By
William Owens, Jr.
January 17, 2015
NewsWithViews.com
Our world is saturated with news, headlines, and tweets. Around every corner, we are confronted with countless stories and issues screaming for our attention. When we turn away from the media, we are faced with the demands of daily living. We have to make decisions, from buying a new pair of needed shoes to refinancing the mortgage and fixing the car. In the midst of this we strain to keep up with our illusive government and the confusing political progress.
How can we know what to focus on? How can we find our role to play in such a fast-moving world? Jesus told us that where we place our affections is where we invest our hearts. So this question matters. With this short time on earth, we must ask ourselves where we are investing ourselves daily. If we leave our hearts unguarded, they will take on importance from man’s perspective but irrelevance from God’s. This is why it is essential that you stay tenacious on your purpose.
What is our purpose? We can find direction from the first commandment: “Love the Lord your God with all of your heart, mind, strength. Love your neighbor as yourself.” This is often referred to as our general purpose, our general calling in the world. But we can also turn to scripture for an assurance of specific purpose. “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD,” reads Jeremiah 29:11. “Thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.”
How exciting that God is concerned with our specific lives. So I pose a question to you: Do you know your purpose? Have you moved beyond the general calling and pursued a knowledge of the specific purpose for which God has created you? I don’t mean doing things for your nation, for your family or even for your local church, but doing that one thing for the Kingdom of God to which you are called. Finding this place may take time and a journey. Writer Frederick Buechner once offered this advice: “The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.”
If there was ever a time in your life to be tenacious about intentional living and an unapologetic pursuit of purpose, that time is now. God is unfolding a story in our time. He is in charge and we have a role to play. Are we busy discovering that role? Or are we spending too much energy trying to be smart in the ways of men, attempting to know all the issues and pursuing connections with the “right” people? We should ask ourselves if our tenaciousness and intention is misguided. Are we giving ourselves to causes that are inline with HIS expected end?
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I want to encourage each of us to take this weekend and recalibrate. No matter how great our tires might be on our car, eventually they are going to need to be realigned. Without this, the car will lean to one side or the other a bit too much. Are you leaning over to something that is not the purpose that God is calling you to? Has an issue grabbed your attention and lured you into a project or program that is not your purpose? It happens to us all.
Jesus never did anything unless He was instructed by the Father. He never did anything of His own will. May our lives in 2015 be full of the same simplicity, the same clarity, the same singularity of purpose.
� 2015 William Owens, Jr. - All Rights Reserved
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This ArticleWilliam Owens is a prolific author, having written seven books in the Christian literature genre, including Divine Protocol, Obama: Why Black America Should Have Doubts, and Warriors Arise. He most recent work; Naked Before God - Words that Express My Heart is a compilation of his poetry that debuts Christmas 2014. Owens has spent two decades in the publishing industry and is also a noted activist within the Christian and Conservative communities. His current project is Race to Reconcile, a coast-to-coast bike trek in the Spring of 2015. The journey, which will include stops at orphanages, veterans’ homes, soup kitchens and prisons, is designed to inspire acts of forgiveness that will lead to reconciliation to God and one another regardless of color, religion, political affiliation and other differences. Owens’ new book, entitled Race to Reconcile: A Christian Approach to Strengthening Race Relations in America, will debut at the same time and will feature stories and experiences continuing the message of forgiveness and reconciliation. He is also launching a series of panel discussions throughout the nation called, “Celebration Forgiveness”.
E-Mail: william@racetoreconcile.com
Website: www.racetoreconcile.com
