shaun

greg, think we could lend him rick warren's book ? - the purpose driven life


Its not about you.
The purpose of your life is far greater than your own personal fulfillment, your peace of mind, or even your happiness. Its far greater than your family, your career, or even your wildest dreams and ambitions.

Everything got started in him and finds its purpose in him. Colossians 1:16b

Everyone's life is driven by something.
Most dictionaries define the verb drive as "to guide, to control, or to direct." Whether you are driving a car, a nail, or a golf ball, you are guiding, controlling and directing it at that moment. What is the driving force in your life ?

Right now you may be driven by a problem, a pressure, or a deadline. You may be driven by a painful memory, a haunting fear, or an unconscious belief. There are hundreds of circumstances, values and emotions that can drive your life.

1. Many people are driven by guilt. They spend their entire lives running from regrets and hiding their shame. Guilt-driven people are manipulated by memories. They allow their past to control their future. They often unconsciously punish themselves by sabotaging their own success.

2. Many people are driven by resentment and anger. They hold on to hurts and never get over them. Instead of releasing their pain through forgiveness, they rehearse it over and over in their minds. Some resentment-driven people "clam up" and internalize their anger, while others "blow up" and explode it onto others.

3. Many people are driven by fear. Their fears may be a result of a tramatic experience unrealistic expectations, growing up in a high control home, or even genetic predisposition. Regardless of the cause, fear driven people often miss great opportunities because they're afraid to venture out. Instead they play it safe avoiding risks and trying to maintain the status quo.

4. Many people are driven by materialism. Their desire to acquire becomes the whole goal of their lives. This drive to always want more is based on the misconceptions that having more will make me more happy, more important, and more secure, but all three ideas are untrue. Possessions only provide temporary happiness. Because things do not change, we eventually become bored with them and then want newer, bigger, better versions. Your value is not determined by your valuables.

5. Many people are driven by the need for approval. They allow the expectations of parents or spouses or children or teachers or friends to control their lives. Many adults are still trying to earn the approval of unpleasable parents. Others are driven by peer pressure, always worried by what others might think. Unfortunately, those who follow the crowd usually get lost in it.

Without a purpose, life is motion without meaning,
activity without direction, and events without reason.
Without a purpose, life is trival, petty, and pointless.


"this world is fading away, along with everything it craves. but if you do the will of God, you will live forever." 1 John 2:17