Understanding Purpose, Day 20 We achieve what we achieve so that we can bring glory to God. Read Exodus 9:16. If you first read this verse by itself, it can be easy to think that it must be talking about Moses. However, God is speaking to Pharaoh in these verses. As we read through the entire chapter, we see that God is delivering the message of the plagues through Moses to Pharaoh. These words are meant for Pharaoh. God raised up Pharaoh for the very purpose of being able to demonstrate God’s power and proclaim his name through the world. God had purpose even for Pharaoh, who did not believe…

Understanding Purpose, Day 19 No one compares. Read Isaiah 46:10. In a comparison contest, there is no contest. God is the winner hands down over anything else. The other gods attempts to try to be like a God, but they fall far short. In this chapter in Isaiah, we see the comparison between the idols that so many others were following, and God almighty. We recognize that there truly is no comparison. Nothing can stand next to God. God himself is the one and only. His purposes will come about. There’s nothing any of those other little gods could do to change the purpose of the one true God. When…

Understanding Purpose, Day 18 Still breathing? Still purpose. Read Acts 13:36. As we look today at purpose, our scripture comes from the book of Acts, detailing much of the early church. This chapter tells of the sermons Paul was preaching. As Paul is going through and sharing the history of the people and how that points to Jesus Christ as the Savior, he makes this statement about David in verse 36. David served God’s purpose until he died. And when he had completed his purpose, that is when God brought him home. There are lots of additional context items in this chapter to be aware of, including realizing how David…

Understanding Purpose, Day 17 Different tasks, one purpose. Read 1 Corinthians 3:8. As we look at purpose, Paul has a lot to say to the churches about purpose. Today, we read in first Corinthians, that Paul was helping the people understand individual purpose. You see, we are each created uniquely with different gifts and abilities. God has created us that way so that we can do different things than those people around us. We’re not meant to do the same exact tasks as everyone else. Yes, God has purpose for us and desires that each one of us commit to his purpose in our lives. But the tasks that we…

Understanding Purpose, Day 16 Be zealous. Read Galatians 4:18. As we look at understanding purpose today, we see an interesting take on it. In this chapter, Paul is writing to the Galatians and they have, unfortunately, been led astray in a couple of areas. They have a lot of passion and are very zealous for what they’re doing, but it’s not been the right thing. He reminds them that it’s great to be zealous, when you’re zealous about the right thing. When you’re spending time being excited and passionate about God’s purpose, then that is exactly how God wants us to be. However, we must make sure that we are…

Understanding Purpose, Day 15 God’s actions, not our actions. Read Philippians 2:13. How do we fulfill the purpose of God? We allow God to do it through us. It can sometimes be a harsh reality that we are not ever going to be able to do God’s work. We aren’t strong enough. We aren’t holy enough. We are not able to fulfill all that God has for us. The beautiful thing is that God knows this and has created a way that His work can still be done through us. God works through us as we surrender our lives to him. That allows him to be able to prompt us…

Understanding Purpose, Day 14 Just one part. Read 2 Timothy 3:10. As we read today’s verse, I look back through the chapter. We see Paul is writing instructions to Timothy. Paul is trying to help disciple this young follower of Christ. Paul has been instrumental in helping him understand leadership and discipleship. Paul is reminding Timothy of just how well Timothy knows, Paul. He knows Paul’s purpose, his love, his faith, his patience, his teaching. And Paul wants Timothy to understand that all of those things work together. You cannot have purpose that is apart from patience. You cannot have faith that is apart from love. We can never get…

Understanding Purpose, Day 12 Guaranteed. Read Job 42:2. God’s purposes are guaranteed. We know that when God purposes to do something, there is no doubt that it will come to pass. Because God can do all things and orchestrate everything, when he wants something to be, nothing can stand in the way of that happening. God has purpose for each and every one of us. As we have been learning through these lessons, we can find ourselves in that purpose. We are to commit ourselves to that purpose. The exciting piece of that is, God’s purposes are guaranteed to happen. If we commit ourselves to understanding and living out God’s…