Renewed Purpose
Finding Your God-Given Purpose: A Journey of Renewal
There's something remarkable about grace. We don't earn it, we don't deserve it, yet God extends it freely to each of us. As we navigate life's complexities, we often find ourselves running low on spiritual energy, feeling like we're just going through the motions. Perhaps you've felt it—that sense of being stuck, like life is happening to you rather than you truly living the abundant life Jesus promised.
The truth is, we all need renewal from time to time. We're familiar with the concept in everyday life. License plates need renewing. Driver's licenses expire. Insurance policies lapse. Even marriages sometimes need the renewal of vows after years together. When something is renewed, it receives a fresh breath of life—it's resurrected, revitalized, ready to move forward with purpose.
More Than Just Existing
When we come to Christ, one of the first questions we should ask is: "God, what do you want to do with me?" Yes, salvation means we're going to heaven, but if that were our only purpose, God would take us home the moment we believed. The fact that we're still here means there's more to our story. We have a collective purpose: to reach others for Christ, to discover what God wants to accomplish through our unique lives.
The Apostle Paul addressed this very struggle in his letter to the church at Ephesus. He wrote: "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them" (Ephesians 2:10).
The word "workmanship" comes from the Greek word poiema—where we get our English word "poem." We are God's poem, His handiwork, His masterpiece. He is the author of our lives, and our purpose flows directly from Him.
Made On Purpose, For a Purpose
Here's a powerful truth: God made you on purpose and for a purpose. He doesn't love you because you're perfect—you're flawed, and so am I. But when God looks at you, He smiles not because you have everything figured out, but because He designed you. His ability to use you isn't conditional on your perfection; it's based on the reality that He created you with intention.
Think of a child bringing home a drawing from Sunday school—crooked lines, mismatched colors, barely recognizable shapes. To anyone else, it might look like scribbles. But to a parent, it's a masterpiece worth hanging in the office. Why? Not because it's perfect, but because their child made it.
That's how God sees you. Despite your imperfections, mistakes, and shortcomings, you are His creation, and He has good plans for you.
The Story of Saul's Transformation
The story of Saul, who became the Apostle Paul, offers a powerful example of renewed purpose. Before his transformation, Saul was a Pharisee dedicated to destroying the early Christian movement. He persecuted believers, approved of their deaths, and saw the followers of "the Way" as threats to Jewish tradition.
If anyone seemed beyond redemption, it was Saul. Yet God had different plans.
In Acts 9, we read about Saul's journey to Damascus, armed with letters authorizing him to arrest Christians. Suddenly, a bright light from heaven flashed around him, and he fell to the ground. He heard the voice of Jesus asking, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?"
This was Saul's divine disruption—a moment when God intervened to completely reorient his life around a new mission. Saul was struck blind, left helpless and dependent. For three days, he couldn't see and refused to eat or drink.
God then spoke to a disciple named Ananias, instructing him to go to Saul and restore his sight. Ananias was understandably hesitant—Saul was known for killing Christians. But God declared something remarkable: Saul was His "chosen instrument."
Despite everything Saul had done, God still had a purpose for his life.
When God Disrupts Our Plans
Divine disruptions come in many forms. For Saul, it was a blinding light and a voice from heaven. For us, it might be:
The party lifestyle that leaves us empty
The pursuit of popularity that ends in betrayal
The relationship we built our identity on that falls apart
The career we sacrificed everything for that suddenly feels meaningless
The financial security we chased that disappears overnight
God loves us too much to let us waste our lives on misplaced purposes. He will intervene—sometimes through circumstances, sometimes through people, sometimes through His Word, sometimes through hardship—to get our attention and redirect us toward His better plans.
The things we pursue—acceptance, money, relationships, success—can all disappear. But a life built on God's purpose stands firm. When we align ourselves with what He's called us to do, we discover meaning that transcends temporary circumstances.
The Path Forward
How do we discover our renewed purpose? First, understand that God's purpose for your life will always align with His Word. He never contradicts Scripture. Second, recognize that His purpose is usually something we cannot accomplish on our own—it requires faith, dependence on Him, and stepping beyond our comfort zones.
The journey may feel like climbing a mountain. The valley looks long, the peak seems impossibly high. But when you finally reach the top and look back at how far you've come, you realize God was with you every step of the way.
Your past doesn't disqualify you. Your mistakes don't eliminate you from God's plans. If God could use Saul—a murderer of Christians—as His chosen instrument to write much of the New Testament and spread the Gospel throughout the known world, He can certainly use you.
An Invitation to Renewal
Whatever has led you to this moment—whether it's a sense of emptiness, a realization that you've been pursuing the wrong things, or simply a hunger for more—know that God is ready to renew your purpose. He's waiting to show you the good works He prepared for you before you were even born.
The enemy wants you to believe you're too far gone, too broken, too ordinary to be used by God. But that's a lie. God specializes in taking broken vessels and filling them with His power and purpose.
Today can be your divine disruption moment. Stop trying to do life on your own strength. Stop building your identity on things that won't last. Open your hands and your heart to whatever God wants to do in and through you.
The battle may be intense, but the victory is assured. God has a purpose for your life, and it's time to walk in it.
