Your Purpose in Life...

                                 

At one time or another you've probably asked yourself, "What is the purpose of my life? What is its meaning? Why am I here on Earth, and what am I supposed to be doing?"

Mark Twain once said, “There’re two important days in your life, the day you were born, and they day you find out why”. So let me pose a question. Have you figured out why?

Chances are, you work tirelessly, be it as an accountant, barber, chef, bus driver, nanny, teacher, house wife, the list goes on. Our days are filled with endless chores and to-do lists that never end. Perhaps sometimes, when you get tired or stressed out, life can seem like just one long and meaningless exercise, that at the end of the day leaves u with no fulfillment.

I’m sure that, for the majority of us, given the right circumstances, we could do much more than we’re doing now. Perhaps you long to make a real difference in the world, pursue those childhood dreams that you had, to assign meaning to your life in whatever you do, and to listen to the yearnings and passions of your very soul.

People that we know as successful in sports, great speakers, philanthropists, inventors, those that have left a positive impact on this world, all had a vision and a passion to do whatever they set out to do. These people are not any different from you and me. All they did was pursue their self-defined goals, dreams and passions with steadfast dedication and unwavering determination.

You see, each and every person on earth was created for a purpose. That means none of us is an error. Not even that child born in abject poverty by a homeless woman, or even as a result of the worst possible imagination, rape.  

Jeremiah 1:5 says; “Before you were even formed in your mother’s womb, I knew you…”

Just imagine with me the odds of you having been born. Scientists say that man releases up to 500 million sperms during ejaculation. However, many of them die immediately upon ejaculation. For the sperm that survive, it’s the start of a long, arduous journey through the female reproductive organs to find that newly released egg. Imagine this, of the nearly 500 million sperm that are released during ejaculation, only a maximum of 200 sperm ever reach the egg to even have a shot at fertilization, and of these, only one sperm succeeds this process. That’s YOU!

So it’s safe to say, based on those 1 in 500 million odds that, you and I are definitely not a mistake!  

Just as musicians must make that good music, poets must write, preachers must preach, and artists must paint, we all are born with a unique gift designed for a specific vocation that will eventually bring both meaning and purpose to our lives. True joy and happiness will continue to elude us until we discover, and use that gift to become who we were born to be.

"Hide not your talents. They for use were made. What's a sundial in the shade?" -- Benjamin Franklin

Most of us will spend life’s eternity without discovering our purpose in Life.  You may have all the money in the world, all the expensive toys and material things your wealth can afford you, but you will still have that elusive feeling that something is amiss. And until you find your purpose, life will continue to be an unsatisfying chore, lacking fulfillment, satisfaction and peace of mind.

There are different suggested ways to finding your purpose. I will share with you 4 seemingly simple, but critical questions.

1. WHAT ARE YOU GOOD AT/WHAT ARE YOUR PASSIONS?

No matter who or where you are in life, or what has happened in your life or career, you have a lot of gifts, talents and abilities. But it’s nearly impossible, to use your strengths if you don’t know what they are. So ask yourself these talent-clarifying questions. Please write down the answers to each of them.

• What are your dominant gifts/talents?
• What are you actually best at?
• What natural abilities do you seem to possess?
• What do you do that gets a positive response from the people you respect?
• What do you do that does not seem like work, regardless of the difficulty and hustle?
• What do you do that causes doors in life to open with ease for you?

Next find 5-7 people, and ask them to list 7 gifts and talents they see in you. Afterwards compare the lists and note down the most repetitive talents listed. After this, you will be on your way to clearly identifying what it is you’re good at.

2. WHAT GIVES YOU THAT TINGLING EXCITEMENT?

What turns your energy levels soaring?  What doesn’t?

• What dreams kept recurring in your childhood? What are your dreams today? What would you do if you knew you could not falter or fail? What would you do if you had everything you need?
• What stirs your passions? What do you believe in? What to you is worth living for, and dying for? What things do you enjoy the most socially, at work, or home?
• What are you truly passionate about?
• What do you love spending your spare time on?
• What desires keep constantly tugging at your heart?
• What motivates you when you are at your most productiveness?
• What do you do that elevates your emotional and spiritual levels?
• What work do you love to do and what would you really like to do?
• What would you choose to do, even if no one was paying you to do it?

Those things that upset you are also a good clue to your purpose in life. So ask yourself this:

• What grieves your heart and infuriates you the most?  
• What troubles your spirit?

 Take time answering the above questions. Your answers may point out one or more problems you want to solve, which will then point to your purpose, or atleast a part of it.

 3. WHAT DIFFERENCE DO YOU WANT TO MAKE IN LIFE?

You may have a good life being totally self-serving, but you will not have a great life. Most people on their death bed always have one answer in common when asked about anything, and that’s the hope of making a difference in others if given another chance in life.

Making a difference doesn’t have to be on the grand scale of Mandela, Martin Luther King, or Mother Teresa. It could be right in your immediate family, workplace, church or community.

All you need to do is make the effort, one person, one day at a time!

4. WHAT WILL I BE REMEMBERED FOR?

In his famous commencement speech at Stanford University, Steve Jobs said:

“When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like, ‘If you live each day as if it were your last, someday you’ll most certainly be right.’ Since then…I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: ‘If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?’ And whenever the answer has been ‘no’ for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something. Your time is limited…Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition…Everything else is secondary.”

By discovering and eventually living your purpose, you are inadvertently creating your legacy.

On my quest to finding my purpose, I’ve come to realize among other things, that I have a passion for inspirational and motivational writing (hence the culmination of this blog project), a passion for encouraging men, starting in my sphere of influence, to be good role models,  great dads and family men. 
I actually do believe that some of my passions have been born out of past life experiences...

I truly hope and pray that you too shall get on this rather crucial journey to finding your purpose in life, if you haven’t already. Good Luck!

R.K