Strengthen By our Destiny
Devotion 4 - Strengthened by our Destiny
Pro.29:18 – “Where
there is no vision, the people perish: but he that kept the law, happy is he.”
Many people lose hope and lose meaning in life when their lives do
not have a clear direction. The lack of a solid vision for our lives often causes us to
lose courage. On the other hand, if we
truly believe our destiny, it gives us strength and courage to fight for our
dreams. Gandhi put it very
eloquently:
“Our beliefs become our thoughts. Our
thoughts become our words. Our words
become our actions. Our actions become
our habits. Our habits become our
values. Our values become our destiny.”
Design
for Destiny
The word of God leaves us in no
doubt that everyone of us is created for a special mission and purpose on this
earth.
Eph.2:10 - “For we are
His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared
beforehand that we should walk in them”.
While no one has been saved by virtue of good works,
the born-again believer is expected to perform good works. In attempting to
identify our individual calling and destiny, we cannot neglect to ask ourselves,
“What kind of good works is Paul referring to?” They refer to the good works that God has
prepared beforehand for each one of us -- even before we came into existence on
this earth.
Samuel, Jeremiah,
Samson, Jacob, John the Baptist, Paul and Jesus Himself were all prophesied of
before they came into the world. Hence, we see that prior to our conversion,
and even before we were born, God had already mapped out a spiritual plan for
us to fulfill His highest purpose. In other words, God has a distinctive
blueprint for every life. God is the great designer and we are all designed by
Him for destiny!
How many of us have perhaps
lived our lives carelessly so far, looking to our relationship with God as
essentially a passport to earthly blessings? How desperately we need a personal
revelation of the call of God on our lives, for it is only upon receiving such
a revelation that Paul and many other great men and women of God were
strengthened to sacrifice earthly comfort and satisfaction for the heavenly
reward ahead. Laying hold of our destiny
is one of the major keys to strengthening ourselves in the Lord. This itself should encourage us
to continue to run the race no matter how tough the journey.
One Thing in Paul’s
Mind
Paul understood that the Lord took hold of his life with
a goal in mind. And this is true for all of us. Thus, the one thing on Paul’s mind is to finish the race well. Despite all his
suffering, he strengthened himself and focused on running the race well and he
successfully fulfilled his destiny.
Philippians 3:13-14 – “Not that I
have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on,
that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.
Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of
it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward
what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has
called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”
We
see in his letters to the Corinthian Church how much he had suffered for the Lord
and kept himself strong and determined to finish the race. It is like the athletes who train
tirelessly for a gold medal at the Olympics. When they get tired and
discouraged, they imagined what it would be like to stand on the platform and
hear the National Anthem of their country being played. That mental image
spurs them on.
2 Cor.11:23-27 - “Are they
ministers of Christ? —I speak as a fool—I am more: in labours
more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more
frequently, in deaths often. From the Jews five times I
received forty stripes minus one. Three times I
was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was
shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep; in journeys
often, in perils of waters, in perils of
robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, in perils
of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils
in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils
among false brethren; in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness
often, in hunger and thirst, in fasting often, in cold and
nakedness—"
So, what is the prize
that should spur us on? What image should we keep in the forefront of our
minds? Maybe I could paint some pictures,
- the image
of us standing before the Father to hear Him say, "Well Done!"
- Having our
lives reviewed without any sense of regret or shame
- being
surrounded by those whose lives have been redeemed and restored partially
because of our faithful witness
- the joy of
that first moment when we see Jesus
2 Tim 4:6-8 - “For I am already being poured out like a drink
offering, and the time for my departure is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the
faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the
Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but
also to all who have longed for his appearing.”
Comments
Post a Comment