HOW TO DISCOVER YOUR PURPOSE.

CONTINUATION

Where purpose is not known, abuse or abnormal use is inevitable. When you don’t know your purpose in life you begin to abuse your life. Many abuse their lives by putting alcohol and tobacco into them because they don’t know the purpose for which God has put them here.

In 1 Corinthians 6:19 Paul says, “Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?”

The Corinthian believers were living as people who didn’t know the purpose for which God called them. Paul expressed his disappointment with the Corinthians that there was immorality being done by them that non believers were not engaging in.

1 Peter 2:9 says, “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvellous light”

You are a royal priesthood, a holy nation set apart by God to go forth to declare the purpose of His praise who called you out of the darkness into His marvellous light. When purpose is not known, living a sinful life is inevitable.

ABRAHAM

How did Abraham discover his purpose? Babylon comes from a word baby which means confusion. In Genesis 12 the Lord visited Abraham and told him to leave that place. There are certain places that have spiritual dynamics around them that can keep you from fulfilling your purpose. The heathen sometimes understand and pay a lot of attention to the spiritual more than believers. Satanic agents exercise a lot of discipline concerning things in the spiritual realm and we believers survive on grace.

Sometimes to discover the purpose of God for your life you might even get out of your family location. We are all born in families but each one of us have a unique calling and this doesn’t mean that you denounce your family members but your calling might require you to move from your family.

A man shall leave his father and mother and the marriage calling causes you to leave. For you to serve the purposes of God, it might require you to leave your comfort zone. For some people it may require them to leave their jobs.

You can’t be fired from your calling but you can be fired from your job. No one can retire you from your purpose in life. Even in ordained ministry, you retire at 65 years but God can’t retire you from your calling. Many people don’t live long after retiring from their jobs. God hasn’t given us breathe and life to sit in a chair. Your purpose lives on until God Himself calls you home.

Abraham moved with Lot and later there was strife in the family until he had to separate from Lot. After Lot left, then God spoke to Abraham again. May God help us to know what to leave and to know who to leave so that we know our purpose. Abraham secured his purpose by building an altar. Your purpose in life can only be secured by prayer, by constant communion with God.

JACOB

How did Jacob discover his purpose in life? Jacob’s life was a cocktail of a lot of negative things. He was a conman and connived with his mother to steal his brother’s blessing. Returning home is returning to a place of communion with God. Jacob wrestled with the angel of God until he blessed him. Bless means to be empowered to make progress. Jacob’s name was changed to Israel.

The word name means to be. When God says I am it means He can be all we need Him to be. A name is a prophetic announced of your divine purpose. We may need divine encounters from God and they come in many ways. A divine encounter can come in through a crisis. Paul had an encounter in a crisis when he was blind.

JOSEPH

Genesis 37:1-9, Joseph used to bring bad reports to his father. He had a series of dreams and in one he saw bundles of wheat and one bundle was surrounded other bundles bowing down to it. In another, he dreamt when the sun, moon and eleven stars were bowing down. God revealed Joseph’s purpose through dreams. The book of Job talks about how God speaks through dreams. We need to pray that God interrupts our dream lives so that when we are sleeping God speaks to us.

Never take your dream life lightly. Joseph eventually became a leader and his brothers eventually bowed down to him when they came to Egypt.

MOSES

How does Moses discover his calling? In Exodus 2, when Moses grew up he found his people being mistreated by Egyptians and He killed one of them. When Moses grew up he began feeling this burden. Sometimes the burden that comes on your heart that doesn’t leave is a signal of what God is calling you to do.

Nehemiah was working in state house and was a chef to the king earning big but he had a burden about his home country when he found out that the walls were broken. He fasted and prayed because of the burden. The things God puts on you as a burden can be a signal for what God is calling you to do. Nehemiah the chef became the rebuilder of walls.

It is your purpose that defines you not your job. Your job is your occupation which can come to an end. Jeremiah is still referred to as Jeremiah the prophet even when he is long dead and it is your purpose in life that defines who you are.

In Hebrews 11:24 when Moses grew up, he refused to be called the son of Pharaoh. Moses chose to deny himself the temporary pleasures of life and he chose to suffer for the purpose of God.

