Purpose Under Pressure

Executing God's plan

---

Rich Wilkerson, Jr. (Lead Pastor of Vous Church - Miami, FL) once spoke a sermon, and the name of it escapes me right now. (Thank God for the "Edit" button... I'll add the sermon to the bottom when it comes to mind). But, regardless - he said something I will never forget...

Jesus did not die fulfilling His potential. He died accomplishing His purpose.

That wasn't in quotations because I paraphrased it... But that message... It stuck to my soul.

Jesus died (most Bible scholars will agree) at the age of 33. I turned 33 this year.

Something I realize about my life is I've spent a good amount of time achieving goals based on my potential, talents, and abilities. I'm not even sure if I can count on two hands how many things I intentionally did that were dedicated to my purpose.

I shutter to wonder, " How many things in my life did I actually consult with the Holy Spirit about, before doing them." Even more, "how many things did I already have God's approval to do, but I didn't because someone around me influenced my commitment?"

Now that I've reached (what I call) "The Age of Purpose," I feel pulled to write something for all of us who can often be torn between what we want for ourselves and what God has for us.

There are three things to keep an eye out for while pursuing your purpose:

1. Seeking God and Looking for People

2. Internal and External Influences

3. Sharing your Dreams

Seeking God and Looking for People

Psalms 3:6 tells us... instructs us, "Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you which path to take." ... in all you do.

What I do, what many of us do, is.... "seek" God, receive His direction... Then after getting that Word from Him, we go and look for confirmation of what God told us to do, from a person or group of people who may not even know or care what God has planned.

So this happens...

We delay, or destroy, what God has for us - based on the ignorance of someone who has nothing to do with what we were designed for. We also ruin relationships because we put people in the position to cosign what God instructed us to do. I've done both.

I recall more recently God giving me a direction to write something based on being angry with Him. I was upset. Like... heated. And I felt a strange comfort from the Holy Spirit that how I was feeling was actually "okay." To further that, the Spirit lead to me seek in the Bible where others who were loved by God felt abandoned by Him.

Here's where I messed up... I took something God gave me to do and tried to delegate it to another person. I was so caught in my own emotions, and felt uncertain about this command from God. So I called someone I typically lean on for emotional and spiritual support. I explained what God called me to do and was confronted with conflicting input.

"You really think God wants you to look for places in the Bible where people were made at Him?" The individual told me that "Didn't sound right," and explained where there were "So many other places in the Bible to find the 'joy of the Lord' instead." I grew angrier. Not only was I still mad at God... But then I was frustrated with my friend who would not join me on this assignment. I was angry for a long time.

"How dare [this person] question what God said to me.... They weren't there." And the Spirit caught me.... "You're right.. They weren't there. So why did you call them with an assignment God gave to you?"

The post still went up... but it was later. Sooo much later. And to be honest, the resolve I felt as I personally found those verses were healing. A healing I would not have experienced, had my friend done the work I asked them to do and simply text the scriptures to me. But not only did the resolution come to me later than it could have. The post had a delay in being written...

What's worse is I burned a bridge, where God didn't even tell me to cross one.

This brings a question to mind.... Why would even bother to "Seek God" if what He has for us isn't enough? If God's Word needs to be cosigned by man, what's the point in even having God?

This doesn't mean those we lean on for support mean harm to us. I highly doubt many of people in our lives are intentionally speaking against what God has for us. But here is the situation we are conflicted with. Those who know us only know who we are and who God is to them. This information is based on historical data (they been there), theological assumption (they know what we've done therefore they assume what we can do, and comparison (if they can or can't do it influences what they can see in us). This can be accurate information. But is it God?!

Do we actually realize how much discernment it takes; to hear someone else's input without allowing it to keep us from our purpose? That means, truly and literally, to seek God in every decision we make. "God, does this thing (whatever it is) I'm about to do bring glory and honor to you...? Will it bring me closer to my purpose?" And then continue to seek Him, as you move forward, "God please guide me, regardless of what my reality and my history looks like."

I tend to mix God's directions with man's influence and those two things do not go together. This is not to say God will not supply a support system for us. But it also does not mean not having support means God is not with you. But that part of this message will actually be in another post. (Look out for, "Nobody Knows" - coming soon) :)

Internal and External Influences

I'm going to spend a lot of time here.....

Internals and externals, in this situation, are not what we think. Internal is normally seen as what "we" want for ourselves... But in this stance, "internal" is what God has designed for us. What we were created to do, before we came to the ability to decide for ourselves. Anything outside of what God has for us and what He can do to guide us is external. We tend to think, "because I can - He will."

So we "See God" through the lens of what we want, instead of "Seeking Him" before we act. We can confuse God's permission to do what we want with His Will for us to do what He planned.

