But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour. 21 If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, and prepared unto every good work. 2Tim 2:20-21
The Apostle Paul was one of the greatest men that ever lived. He was God’s apostle to the Gentiles and he wrote most of the books on the New Testament. But according to scripture, he wasn’t always that way. As a young man,he went about persecuting the Church until he had an encounter with God that transformed his life. Even while he persecuted the Church , God had a purpose for him which he didn’t discover till he met with Christ.
God alone knows how many young people have become terrible criminals not knowing that the Lord has chosen them to be world-class marvels and champions. In fact, others have died without discovering God’s purpose for their lives . How sad.
Don’t let anyone deceive you into believing that you’re of no use to society or to God. God doesn’t waste His resources when He created you, he created you for His purpose and the good news is you can find out that purpose.
The question is how do you discover your purpose?
This begins first and foremost with being born again – accepting Jesus Christ as the Lord of your life and correcting your sinful life.You cannot fulfil purpose without a right relationship with your maker.
Next, you have to study the Word and fellowship with the Holy Spirit in prayer .As you function in the church, you’ll discover your specific purpose in Him and how exactly He wants you to live.
Another way is to realize, that your purpose is the intersection of your pain and your gain. Moses has pain in his heart when he saw the Egyptian oppressing the Israelites . He wanted to do something about it. Albeit he was not prepared but God saw his heart and sent him for 40 years training. You need to prepare for your purpose before you launch into it. When God saw he was ready he called him to the office of deliverance- his gain. You discover your purpose when you see a need and you meet it.
Joshua did not discover his purpose like that of Moses. His was discovered by loyalty. He was loyally following Moses albeit by faith . When others said they cannot possess the land himself and Caleb said it is possible. No wonder , when Moses died God called him to fulfil purpose by dividing the land for Israelites. He discovered purpose by a Mentor-Mentee relationship.
Another way you can discover your purpose is by God sending someone to confirm what God is revealing to you . In 1979-1980 as a Chemical Engineering student but a fervent Christian I always had a dream that I was preaching and one member of the church an Ibo man was always interpreting. In 1984 one of our Elders had a vision where God revealed my life purpose to him. God showed him that I got a job in an oil and gas company, that I relocated from Unife to Bendel State and I started a branch of Christ Apostoloc Church Bethel and built a Cathedral . By 1998 all these were fulfilled and that formed the basis of my transitioning from practicing Chemical Engineering to Jesus Engineering. That has opened the way for me by the grace of God to plant churches globally and preach the word in over 70 nations . I remembered my 1980 dream of people interpreting when I am preaching when in 2010 I was preaching in India and Sri Lanka and people were interpreting – 30 years later.
Another way to find your purpose is to find out your passion, what you love doing. Saul of Tarsus was always passionate about religion. He graduated from persecuting the church to propagating the gospel. Another way is find out what your talent is, what do you do effortlessly without struggle, that is your talent. Fish do not struggle to swim, the lion is comfortable in the jungle. Maybe you like writing, singing, drama, teaching, preaching, inventing, praying,witnessing, managing,speaking, building, fixing stuff your future may be in that area. The most important thing in discovering your purpose is to ask God your maker.
In conclusion, realize you are alive to fulfil a purpose . Do everything to find out your purpose . You are a potential great vessel of honour in God’s house, God’s world. The challenge of COVID-19 may be the opportunity and channel to discover your purpose don’t miss it. When you do, life will be more meaningful to you and you’d be able to help others discover their purpose in God.Always remember, the ultimate purpose and acid-test of a purpose is that it glorifies God.
Shalom.
Post script: I have a message on YouTube titled – How to find your purpose – The Case Study of Paul of Tarsus.Youtube/Dramosdada. It could help someone.
