Purposeful Living

On By vickleaIn Scripture1 Comment

In my devotional yesterday, I was encouraged to make sure that I am following God’s plan for my life and not pursuing the things of this world. People who don’t know God are seeking riches, fame, and a lot of material things and pleasure. My purpose is to serve God and His kingdom in whatever way I can for as long as I am able.

Many reach the top of the ladder of success only to find that it is leaning against the wrong wall. Purpose in life is far more important than property or possessions. Having more to live with is no substitute for having more to live *for.* ~Nicky Gumbel, One Year Bible Devotional, September 2, 2023

Read that quotation again and really think about it. For years, I pursued the goal of being named “Teacher of the Year.” I worked hard, gave 110% to my students and their parents and wanted all of them to be successful in learning how to study. The end result was that the students were thankful, as were many of the parents, but the only teachers who were ever recognized were the “pets” or those who taught the mainstream classes for which the standardized tests were given. I gave up on that goal after I noticed that the “winners” were always the same people; they just took turns by department: math, science, history, English. God spoke sternly to me then and told me that my prize was not in being recognized but in serving Him and His plan for me. My purpose changed and so did my outlook about the other teachers. They were winners of a title, but they didn’t know the Lord as Savior, so ultimately, they were lost.

God created each of us with a purpose in mind. It is up to us to find out what that purpose is and to pursue it wholeheartedly. I was a good teacher, but that is not because I had any special talents or abilities. I was a good teacher because God’s Spirit gave me insight daily into the needs of my students and He showed me creative ways to reach them. I was good because God gave me that purpose and the ability to go with it.

The most important thing in life to pursue is not a thing, but a person. Jesus Christ…first, last and always…needs to be the center of all that you do, every day. The other things (riches, fame, etc.) may or may not come. But the promise is that you will have all that you need, not necessarily all that you want. What do you need to be happy and feel fulfilled? I need to know that I am doing God’s will and hearing His voice direct me daily, to leave my comfort zone and speak kindly and with encouraging words to strangers. I am not a farmer, but I am determined to sow seeds for the kingdom daily.

What I considered “good” (a title and the recognition that went with it), God didn’t esteem at all, or not that I could tell. God just wants me to treat everyone equally (justice), to be kind to all and to be humble before my Creator who gave me all that I have and made me all that I will ever be. In the end, what matters is leaning that ladder I’m climbing against the firm foundation of God’s Word. It’s the only way the ladder won’t fall and I won’t be disappointed in the end.

What is your purpose? On what are you leaning your ladder? I hope this post today has given you food for thought.

Submitting to God

On By vickleaIn Scripture4 Comments

That word “submitting” is not very popular today as it evokes memories of men “lording it over women” and women subserviently doing as they are told, when and how they are told. But submission is actually a protection provided to us by God, especially when it refers to submitting to God.

According to the Cambridge Dictionary, “submit” means to allow another person or group to have authority over you. You willingly give permission to God to have authority over you. That doesn’t sound like such a bad idea to me, especially since God made me and knows exactly what I need and exactly when I need it. When I am submitted to God, then I have peace. Why? Because peace follows naturally once I know that all that I am and ever will be is in the loving hands of the One who knows me best. And why will things go well with me? Does that mean nothing bad will ever happen? I really wish the latter were true, but life happens every day when we are making other plans. We just have to be willing to learn from the things that we consider bad and move on. I have found that in the moment of dealing with a crisis, everything looks really overwhelming. But when the crisis is past, I can look back and see that they really weren’t so bad. Frequently, I can see God’s hand at work in these circumstances, not that He caused them, but that He works with me in them. He is constantly by my side, helping me to be the one He wants me to be instead of the one that I insist I want to be. For example, we just got home last night from a week of visiting our youngest son and his family. Today, I am just finishing four loads of laundry and then I have to go to the laundromat because our dryer is broken. The parts are coming in sometime next week, but in the meantime, I am inconvenienced by having to go about half an hour away and wait for the clothes to dry before coming home again. Crisis? Not really…but a definite “life happens” moment. Going to the laundromat is not my idea of fun times, but I expect that God can use that time with me to reach my willful heart as well as use me to reach out to others at the laundromat. Perspective…it’s all about perspective. And being willing to submit.

Something New

On By vickleaIn ScriptureLeave a comment

Don’t be surprised when you see new things happening in your world because God promised that it would in His Word. Something new to me means something unexpected, perhaps miraculous, but definitely something you will recognize as from God. I think that sometimes we miss the new things that God is doing because we are so busy looking for Him to change the old things in a way that we have requested, exactly the way we want Him to answer a prayer. Fortunately for us, God is not limited by how we ask Him to do things and He ends up answering our prayers in new and imaginative ways that we could never think of with our finite minds. God is good…all the time! And He surprises me with His new things most of the time! When was the last time that God surprised you?

Seeking

On By vickleaIn Scripture3 Comments

According to The Cambridge Dictionary, seek means “to try to find or get something, particularly something that is not a physical object.” https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/seek

In order to find God’s will for your life, you have to look for it, not just proclaim that you know it and you’re already following it. When you sincerely try to find His will for you, then He will show you the path that you should be taking. Seeking God’s will first before taking a path is the way to do things to avoid a lot of heartache and trouble. You will still have trouble because we live in a fallen world, but at least you will know that you are on the path that God has led you to and He is walking beside you on it. God walks with us regardless of our choices to follow our own will or His, but we should know that His will is what is best for us and in the end will bring us the greatest joy. Seek and follow.

Lost Sheep

On By vickleaIn Scripture3 Comments

Have you ever seen a real sheep wandering around and making the “Baa” sound that we sing about from nursery rhymes? I haven’t seen one often, but I did see a couple when I visited Iceland many years ago. The sheep are all free range and there are laws against harming them. So, they wander freely, get away from their home and “baa” incessantly as they try to find their way back to something familiar. I think that we can learn a lot from sheep and so did the prophet Jeremiah.

Image created on Canva. Scripture from the YouVersion Bible App.

God’s people are compared to lost sheep, but the sheep are not all lost because of wandering away. Their shepherds, the ones responsible for leading them, has led them to the wrong place and then set them loose there. Thus, they are completely lost and can’t find their way home again. Unlike the nation of Iceland in which sheep are protected, the only protection we have against false leaders is God. However, we are only protected as long as we stay in His Word, know what it says and that way we can recognize false leaders and the trails they want to lead us on. Some “shepherds” would have us believe that the Bible doesn’t mean what it says. False! They want us to think that there are many ways to get to Heaven, and one way is as good as another. False! These false “shepherds” want us to call evil good and good evil. False! We don’t recognize the falsehoods unless we know what the truth says, and the truth can only be found in the Holy Bible.

My advice to my readers who are followers of Christ is to read, study, memorize, hold fast to God’s Word. Surely the fake leaders are everywhere these days, so you have to be aware of that in order to avoid being fooled. It’s like the bank tellers who are trained to spot counterfeit money. They know the real thing because that’s what they spend time with! Jesus is the real thing, the ONLY way to Heaven, the One who leads us on the pathway to being more like Him and the One who calls out evil and expects us to do likewise. Don’t be fooled by those who want you to take an “easier road” because that way may lead to being lost and ultimately to eternal destruction. Keep following Jesus no matter how many wolves in sheep’s clothing you encounter. In the end, you will not be a lost sheep but the found one!