A Life Full of Purpose Begins With Trust

So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember the great reward it brings you! Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised (Hebrews 10:35-36, NLT).

Continuing to do God’s will is what living on purpose is all about. In addition, living on purpose begins with a confident trust in the Lord. Purpose is rooted in knowing just who God is and trusting that no matter what He is in control and rewards faithful obedience. I think that there are three things to remember when seeking to live my life on purpose.

1. Trust that the Lord is good and kind (see Psalm 116:5).

I have to believe that God is good and He is not some kind of tyrant dictator. If I believe the latter then I will be too afraid to attempt anything for His cause. I will anticipate God’s disappointment in my meager efforts. Worse yet, I will assume that I am going to fail anyway and give up before I even start. However, when I believe that God is a loving god, then my desire is to do His will and I am happy when I even get a chance to try. The loving God of the bible looks for obedience, not success.

God created a world full of intricacies to get my attention. He did not create a drab gray world for robots to do His bidding. I can choose to serve Him but I can also choose not to serve Him. A walk through nature displays the variety and beauty of God’s creation. An MRI displays the intricacies of a human body. God lures me with the intelligent design of the world as well as my body. Moreover, He also made a world full of beauty and wonder. He made all of these details for me to be in awe of the amorous pursuit of a loving suitor.

2. Trust that living your life for the Lord is the best thing (see Psalm 84:10-12).

I also have to trust that living my life in God’s way is better than living in the world’s way. The world offers glitzy distractions that seem like wonderful things. The desire to have my home look like the "after" scenes in an extreme home makeover can entice me into a feeling of discontent. Magazine portraits of perfected beauty and fitness can make me wonder if I could ever look like that. If money, material things, and beauty are my end goal, I will always feel empty. Sure, God does bless me as I travel this journey of life, but those blessings or things can never bring peace or purpose in themselves. I will never get to the end of these pursuits because there is always another rung to the ladder. I can never reach the epitome of having things because new things pop up every day.

I’m pretty sure that everyone can think of an example of someone who seemed to have it all—money, beauty, fame, etc.—and still met a grizzly end. On the other hand, most people can also think of an example of someone who had little money and no fame but radiated a joy that made the mundane seem beautiful. God’s ways are full of grace, glory, light, and very often simplicity.

3. Trust that God is with you even in the midst of suffering (see Hebrews 10:34-36).

Another thing I have to believe is that God is good even when things do not go as well as I planned in my head. God does reward good and kind behavior even when I do not see the results that I intended. God has a bigger (and better) plan than I could ever imagine. Sin has caused the world to be fallen and corrupt and bad things are going to happen. Disease, pain, and unwished for circumstances are an inevitable part of the backdrop of life. However, God wishes for us to be kind and loving to other people anyway. He also wishes for us to seek to bring more and more beauty to the world through our good deeds. God can and does use those good things to make the bad things tolerable in many people’s lives. Without the bad circumstances, I would never learn patient endurance, which helps me to see things from a similar viewpoint as God, who is the King of loving patience.

In conclusion, I can trust that God will see that everything I do (and even what I fail to do) will result in His good purposes. His sovereignty remembers my frailties and works in spite of them beautifully. God sees my heart. When my motive is kindness and a desire to do God’s will, then He is pleased even when I may feel like I have failed. God sees more than I can see. Therefore, He can do something good with my efforts even when I do not perceive what He is doing.

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them (Romans 8:28, NLT).

Jennifer Heeren has always loved to write. For more than a decade, she has enjoyed writing encouraging blog messages. She loves to write things that bring people hope and encouragement. Her cup is always at least half-full. She has been published on Crosswalk.com and ChristianDevotions.us. She lives near Atlanta, Georgia with her husband. Visit her at www.jenniferheeren.com.

Original Publication date: October 8, 2013, photo credit: ©GettyImages/Anatoliy Gleb