Growing up is the key to knowing your purpose. Spiritual growth is very important because when you are spiritually grown up that you are able to leave your comfort zone. Elihu was the youngest of Job’s friends who said that he thought wisdom came with age but he discovered that it is not about age but the spirit of the Lord in a man; the breath of the Almighty that gives a man understanding. Jesus was spiritually mature at the age 12 and you can find a man at 60 years of age who is spiritually immature.

In Genesis 3:1-10, Moses got another visitation while on his job and God appeared to him in the burning bush. Some people can discover their purpose while on their job. God caught his attention in the burning bush. Moses was concerned about a bush that is burning but not burning and he was attracted to it. Sometimes God catches your attention and he catches your attention to reveal His purpose. It can be through this way of catching your attention that God reveals His purpose to you.

JOSHUA

How did he discover his calling? Joshua discovered it by staying close to Moses and serving him as in Numbers 11:28. Joshua was referred to as Moses’ assistant or servant. Serving the servants of God can be a key to you knowing the purpose of God for your life. This is why we need hearts to be servants. Many of us want to be bosses but in the kingdom of God for you to be a boss, you must be a servant and Jesus demonstrated this clearly to his disciples that the key to greatness is service.

Joshua was serving Moses as his servant and that is how he discovered his called and ended up being the next leader of Israel. Exodus 3:1-10 shows us that God didn’t call Moses to deliver the children of Israel to the promised land but to deliver them out of Egypt. Joshua’s assignment was to take the children of Israel into the promised land and Moses’ assignment to take deliver from Egypt.

Exodus 33:11 says, “So the LORD spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. And he would return to the camp, but his servant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart from the tabernacle.” Joshua never left the tent of meeting and the tent of meeting was a place of communion with God. He was in constant communion with God. Being in the presence of God not as a part timer but as a full timer was a key for Joshua to know or prepare him to serve the purposes of God for his life.

One of our traditions as a diocese it that at the beginning of the year we tend to put January aside as a month of prayer and that is a good discipline but for you as an individual who wants to discover the call on your life and for you to know the purposes of God for your life you cannot part time and have only January as the month dedicated to waiting upon God because it must become part and parcel of your life.

How did Joshua confirm the purpose and call on his life? In Numbers 27:18-22, Moses placed his hands on Joshua. The servants of God we submit to God uses them to confirm or to affirm the call of God upon our lives. This was the same in the life of Elisha. When Elisha served under Elijah, he got to know more about his calling. Elijah put his mantle on Elisha.

SAMSON

How did Samson discover his calling? Through his parents who were instructed by the angel of the Lord who told them how Samson should live and how he was to be brought up as in Judges 13:1-12.

Even before Samson was born there was a calling upon his life. As parents, we need to discover the call on our children so that we know how to educate them and know what they should do.

Judges 13:8 says, “Then Manoah prayed to the LORD, and said, “O my Lord, please let the Man of God whom You sent come to us again and teach us what we shall do for the child who will be born.”

When Samson’s mother got the message from the angel and told her husband, in Judges 13:8 he prayed to the Lord for another visitation to know how to raise the child and that is the role of the parent. Don’t leave your children be raised up by television and internet, be involved in raising up your children. Don’t sacrifice your children at the altar of making money because you will lose them.

We need to prepare the children more than preparing for them. We prepare for their futures but we don’t prepare them. Through your parents, you can know the calling on your life if they seek the Lord.

SAMUEL

1 Samuel 3:1-10. Samuel was serving under Eli and he was in the temple in the presence of God. Samuel was not old when the Lord visited him and this shows that you can know your calling when you are very young. Samuel discovered his calling through the guidance of Eli but He also heard God directly.

Hearing God is important to you knowing the purpose of God in your life. God can reveal to you your purpose through other people but God desires to speak to you directly and that is why the bible says in Revelation 2:29 and Revelation 3:22 that Let he who has an ear hear what the spirit is saying to the churches.

SAUL & DAVID

How did King Saul and King David get to know the purposes of God on their lives? These were visited by a prophet. In 1 Samuel 10:1-8, prophet Samuel helped Saul to discover his calling. When Saul encountered prophet Samuel he got to know his calling. Through the prophetic you can know your calling/ the call of God upon your life. There are many false prophets around but every time when there is something false then there is something genuine. You can’t have a counterfeit bank note when there is a genuine bank note.

Jesus got to know about His calling through the opening of a scroll which was the word of God at that time For each one of us it is written about us in the bible and when you the read the bible you will know what your calling is and what your purpose is in life.

PREACHER: DR. DANIEL MAGUMBA