The Purpose of Life
I don’t know about you, but I am always trying to figure out what my purpose here on earth is. I have read books and tried to put it all in perspective, but still I have no clear-cut answer. Until a few weeks ago when I was attending church. Our pastor, Michael Metcalf, was delivering a message about what the true purpose of life is and it really struck a nerve with me, in a good way!
He began by telling us that all of us want to be great and remembered for something, but sometimes we don’t even know what that something might be. He then talked about some successful people who thought they wanted to be remembered for big things like being on a T.V. show or winning money, but then realized that their lives were more complete when they began charities that helped other people. Our pastors message revolved around the statement, “The journey of greatness comes from serving others”.
Hmmm… I began thinking about this and how the journey of life is not about me or what I have or don’t, but it is about others. In the book of Matthew, Jesus stated, “The greatest among you will be your servant”. It doesn’t say that the way to become great is to become wealthy or to have many friends, but to be a servant to others. Pastor Metcalf then said something that stirred something in me and made me feel that I was closer to my purpose than I ever thought. “When you serve others, you become something great”. Wow, how refreshing! To know that the greatness that God has in store for you is not within the money we make, the clothes we wear, or the job that we have, but serving others.
Pastor Metcalf then went on to give us some steps about how we can accomplish this, first, do something small. You don’t have to do big things to serve, start small and do something with the little that God has entrusted you with. Hold a door for someone, pick up litter on the ground, or even just give a compliment. For God has shown me time and time again, that if I am faithful with what little I have he will provide much more. God has illustrated this to us in the story of the fish and loaves when he provided a large crowd of 4,000 enough to eat with only 5 fish and 2 loaves of bread. He multiplied the little there was to provide for the many. You too can do great things with little resources. Allow God to use your small resources to multiple to provide for the many.
Second, learn to give something away. What God has entrusted us with is not for us to keep, but to spread for his goodness. What have you given away recently? Have you seen what God has done for you in return for that? In my life, I have seen that the more I give, the more that comes back to me. I don’t give to get something back in return, but God continues to provide when I don’t know how things are going to work out.
Lastly, learn to sacrifice for others. Life is not about what has been done for you, but what you can do for others. So many of us are too involved in what is going wrong in our lives, but forgetting that somewhere, someone else is going through something that is larger than your problem. I can only speak for myself, but I constantly worry about making sure I raise my daughter to the best of my ability and to build her into a strong, courageous woman. While I think this is something that is a major concern for me, I too often forget about the children and community we serve that has to wonder about where they will be able to get their next meal from, how they will battle water-borne illnesses, and extreme poverty. Are my problems really all that important? Overall, after the service I attended I came back realizing that my journey to greatness is still in progress and that the greatest purpose in life is to serve others.
What’s your purpose? Have you found your greatness in serving others? Can you do something small, learn to give something away, and learn to sacrifice for others? If you haven’t felt that you have found your purpose try serving someone else and see how that makes you feel. Through The Hosanna Project you can help serve others in the following ways:
1. Sponsor a child for $40/month and help provide them education, nutrition, and necessities.
2. Sponsor a child and family for $55/month and provide monthly rations, basic medical attention, and business training/creation.
3. Provide a pair of shoes for a child at our community center. https://fundraise.becauseinternational.org/fundraiser/1857207
4. Join us on our next trip to Ethiopia this July. Email me for details.
5. Order a pound cake from Sam’s Southern Pound Cakes and part will go to help support the sponsorship of one of our children.
6. Help us to fund the next years rent of our community center by donating to The Hosanna Project.
If you want to hear the message that I am referring to, please visit https://www.covechurch.org/messages and go to the series Its Only Crazy Until You Do It and the service called You Got Served.