Purpose

"More [people] fail through lack of purpose than lack of talent." -Billy Sunday

God Has A Plan, Even If We Dont See It

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD,“plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.". Jeremiah 29:11

I pray that I not only remind myself of this every day, but that God shows me this every day, whether in big or small ways. God always knows what he's doing, even if we don't understand.

Who We Are

We need to remember to think of ourselves as God sees us...as the individuals He created us to be, with the talents, character and calling He gave us. We are not just the sum of our experiences, successes or failures. We are not just who people say we are. We are not just who WE think we are. We have a purpose, and a God who loves us, all the time...not just when we think we are doing everything right.

Self-Esteem:  The Cambridge Dictionary defines self esteem as: “Belief and confidence in your own ability and value.”
Self-esteem, by its very words—‘esteeming self’—often results in either arrogance and superiority (for those who think they deserve a lot of esteem) or self-consciousness and self-loathing (for those who think they deserve little esteem).

The right kind of confidence can only be based on true self-worth—believing you are a valuable person to be respected and loved. Without this deep sense of worth you can never be truly happy. Most parents automatically give a sense of worth to their children by loving and adoring them unconditionally. And while a parent’s love is a great start, it isn’t all we need.

“It is often said that to have a fulfilling life, three essentials are required: a clear sense of personal identity, a deep sense of faith and meaning, and a strong sense of purpose and mission…If you don’t answer the most important questions of your life, then you will be gullible for any crazy idea(s) that you encounter” (Vertical Thought Editorial June 2008).

The Way Appointed

One aspect of the mystery of God's sovereign will is how the calculated evil of men is not only permitted, but actually becomes a necessary part of the divine plan. We are tempted to think of the wrongs done to us as hindrances, frustrations, interruptions. "What has this got to do with the will of God?" we ask, irritated and, we suppose, justifiably impatient with human interference. But the truth is that both our time and our way are in God's hands--they are "appointed." Surely it is so for all his sons as it was for the Son of Man. When He was on the verge of being "handed over for crucifixion," and betrayed by one of his own disciples, He said, "My appointed time is near....One who has dipped his hand into this bowl with me will betray me. The Son of Man is going the way appointed for him" (Mt 26:18, 24 NEB).

Out of the deepest depths of human evil the good God brought salvation--the very salvation of man whose sinfulness killed the Son He sent.

Nothing can reach us, from any source in earth or hell, no matter how evil, which God cannot turn to his own redemptive purpose. Let us be glad that the way is not a game of chance, a mere roll of dice which determines our fortune or calamity--it is a way appointed, and it is appointed for God's eternal glory and our final good.

by Elisabeth Elliott

Daily devotions courtesy of Devotions.org, a ministry of Back to the Bible.