Ephesians 2:10 / ESV
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
God is intentional in everything He does. Nothing is by mistake, including when He created you and me. We were designed on purpose, for purpose. And just as no two of us are alike, neither is our specific purpose. Have you ever looked at someone who was really great at something and wished you could do what they do? Or maybe noticed someone with talent in the same area as you and started comparing yourself to them because you felt they were much better at it? This is a trap we can so easily fall into when we don’t understand our purpose - I’ve been guilty of it myself – and, one thing the enemy doesn’t want us to do is discover our purpose. Why? Because we have the power of Christ that dwells in us. We were created for good works, and lives are changed when they encounter our purpose.
Within our purpose is the ability to reach, touch and impact others. First, to draw and point those to Christ who don’t know Him. Second, to encourage and build up those who do. This world is full of lost and hurting people who need the love and hope only found in Christ Jesus. Anywhere people are, is where purpose can unfold. The places we work, the businesses we frequent throughout our day, and the families we live with. This is the world we were purposely designed to reach. Your world doesn’t look like mine, and mine doesn’t look like yours. The scenarios may look the same, but the people we come in contact with are different. The young man at the gas station who needs a few dollars to fill his tank. The single mom in the grocery store who is juggling her crying infant while trying to fill her cart. The teenager at the park who is sitting alone under a tree with his head buried in his hands. Even the believer sitting next to us in church who looks like they have it all together, but behind the scenes everything is falling apart.
When we can look at it from that perspective, levels of ability become quite insignificant. There will always be someone who appears to be better at something than we are, but purpose isn’t about who is better at what. Purpose is about reaching the potential we were created for. Sometimes that might mean we find ourselves standing next to someone else whose qualifications seem greater than ours. But don’t lose perspective.
What if, in these situations, we accepted the challenge to become better instead of comparing ourselves to one another? Rather than giving up on something when we feel we don’t measure up, we step up to the plate instead. And what if the other person’s purpose all along was to challenge us in this way so that we could fulfill our purpose? Iron sharpens iron. Sometimes the uncomfortableness of someone else appearing to be better at something than we are can be a good thing because it challenges us to grow in order to accomplish the things we were always capable of doing in the first place.
God wouldn’t call us to do something if He didn’t have a plan or a purpose for the things He called us to do. Because we were created on purpose and for purpose, we have everything we need to fulfill that purpose!
Proverbs 27:17 / ESV
As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.
Proverbs 16:9 / ESV
The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.
Matthew 28:19 / ESV
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Ephesians 2:10 / ESV
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
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