God's will
Doing The Work
Doing the work in the context of fulfilling your purpose in life is portrayed in the life of Jesus. When praying to God toward the end of his days on earth, he was able to say, “I glorified You on the earth, having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do.” (John 17:4, NASB)
Inevitably, we will all stand accountable to our Creator at the end of our days on this earth. We must balance the joy of living with the wisdom to know that we have been placed in this particular century for “…such a time as this.” (Esther 4:14b NASB)
God, in His wisdom, did not create us with the capability to know what our life span would be; but He has wisely instructed us to know that we have all been assigned a number of days. In his season of severe trials, Job declares the finality of our lifespan on earth:
“Since his days are determined, the number of his months is with You; And his limits You have set so that he cannot pass…” (Job 14:5 NASB)
If we take our cues from Jesus, He not only taught us how to live a godly and fruitful life, but that His work on this earth was to glorify God. We know that in His final days Jesus clarified God’s assignment by declaring in John 17:
- that all that God had given Him were given eternal life, that they may know God, the only true God and Jesus Christ (vs 2-3)
- the Words that were given Him from God, were given and received by His followers (vs 8)
- His followers understood that He came forth from God (vs. 8)
- That God would keep His followers (vs 12)
God has a good plan for our lives. When we choose to keep Him first, knowing Him and discovering His will for our lives becomes a delight through the highs and lows of life. When our hearts are solely devoted to fulfilling His will, His favor abounds.
“Delight yourself in the Lord; and He will give you the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4, NASB)
Let’s live on purpose!
True Love
When I was a child, I sought to be loved by my father, I did everything I could to please him. Driven by my deep desire to earn his love, I worked very hard at it only to learn later that he expected so much more out of others than himself. By the time I entered my teens struggled with whether or not I would ever win his affection. His authority was as clear as the military man he was, requiring strict discipline to his rules and the inevitable consequences (often to harsh) routinely applied for not living up to his standard. I came to believe that love must be earned and that love is conditional.
Then God happened. I began a confusing journey after experiencing His unconditional love apart from performance. It took some time in getting to know God and to believe that He had the best intentions for my life through His Son, Jesus, the Christ. His love brought me into a freedom I had not known before and it eventually replaced the strongholds of false beliefs that I had about love. God’s love is unconditional and can never be earned, it is freely given.
“For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38-39 NASB)
No one on this earth can offer us such unconditional love except God. No one. It is a gift freely given when we become His child.
God’s love frees us up to become all we’ve been called to become in this world and prepares us for an eternal life in His presence. Seek God with all your heart and you will find true love, which in turn will make your life better in loving others.
“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28 NASB)
loretta j. willis, author 