I don't know about you, but I've realized I'm a retroactive pray-er. I act first and then I hope God was in there... somewhere. Aaaand that's where I think we all could use a little work. Seeking God... Looking for Him... Is supposed to be "Step One." It's supposed to be part of your blueprint... Not your revision. He's there for us for both, but how much more effective would our purposes be if we weren't erasing and rewriting all the time?

We've had free will since Genesis. When God created and showed Adam all of the trees in the garden and told him, "thou may freely eat" (Genesus 2:17). Sure... There were provisions and instructions. But God did not keep Adam or Eve from the forbidden tree. He allowed them to make a choice.

They had His permission to do whatever they wanted to do, they just weren't protected from the consequences.

We already discussed the "Permission" aspect. But let's look at that inversely. Not only do we have God's permission to do whatever we want. He also seeks our permission to do works in our lives as well.

Anybody ever heard the phrase, "God is a gentleman"? Most pastors refer to that when speaking about Revelations 3:20, "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him." God isn't going to bust into your life and work a bunch of miracles. No more than He will walk in without permission and make you follow His will. And the crazy thing is, we actually want that... Well, some of it.

We want God to bless us without our permission, without us having to ask for it. Then we also want those blessings without doing anything to deserve them. We want the "life more abundantly" (John 10:10), without "seeking first the kingdom of God" (Matthew 6:33).

But what sense does that really make? We completely understand, in the natural, that we don't get paid without working first. But for some reason, we think God is going to do for us without doing what He asked us... designed us.... to do. But... honestly, He does.

God's Grace is a receipt for His reaction to our sin. But we look at is as a security blanket to do whatever we and. We get a sense of entitlement, and go through life making decisions that are covered by His blood but are not actually part of our purpose.

Then we .... I mean .... me (because no one else does this right?), go on and misquote scripture as it fits my lifestyle; quoting all of God's promises, out of context. With a smile. :)

"The battle is the Lord's".. (1st Samuel 17:47) .. as I start/partake in drama.

"The Lord is my strength and my shield" .. (Psalms 28:7) .. as I go into my week of chaos without reading His Word daily.

"No weapon formed against me will prosper" .. (Isaiah 54:17) .. while we are actually the weapon, forming ourselves against others.

There are plenty others, but here is my personal favorite scripture of the Entitled Christian, "I will do whatever you ask in My name" - Jesus (John 14:13).

This is not Jesus as your personal genie. He isn't your waiter.

Every promise of God (those listed above and the hundreds of thousands listed in the Bible, are conditional statements. There is a prerequisite, a requirement, and expectation - before you can expect something of God, He is also expecting something from you.

Misunderstanding and/or misquoting these promises are as if you are forging God's signature on a check for your life. God's promises are the return on your investment in Him. As you come to each decision opportunity in your life, you are either walking towards your purpose (where along the way you experience His promises), or you are walking on a path where you take His grace for granted.

Just because "all things work together" (an except from Romans 8:28) does not mean "all things" are meant for you to have.

Even though we know, "God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them." Romans 8:28

"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." (Jeremiah 29:11)

Sharing Your Dreams

So, you have the plans God planned for you... What do you do now?

We tend to want to "shout from the rooftop" the things God has planned for us. But Matthew 10:27 is not talking about your purpose. It's discussing the goodness of the Lord. Is your purpose a reflection of His goodness? Oh yeah... But are you telling people because you want to share what God is doing in your life, or are you pridefully boasting about personal plans for success? If we think back on the previous points made, half of the time - what we think God is doing in/for us are actually things we made up for ourselves.

With that being said, why spend the time telling people about something -

A - God might actually have nothing to do with

or

B - Something you don't fully-know the details about

When Joseph (Genesis 37) told his brothers about a dream he had where they would all bow down before him.. Did he really tell them for the "goodness of the Lord" or was he rubbing salt in a wound? He was already their dad's favorite. Jacob had just given him an elaborately decorated coat... And now let's talk about how I will lead above you all one day in life.

After telling them this dream, without any successful buy-in, Joseph tells them about a second dream and includes his father on the tale. Mind you, Joseph was daddy's favorite and even Jacob wasn't a fan of being told he would bow down to his son one day.

Can I let y'all in on something....? Jacob had the dream, but he didn't have the details.

Joseph's purpose was in the dream, but even (in that moment) he did not realize the hell he would go through while that dream became a reality.

Pastor Michael Todd (Lead Pastor of Transformation Church - Tulsa, OK) just preached about a perspective of this... Joseph telling his brothers about his dreams did not have anything to do with it coming true. If anything, what he expected his path to be was nothing like the reality of how it came to pass.

I think we could all use the lesson of keeping our mouths shut until the "dream" becomes an actual accomplishment.

At the end of the day, we can taint our purpose by prematurely involving people in a plan God designed just for us. We can also never achieve our purpose because we are too busy pursuing our personal goals and potential. We do not serve a "check the box" God.

Our purpose for Him is not based on all the things we can do in our own will. It would be an extreme misfortune if we achieved all the world has for us and none of what God planned.