Finding God's Purpose Amongst Our Own

Something I like to do in life is to set goals for myself, because when we achieve our goals, it often gives us a sense of satisfaction. Outside of work, when I am not succumbing to the various idols of entertainment in my life, I find peace and refreshment through reading and writing. I have many goals and much that I want to achieve in this area. Sadly, it would take me years to for me to read all the books that I want to read, or to write about all the ideas that my reading has inspired within me.

Recently I set myself the goal of finishing a book I was reading, The Art of Man Fishing by Thomas Boston. When I read a book, I chip away at it a few pages at a time, but often when I get close to the end, I become motivated to sit for a couple of hours and knock it over. Interestingly, every time I tired, my reading speed got less. Instead of chipping away a few pages at a time, it would be a paragraph or two at a time. The reason was, every time I sat down to read this book, ideas to write about and reflect upon would enter my mind from God. My purpose was to read the book as fast as I could, and God's purpose was to change me and inspire me through the very pages I was reading.

Often, we treat life the same way I treat my book, as something to get through and not something to enjoy, experience and be inspired by. A point highlighted by the following passage:

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. – Psalm 16:11 ESV

Life is a path that we walk not alone, but with God. When we do so, there is a fullness of Joy and many pleasures to be enjoyed, experienced and inspired by.

These can be experienced in the simple things in life like reading a book, but also in the more difficult moments of our lives as well.

Yesterday we had to take our soon to be two-year-old daughter to the emergency department. Her right pinkie finger got slammed between two doors and was very badly crushed. Initially it was horrific to look at and in the stress all we could think of was to go straight to the hospital. Thankfully as we were preparing to leave for the hospital, it began to resemble a finger once more. In the seven hours it took to find out that her finger was okay and there was no fracture, there were many emotions and thoughts that went through our minds.

Outside of the thought "Is her finger going to be okay" there was also "Where is the doctor and when will we get out of here." Like my book, we just wanted to get to the end. As challenging as the experience was at the time, God provided us pleasures to be enjoyed. When my wife went to the cafeteria, I got to experience some time alone with my daughter and we played peek-a-boo. She smiled every time I did it, and after a minute when I stopped, she would say just one word: "more". It's an experience that may only have lasted a few minutes, but it’s a memory I will cherish forever. The purpose of our hospital visit was to ensure that our daughter was safe and to do so as quickly as possible. God's purpose was to do that and give us time together as a family with memories to cherish.

To experience the fullness of joy of God's presence in our lives we need to change our mindset.

Our mindset of "I just need to get through this" needs to change to "I want to experience what God has for me as I get through this with Him."

By doing so, we will remain mindful of God's presence and the truth that He has much for us to enjoy, experience and be inspired by in life. In the simple things like reading a book, and in the more challenging moments of life such as those spent with family in an emergency department.

Mindfulness is a practice. Something to be repeated and developed over time. As we do, our awareness of God's presence increases and with it a fullness of joy in our hearts. Because as we become aware of God's presence, we become aware that in any given moment He has far more for us to experience and enjoy than we realise.

Reflection

What are some ways that you can become more aware of God's presence throughout your day?

Prayer

Father God, open my heart and mind to view situations as neither positive nor negative. Instead, help me to see them as you do, so that I can experience everything You have for me in any given moment.

Affirmation

God is present and walking with me through every situation.

Action

Try thinking about doing something positive, new and different in your life. Notice how your brain counters your positivity with negativity and a host of reasons why you can't do something new or different. Our brains do this for potential future experiences as well as our current experiences. Next time you find yourself thinking negatively about your situation, look for some positives, and practice sitting in the tension of simultaneously experiencing positivity and negativity at the same time.