and the need for approval:
1. Knowing your purpose gives meaning to your life. For some reason every time I read this line all that comes into my head is...

You're the meaning in my life
you're the inspiration.
You bring feeling to my life
you're the inspiration.
Wanna have you near me
I wanna have you hear me sayin':
No one needs you more than I need you.

A little Chicago tune for the blog today! In all seriousness though, “the greatest tragedy in life is not death, but life without a purpose.” Look at Jeremiah 29:11 (“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future”) and Ephesians 3:20 (“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”).

2. Knowing your purpose simplifies your life. God didn’t intend us to be running around like crazy with a million things to do and not enough hours in the day. God intended for us to carry out our purpose and he gave us the energy and stamina to that. A good question to ask yourself when faced with activities to fill your schedule with is “Does this activity help me fulfill one of God’s purposes for my life?” I think I need to write this in my planner every day!

3. Knowing your purpose focuses your life...”never confuse activity with productivity”

4. Knowing your purpose motivates your life.

5. Knowing your purpose prepares you for eternity. It isn’t about what others say about your life rather what God says about your life as you stand before him.

Warren points out two questions, derived from the Bible, that God will ask when we stand before him...

1)What did you do with my Son, Jesus Christ? Did you accept what Jesus did for you and did you learn to love and trust him?
2)What did you do with what I gave you?

The first question determines where you spend eternity, the second one is what you do in eternity. What is your answer to the questions?