PURPOSE DRIVEN LIFE.    Day 6
Life is a temporary assignment

Point to ponder - The world is not my home       
Verse - "So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." 2 Corinthians 4:18
Question - How shoudl the fact that life is a temporary assignment change the way I'm living right now?        

When we go to buy a new car, one of the key things we look at is it's service rating. We want to know how long this car is going to last before we have to replace it. The reason for that is we don't want to invest a lot of money into something that will not last. The same should be true of our lives. Why waste time and money on things of the world that will not last? When we can be honest with ourselves on what is truly important and what will last, then we will begin to live for God and not ourselves. The things of the world will chnage and/or fade away, but the things of God or eternal.

PURPOSE DRIVEN LIFE.    Day 5
Seeing life from God's view

Tonight's answer is going to run very short. Everything that has happened to me recently has been a test from God. From my finances and not having a job to how I'm reacting to losing half my friends after Steph and I broke up on Christmas. I believe it has all happened as a test from God to check my character and to point out what I still need to work on in my life.

Now if I'm passing or failing, that is a different question and I'm not sure of the answer. I see lot of ways in which I'm passing, and a lot that I'm failing. I still spend too much money, and when you don't have any every penny is too much... I also see how I've reacted to the resent social issues and believe I'm passing in that. I'm not acating out towards either one of them (Jeremy or Steph) and I'm just accepting their behavior and trying to let it slide as best I can and not get me down. It still sucks to have a group of friends completely excommunicate you over a girl though.

PURPOSE DRIVEN LIFE.    Day 4
Made to Last Forever

Wow that is a tough question. One thing I should stop doing, I can think of tons. But with eternity in mind, the best answer I can think of is to stop worrying about tomorrow. Stop thinking abotu all the petty useless stuff that I'm bombarded with on a day to day basis and focus on the one thing that does matter, God. I guess that answers the second part of this question too. Bottom line, just focus on Him. Don't worry about the job thing, and think about what I can do to please Him. That's it, short and simple.

PURPOSE DRIVEN LIFE.    Day 3

Point to ponder - Livin on purpose is the path to peace
Verse - "You, Lord, give perfect peace to those who keep their purpose firm and put their trust in you" Isaiah 26:3
Question - What would my family freinds say is the driving force of my life? What do I want it to be?

I honestly don't know what my family and friends would say the driving force in my life is. I'd like to think people could plainly see that my drive is not on money or material things. I only want what I need to pay my bills and survive. I have no aspirations to be rich. At the same time I'm not fearless, but I dont think my fear drives me. I used to be a priduct of guilt, but I came to a realization a few years back that Jesus died so I didn't have to live in guilt. I've also lost anger and resentment in my life, although those used to be big ones for me too. I'd have to say right now, that if you asked anyone what force drives me, it's what others think about me.

I'm a very relationship-oriented person. I like friends, I need friends. This need to be in a social setting drives me to no ends. I can't stand to be in a big empty house alone. It's too quiet, too.... lonely. I just like people, being around them, talking to them, interacting with them. That, a lot of times, is my downfall, trying to please everyone and make everyone happy.

Now, what do I want my purpose to be? This should be an obvious one. God. He should be my purpose. living for Him and in according to His will for me.

PURPOSE DRIVEN LIFE.    Day 2
THINKING ABOUT MY PURPOSE

Point to ponder - I am not an accident
Verse - "I am your Creator. You were in my care even befor eyou were born" Isaiah 44:2
Question - What areas of my personality, background, and physical appearance am I struggling to accept?

The biggest struggles I have are with my personality. I'm too hard on myself at times and the first thing I assume when things go wrong is 'it's my fault'. It never dawns on me that maybe God has a different opinion of what I see around me. I look inside myself and focus on the negative things that happen and tr to find reasons forwhat went wrong, rather than looking to God and seeing what is right.

A good example of this is my Christmas experience this year. I was (and in some ways still are)  too busy trying to search within myself to find out what's wroing with me, rather than just looking to God and seeing what He sees is right in me. When this whole thing went down, i began to look around and it seemed that I had just lost all my friends. But then people began to come out of the woodwork to support me, people I never really talked much too or considered 'great' friends before. I look at this now and think, "maybe God was just showing me I was putting my trust in the wrong places. I was putting my trust in the creation, rather than the creator." I'm not saying it's bad to put a lot of stock in your friends, on the contrary, God calls us to fellowship with one another. I was putting my faith in either the wrong relationships or too much faith in relationships alone. I had put the relationships in the center where God belongs.

"...No the trauma you faced was not easy
And God wept that it hurt you so;
But it was allowed to shape your heart
So that into his likeness you'd grow..."  -Russell Kelfer

P.S. Thank you to those friends that have helped pull me through this difficult time (especially Chris, Kaci, Lori, Lori, Matt, Mike, Will)