PDL: Day 3

"Everyone's life is driven by something." I think the challenge is we are driven by different things at different moments. One moment we are driven by the most noble or even most pious of motivations. In another by our more selfish inclinations.

For me, I think the challenge may be that while I desire to live for God and to follow God's will for my life, my internal "drives" are not always toward God's calling. Like most people I know, I would like to make more money. I would like to be famous. I would like recognition for my accomplishments. I would prefer to protect myself and mine from suffering. I want justice (or at least what I perceive as being just) when I am wronged. In short, what I am driven to seek on occasion conflicts with what God wants for me.

So what is the solution? Commitment.

I must commit to my life direction. It is my pre-choice choices that determine which drives will rule in any given situation. I must commit to the God-given purpose for my life.

Rick says, "Without a purpose you have no foundation on which to base decisions, allocate your time, and use your resources." And, "People who don't know their purpose try to do too much — and that causes stress, fatigue, and conflict." While I agree with him. I don't think simply "knowing" my purpose is enough. I have to be committed. I have to choose now, before my other drives kick in, that I am unwavering from that purpose.

Rick is right when he says, "Purpose creates passion." But need creates desperation. We must decide now to commit to our God given purpose. There will be moments when it would be easier not to follow God purpose for our lives. There will be moments when it will even seem more advantageous to us to follow another desire. Deviating from our purpose could me more money, fame, adventure, etc.

To truly be driven by God's purpose means deciding now to sacrifice those other opportunities. It means to be committed to God's purpose above our own ambition, needs, or desires.

At least that's what I think.

What are your thoughts?

PDL Day 2

I am not an accident. God created me on purpose and with purpose. That is easy to remember when I am reflecting on dreams and calling. It is not so easy to remember when things don't seem to work the way I think they are supposed to.

Like when I am told at the age of 28 that I have a life threatening heart condition that requires near immediate surgical intervention. Or when I swing a golf club wanting one result and getting another. Or when I step on the scale...

There are definitely moments when I have trouble not looking to heaven and pointing out to God that He made more than a few mistakes when he created me.

But I was created on purpose. I wasn't just made, I was designed —just the way I am. For some reason I feel like we have all been made like piggy banks with out a stopper. God puts his love, grace, mercy, joy, and peace inside us and we walk around spilling it out everywhere we go.

To us it feels like we are falling apart. To God it looks like fulfilling his purpose to carry love into every corner of the world.

So the next time something reminds me of my imperfection, perhaps I should remember that I am broken by design and with purpose. These moments are my opportunity to share all God has done for me. And one day, I am promised perfection. One day I will be broken no more.

It All Start's with God

Before I jump into this, I should set it up by saying that I will be blogging my way through Rick Warren's book, The Purpose Driven Life. As my friends and family know, I will be starting law school in August. As the days march me closer to the start of a new school year, I am endeavoring to constantly be cultivating a sense of calling in my life. It is my hope that as I walk through Purpose Driven Life over the next forty days my sense of calling will become more clear.

Thanks for reading and commenting. Hope my journey can help you too.

"Unless you assume a God, the question of life's purpose is meaningless." This quote from Bertrand Russell, a philosopher and atheist who lived from 1872 to 1970 (thanks wikipedia), leads directly to Rick's simple statement, "It's not about you."

It's not about me... I think I grasp that... As I survey the next steps in life and plan my future, I think I understand that I am not at the center of the universe or even my own little world. Thanks to years of Bible training and pew filling, my brain tells me that my place or my purpose in the world is given to me by God and not discovered by trusting my heart or soul searching.

Here's my challenge: I believe that I am following God's purpose for my life, but I don't know what that purpose is exactly. Right now, my least favorite question in the world is, "Why do you want to go law school?" (Or some other variation of that.) I hate the question because I don't have an answer that satisfies those asking. If I am honest, my answer doesn't really satisfy me at times. The only answer I can offer is that I feel it is something to which God has drawn me. I don't know what comes after law school. Maybe firm work. Maybe back to church work. Perhaps a combination of the two. It could be something completely different. I don't know. That is what scares me.

Embracing the idea that it is not about me seems like a simple move from a self-centered to a God centered life. But is is more than that. It is a transfer of dependence. If life is not about me, life doesn't depend on me. Living a life that is not about me is more than an exercise in unselfishness. It is trusting. It is waiting. It is listening. It is searching. Perhaps more than anything, it is surrender. Surrender of my will, my way of doing things, and my desire to impress family and friends with a well thought-out answer for questions like, "why law school" and "what is after."

I guess the answer is, it's not about me.