“Finding purpose in life can and should be considered a wonderful revelation. Unfortunately, many feel their lives are seemingly meaningless,” wrote Jim Langley at Noozhawk. “I truly believe we all have a definitive purpose, but finding that purpose may not be clear to most people.”
He is convinced God has a specific purpose for every person, regardless of whether they believe in God or not. He cites Jeremiah 29:11, a passage frequently quoted in Christian circles to show that we each have a purpose. It states:
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
However, some people my have trouble realizing there is a grand life purpose due to the relationship with their earthly father.
“This concept of a loving father may be foreign to many of you reading this. Many, many fathers have dropped the ball over the centuries and have let their children down,” Jim wrote.
Many fathers never took time to help their children identify their true strengths and then create a plan to use them for a noble purpose. As a result, children grow up directionless and incapable of believing their Heavenly Father truly cares enough to help them find and fulfill that purpose.
Jim, like me, lives with some regret that we could have been stronger fathers to our children. But that does not dismiss the idea that our Heavenly Father truly does have a unique design and plan for our lives to prosper us and not to harm us.
If we find that unique, distinct, specific God-created purpose for our life — the one we were uniquely designed to fulfill and specifically equipped to perform with a distinct desire to carry it out — it can be life-changing.
If you’re still not sure what that purpose could be, ask God and wait for an answer. You’ll be surprised when people make out-of-the-blue suggestions or once-invisible opportunities suddenly appear. Seek wise counsel, but if several people confirm the revelation, chances are strong you know the purpose for this stage in your life.
Jim’s column can be found at www.noozhawk.com.
After closing his business and enduring several painful years of uncertainty regarding what to do with his life, Greg founded Forward From 50 to help men and women over 50 to live more purposeful lives by pursuing things they are passionate about. A Wisconsin native, Greg currently lives in Arizona.