There's something remarkable about grace. We don't earn it, we don't deserve it, yet God extends it freely to each of us. As we navigate life's complexities, we often find ourselves running low on spiritual energy, feeling like we're just going through the motions. Perhaps you've felt it—that sense of being stuck, like life is happening to you rather than you truly living the abundant life Jesus promised.
The truth is, we all need renewal from time to time. We're familiar with the concept in everyday life. License plates need renewing. Driver's licenses expire. Insurance policies lapse. Even marriages sometimes need the renewal of vows after years together. When something is renewed, it receives a fresh breath of life—it's resurrected, revitalized, ready to move forward with purpose.
More Than Just Existing
When we come to Christ, one of the first questions we should ask is: "God, what do you want to do with me?" Yes, salvation means we're going to heaven, but if that were our only purpose, God would take us home the moment we believed. The fact that we're still here means there's more to our story. We have a collective purpose: to reach others for Christ, to discover what God wants to accomplish through our unique lives.
The Apostle Paul addressed this very struggle in his letter to the church at Ephesus. He wrote: "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them" (Ephesians 2:10).
The word "workmanship" comes from the Greek word poiema—where we get our English word "poem." We are God's poem, His handiwork, His masterpiece. He is the author of our lives, and our purpose flows directly from Him.
Made On Purpose, For a Purpose
Here's a powerful truth: God made you on purpose and for a purpose. He doesn't love you because you're perfect—you're flawed, and so am I. But when God looks at you, He smiles not because you have everything figured out, but because He designed you. His ability to use you isn't conditional on your perfection; it's based on the reality that He created you with intention.
Think of a child bringing home a drawing from Sunday school—crooked lines, mismatched colors, barely recognizable shapes. To anyone else, it might look like scribbles. But to a parent, it's a masterpiece worth hanging in the office. Why? Not because it's perfect, but because their child made it.
That's how God sees you. Despite your imperfections, mistakes, and shortcomings, you are His creation, and He has good plans for you.
The Story of Saul's Transformation
The story of Saul, who became the Apostle Paul, offers a powerful example of renewed purpose. Before his transformation, Saul was a Pharisee dedicated to destroying the early Christian movement. He persecuted believers, approved of their deaths, and saw the followers of "the Way" as threats to Jewish tradition.
If anyone seemed beyond redemption, it was Saul. Yet God had different plans.
In Acts 9, we read about Saul's journey to Damascus, armed with letters authorizing him to arrest Christians. Suddenly, a bright light from heaven flashed around him, and he fell to the ground. He heard the voice of Jesus asking, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?"
This was Saul's divine disruption—a moment when God intervened to completely reorient his life around a new mission. Saul was struck blind, left helpless and dependent. For three days, he couldn't see and refused to eat or drink.
God then spoke to a disciple named Ananias, instructing him to go to Saul and restore his sight. Ananias was understandably hesitant—Saul was known for killing Christians. But God declared something remarkable: Saul was His "chosen instrument."
Despite everything Saul had done, God still had a purpose for his life.
When God Disrupts Our Plans
Divine disruptions come in many forms. For Saul, it was a blinding light and a voice from heaven. For us, it might be:
The party lifestyle that leaves us empty
The pursuit of popularity that ends in betrayal
The relationship we built our identity on that falls apart
The career we sacrificed everything for that suddenly feels meaningless
The financial security we chased that disappears overnight
God loves us too much to let us waste our lives on misplaced purposes. He will intervene—sometimes through circumstances, sometimes through people, sometimes through His Word, sometimes through hardship—to get our attention and redirect us toward His better plans.
The things we pursue—acceptance, money, relationships, success—can all disappear. But a life built on God's purpose stands firm. When we align ourselves with what He's called us to do, we discover meaning that transcends temporary circumstances.
The Path Forward
How do we discover our renewed purpose? First, understand that God's purpose for your life will always align with His Word. He never contradicts Scripture. Second, recognize that His purpose is usually something we cannot accomplish on our own—it requires faith, dependence on Him, and stepping beyond our comfort zones.
The journey may feel like climbing a mountain. The valley looks long, the peak seems impossibly high. But when you finally reach the top and look back at how far you've come, you realize God was with you every step of the way.
Your past doesn't disqualify you. Your mistakes don't eliminate you from God's plans. If God could use Saul—a murderer of Christians—as His chosen instrument to write much of the New Testament and spread the Gospel throughout the known world, He can certainly use you.
An Invitation to Renewal
Whatever has led you to this moment—whether it's a sense of emptiness, a realization that you've been pursuing the wrong things, or simply a hunger for more—know that God is ready to renew your purpose. He's waiting to show you the good works He prepared for you before you were even born.
The enemy wants you to believe you're too far gone, too broken, too ordinary to be used by God. But that's a lie. God specializes in taking broken vessels and filling them with His power and purpose.
Today can be your divine disruption moment. Stop trying to do life on your own strength. Stop building your identity on things that won't last. Open your hands and your heart to whatever God wants to do in and through you.
The battle may be intense, but the victory is assured. God has a purpose for your life, and it's time to walk in it.
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