Purpose

Feb 9, 2021

"And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness… For God knew His people in advance, and He chose them to become like His Son..."

- St. Paul, Romans 8:26, 29

"The Purpose of Life is to live a Life of Purpose."

- Anonymous

Years ago, in NYC, a well-known gangster died. His brothers, also notorious bad guys, went to the priest that would officiate his memorial and threatened, "You better give our brother a favorable eulogy… or else!" Conflicted, the priest struggled with his dilemma. Finally, on the day of the funeral, before a packed church, the priest stepped up to the pulpit, looked out, and said, "Well… what can I say?... You all knew Louie, but compared to his brothers… Louie was a Saint."

Compared to Louie, we might not look so bad. But the standard isn't Louie… it's Jesus!

In Romans 8, the Apostle Paul states that God chose us the same way He chose the twelve disciples. Out of billions of people, Jesus chose twelve men to be the builders of God's dream on planet earth… to create a world of people who would love God and love their neighbors like themselves. It's really an amazing thing. To start with, He did not choose them because of the way they were... He chose them because of what He knew they could become through His Spirit infused with God's purpose in them. The disciples were passionate about God's purpose for their lives, and they were rewarded with the power of the Holy Spirit.

A news article said that she was at the end of her rope… and decided to take her life. The water was frigid and the bridge was high. She climbed over the railing and threw herself off. As she hit the water, a fisherman on the bank saw her and without thinking, jumped in to rescue her. Immediately, his waders filled with water and he began to sink. "Help! Help! Help!" he yelled. The young woman, who had tried to end her life, heard him drowning, and somehow managed to swim over to him, pull him up onto the bank, and administer CPR. Someone called 911 and both were rushed to the hospital… and both survived. The journalist who wrote the story said, "That night, it wasn't the man who saved her life. It was "Purpose" that saved her life."

God has a dream for you, and if you seek Him, He will reveal it!

Dreams are like your children… they are your off-spring. They are the joy of your present and the hope of your future. Protect them! Feed them! Encourage them to grow. Because as long as you have a dream, you will never grow old! What do you dream about? What has God enabled you to see that does not yet exist? "Listen," the Apostle said in another place,