1 Chronicles 16:11 ESV
Seek the Lord and His strength; seek His presence continually!
God’s divine purpose intertwines in every area of your life.
Have you ever found yourself saying, “I simply don’t know what I’m supposed to do next?” It could even be that you know your God-given purpose, but due to a setback, you are overwhelmed and you’ve found that His purpose has been placed on the back burner. Relationships are a major area where knowing God’s purpose and understanding His purpose is key.
Relationships can either strengthen or distract from what God has created you for.
I once dated a guy that apparently decided it would be a good idea to have two girlfriends at the same time. I was the girlfriend that he gave about 20% of his time to. I would wait around for him, never knowing when he would call. I stopped going out at certain times and I began to plan my life around the 20% that he would give me. My vision was skewed by a wrong relationship. I allowed 20% of a fake relationship to determine my purpose. It was terrible. It was toxic. It was stealing from God’s divine purpose for my life. Ultimately, it began to affect my friendships and even how I viewed myself. It’s amazing how a missed step outside of the plan of God can lead to a landslide of wrong emotions. I was unhappy and utterly unfulfilled.
God’s purpose always leads to fulfillment and joy.
The amazing part of this story is that God tried to warn me and I simply didn’t want to listen. I thought that I knew what was best and I chose to ignore the warning signs. HEED THE WARNING SIGNS! This dead-end relationship eventually came to a head when I had a friend come to me and drop the bomb that she knew this guy had another relationship going and that he was stringing me along. What a hit! Here I am praying for the person that I am going to marry – all the while wasting time on someone that has put me on the backburner to stay warm – for the just-in-case this other relationship doesn’t work out – scenario. I walked out of that relationship thinking – God what is next? I have totally missed it! I was embarrassed over missing it and that embarrassment led me to feeling like a failure.
God loves you and nothing can separate you from the love of Christ. Romans 8:37-39 NIV | No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,[a]neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
My next step came through repentance. I went to God and I asked the Lord to forgive me for not listening to His voice. I needed a refreshing. I needed to submerse myself in the presence of God and refresh His purpose in my spirit. Acts 13:19-20 NIV | Repent, then, and turn back, so that your sins may be wiped away, 20 that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that He may send Jesus, the Christ, who has been appointed for you.
God isn’t hiding His purpose from you.
God knew you before you were even in your mother’s womb. Jeremiah 1:5 NIV | “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”
God has created you with a divine purpose. Ephesians 2:10 NIV | For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
God has began a good work in you and He will complete that work. Philippians 1:6 NIV | Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
In asking the question, “Now what?”
The answer is: I am choosing God’s Word and His Word is transforming my life today. This is choosing to open the Word of God and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal God’s Word to your Spirit. It’s setting aside time to pray and taking the time to listen to what the Lord is speaking. Write out your prayers. Write out what God is speaking to your heart. Write out what God is asking of you.
It’s time to rise up, shake off the dust and seek the Lord and His strength. Isaiah 52:2 NIV | Shake off your dust; rise up, sit enthroned, Jerusalem. Free yourself from the chains on your neck, Daughter Zion, now a captive.
Say it: God, You have a mighty purpose for my life and no matter the season that I am in right now – You will be glorified!
Do it: What part of my day do I plan on setting aside to have time in the presence of God? Where do I plan on going to have quiet time with God? Do I have my Bible ready? Do I have my prayer journal and a pen ready? Am I ready to hear God’s voice?
Truth for Today: When I choose to make time to get into the presence of God, God’s purpose becomes clearer for my life. When I read God’s Word, I begin to discover who I am in Christ and in knowing who I am in Christ I begin to see that I was born with a divine design and destiny! God simply desires my presence in order for His presence to transform my life.
Read it: 1 Chronicles 16:1-36