I've been thinking about my life, where I'm at, where I'm going, fears, contentment vs. motivation, and how all of these things add up to my overall purpose in this life. I've considered what it is I want to fill my mind with, and things that I don't think I need to fill my mind with. I sometimes feel a lot of pressure from people and the media to be a certain way, and anything outside of that is less than standard. But it's really hard to keep up with people and life in general sometimes. There's a constant need to progress with the times, and stay current on whatever it is that you're expected to know. And to me, sometimes this need for progression may cause you to lose track of your real purpose. It's so easy to become obsessed with looking the part, being the best, beating the competition, living the "dream" etc.
My purpose in this life is to serve others, and show them the love of Christ. Plain and simple. I want my time here to be driven by that. I never ever want to forget where my blessings come from. Nothing that I do should ever come from a place that lifts ME up. I must decrease so that HE can increase [John 3:30].
When I think of my life in terms of this, everything seems to fall into place. I've removed the control from my own hands and placed it into a something bigger and so much greater than me. I'm not awesome at this, every day. Not even close. In fact, I must daily shift my focus and battle the idea that I'm here to serve others and not myself. I'm here to show the love of Christ to my friends and family. I'm not here to have a really cute apartment and take rad pictures so that I can look like I have it all together.
We are in the season of lent right now. It's fairly common among us "religious" folk to give up something for the 40 days before Easter. Well I showed up late to the party because I was probably too busy focusing on myself rather than my Heavenly Father....so I popped in around 30 days. Better late than never, they say. So for the 30 days before Easter I've set my focus on reading through the entirety of the gospels. We're currently working through a blended gospel study at my church, detailing the life of Jesus, how He lived, and discovering who He claimed to be. It's my hope and my experience so far that I'll learn to better model the life that Jesus lived while I'm here on Earth. Because that my friends, is what it's about.
And if church and Jesus aren't really your thing, I get that. We all come from different paths and I don't want you to think I'm preaching at you. I'm agreeing with your chant of serving other people, together. I'll do it in the name of Christ, and you can do it in the name of love, and we can hold hands and serve others, together :) I have learned so much about myself in 2014 so far, and much of it is due to consciously shifting my focus daily. I want to live a purpose driven life [what's up Rick Warren? church girl joke]. I want to lift up the name of Christ no matter what I do. I want to bring positivity into the lives of my friends, my clients, my family, and all those who cross paths with me. I am working toward this, daily. Matthew 16:24 reminds us that we must daily deny ourselves and pick up the cross so that we might follow Jesus.
And six paragraphs later, I think it's time to curl up in bed. Besides, you're probably all out of tea by this point. Friend, let's serve others together in the name of Christ, in the name of love, in the name of doing what's right, and being purposeful stewards with our lives.
19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
-Matthew 6:19&20
