There is one very important question every human being needs to answer: why am I here on earth?

Not what job you should take. Not who you should marry. Why are you here at all?

I discovered my own purpose many years ago. It came through conversations with God, being curious, asking Him questions. I have been walking in that path ever since, and I can tell you this: knowing your purpose literally changes the direction of your life.

Your Purpose Existed Before You Did

God spoke to Jeremiah and told him something remarkable:

"Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee" (Jeremiah 1:5, KJV).

Think about that. There was a purpose for which Jeremiah was created even before he was formed in his mother's womb. And the same is true of you.

Make no mistake about it. There is no one without a purpose. It doesn't matter how you were formed. It doesn't matter who your parents are or what your background is. God has a specific purpose for you, and it is your duty to discover it.

Many people don't know this. Some have heard of "purpose" and think maybe there is one for them somewhere. Others believe they have a purpose but are having a hard time finding it. Wherever you are, start by settling this in your mind: you are not here by accident.

Your Purpose Is Not Your Job

Let me clear something up. Your purpose is not your job. It is not your career. It is not your marriage. It is not your business.

Those things are very important, and they feed into your purpose. But they are not the end in themselves. They are things that help you in the process of fulfilling your purpose.

Paul is a good example. He was a tentmaker. That was his job. But all of his time, effort and labour wasn't for tents. The job was there to support his purpose, which was reaching the Gentiles with the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Purpose Is the Beginning of Peace

When you discover your purpose, that is the beginning of absolute peace. I'm telling you.

Without it, you just wake up every day and there is no difference between one day and the next. You are on a path, but you don't know where it goes. There is no specific end.

With it, everything has meaning, because everything has to fit into your purpose. You cannot be tossed to and fro.

You are no longer so bothered about what you have or what you don't have. Material things are important in the fulfillment of your purpose, but your joy and satisfaction are not tied to them. They are not tied to comparing yourself with a friend, a family member, a neighbour or some so-called celebrity. You know what God wants you to do. You know why you are living.

Knowing your purpose can even guard you against depression. When something doesn't work out, you can say, "I know where I'm going. I know how to navigate my way." But when things aren't working and you don't even know where you're headed, everything becomes more confusing.

You've seen people climb the career ladder, get to the top and ask, "So what now?" The emptiness is still there. That is what happens when goals become the end in themselves instead of being channelled into purpose.

They Knew Why They Came

The Bible gives us the stories of people who knew exactly why they were here.

Moses was clear on his purpose: to lead the Israelites out of Egypt toward the promised land. He made some mistakes at the tail end of his life, but he fulfilled that purpose.

Paul knew that he was meant to spread the gospel among the Gentiles. Peter reached out to the Jews. Paul preached to the Jews too, but there was a focus, a direction to his life, and he wasn't distracted. At the end he could say:

"I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith" (2 Timothy 4:7, KJV).

Jesus is the best example. He came to bring salvation, and for that He had to die, be buried and rise on the third day. When He spoke about His death and Peter began to rebuke Him, Jesus answered, "Get thee behind me, Satan" (Matthew 16:23, KJV). He knew: this is why I came. If this doesn't happen, I don't fulfill my purpose.

One Measure for Every Decision

When you know your purpose, you have one universal metric by which you judge everything in your life.

Jesus made friends and disciples from the point of view of His purpose. He chose people who would help bring that purpose to fulfillment.

Your decisions should come from that same place: your friendships, your finances, your education, even where you live. You don't just move from one country or state to another without understanding your purpose. At certain times your purpose may require you to leave one place for another. Knowing it makes those decisions easier.

And your purpose is unique to you. God might send two people to the same state with the same assignment, but your personality, the way you speak, think and reason, is yours alone. You might arrive at the same point by different approaches, and that brings variety to the results. So nobody else can discover your purpose for you.

God Is Not Hiding It From You

Here is the good news. Discovering your purpose is not a mystery God has locked in a box, where you must fast for days and beg before He shows you. That is not it.

God is excited to show you your purpose. He wants you to know it more than you do, because it is the framework of your life, the skeletal structure of everything else.

Your spirit, your mind and your body were designed to bear the weight of your purpose. Think of a tractor. It isn't built like a sedan for moving on small roads. It is designed for heavy work. In the same way, God put things in your makeup, your personality, your talents and your gifts, arranged for your purpose.

There was a reason Jesus was born in Bethlehem and not somewhere else. There is design in how you were made too. When you discover your purpose, you begin to see how it all aligns: your education, your degree, your network, your relationships.

Purpose Is Eternal

This is why it matters so much. Purpose is the only eternal thing you can have as a human being.

Your job will end here on earth. Your money will expire here, unless you invest it in the kingdom of God by giving to God, giving to people and doing good works.

As Christians, we often think only about the first part: we have received salvation and eternal life, so we go to heaven. But there is a second judgment, where our works will be tested. Paul says:

"Every man's work shall be made manifest... and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is" (1 Corinthians 3:13, KJV).

Some works will burn and some will stand, and they will be tested according to the purpose God designed for us.

Your Takeaway

Here is how to start living on purpose:

1. Settle it in your mind. You are not here by accident. God knew you before you were formed (Jeremiah 1:5).
2. Separate purpose from position. Your job, career, marriage and business serve your purpose. They are not the purpose.
3. Ask God about it. He is not hiding it. Start the conversation with Him, be curious and ask questions.
4. Look at how you were made. Your personality, talents, gifts, education and relationships are clues to what you were designed to carry.
5. Measure your decisions by it. Let your friendships, finances and moves pass through one question: does this further my purpose?

In the next teaching, I'll share practical steps to discover your purpose. For now, settle this: you were made on purpose, for a purpose.

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God bless you,
Michael Adegoke