A lot of people carry a quiet worry about purpose. They wonder if they've missed it. They wonder why God hasn't spoken. Some are waiting for a dramatic moment, the heavens opening and a voice announcing, "This is why I made you."

I want to take that pressure off you today. Discovering your purpose is not complicated. You don't have to force it, and you don't have to be anxious about it. There is a very simple way, and it's the same way you began your walk with God in the first place.

It's faith.

Everything in Christianity Is Led by Faith

Let's start with the foundation.

"The just shall live by faith" (Romans 1:17, KJV).

Everything we do as Christians is guided and led by faith. Our salvation journey began that way. "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved" (Romans 10:9, KJV). You believed in your heart, you confessed with your mouth, and you were saved.

That same process doesn't stop at salvation. It replicates itself all through your journey with God. I explained this in an earlier teaching on the three circles of Christianity: revelation, acceptance and confession. The way you received Jesus is the way you receive everything else in Him.

And that includes your purpose.

Step One: Ask, Then Believe You've Received

Here is the scripture that unlocks the whole thing:

"Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them" (Mark 11:24, KJV).

So what is this simple way to discover your purpose? Ask God. Pray about it. And then, immediately, believe that you now know what your purpose is.

Even if you didn't hear anything when you finished praying.

That's the part many of us struggle with. We pray, we open our eyes, and nothing seems to have changed. No voice, no vision, no goosebumps. So we conclude that God didn't answer. But Jesus didn't say, "Believe when you see it." He said, believe that you receive them when ye pray. The receiving happens in your heart first, by faith, and the having follows.

So after you've prayed, don't sit in suspense. Thank God that He has shown you, and just continue living your life.

Step Two: Live for His Pleasure

Now, what does "continue living your life" look like? This is where the general leads to the particular.

"Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created" (Revelation 4:11, KJV).

I've talked before about why God made you. All things were created for God's pleasure. When the scripture says "all things," that covers plants, animals, humans and every other thing that has been created. That's your general purpose: you were made for His pleasure.

So take a look at everything you already know how to do. Your skills, your gifts, your work, the things that come naturally to you. Ask yourself: how can I do this for the pleasure of God?

When you begin to fashion all of those things for His pleasure, you will invariably discover your particular purpose. You move from the general to the particular. You don't have to figure out the end of the road before you take the first step. You just start walking with Him, and the road reveals itself.

God Wants You to Know More Than You Do

Here's something that should settle your heart: God wants you to know your purpose more than you even desire to know it. It is His will for you to know. He isn't hiding it from you, and He isn't testing you to see how long you can stay confused.

And remember who you are. If you've received Jesus Christ into your heart, you have been made righteous.

"For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:17, KJV).

The righteous are the just. So if you are a Christian, you are the just. That's your nature now. And the just shall live by faith. Your lifestyle, your pattern of living and everything you do has to flow from faith, including walking in the purpose God created you for.

That means you should not entertain fear or worry at all on this subject. Don't let thoughts like "I'm living a purposeless life" settle in your mind. The moment you begin to desire to know your purpose, know that it's going to be revealed to you. Someone who reigns in life doesn't live in panic about whether God will show up.

It Doesn't Have to Be Dramatic

Many people miss what God is saying because they're waiting for something spectacular.

God can certainly speak to you clearly, even verbally. But it might not happen in a place of desperation, and it might not happen the moment you finish praying. As you continue doing what you should be doing, God can send someone to you. It might be a TV program you're watching. It might be a book you read. It might be something random and simple.

It has nothing to do with God opening up heaven and sending down a dove just to tell you, "Oh, this is why I made you."

In fact, even with Jesus it wasn't like that. When the dove came upon Him at His baptism, a voice from heaven said, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:17, KJV). That moment confirmed His identity. It wasn't an announcement of His purpose. His purpose, as Scripture shows us, was to save mankind, deliver us from sin, give us righteousness and bring us into eternal life. But that wasn't the message of that moment.

Follow the Instructions You Have Now

Look at Paul. He fulfilled his purpose. And how did he do it? He kept following the instructions God gave him per time. One step, then the next. At the end of the day, he arrived at exactly what his purpose was meant to be.

That's how it works for you too. As you follow through by faith, it keeps getting clearer. It keeps getting better.

Understand that your purpose is the bigger picture, but along the way God will give you goals, visions and missions for different seasons. Those instructions will change over time. What He asks of you this year may look different from what He asks of you in five years. That isn't confusion. That's growth. Each season's instruction is a piece of the whole, and when you're faithful with the piece in front of you, you're walking in your purpose.

Your Takeaway

Here's a simple practice for this week:

1. Ask. Set aside a few minutes and pray specifically: "Father, show me my purpose."
2. Believe you've received. When you're done, say, "Thank You, Lord. I believe I know it, and I'll see it unfold." Don't wait for a feeling.
3. Live for His pleasure. Write down three things you already know how to do. For each one, write one way you can do it for God's pleasure this week, then do it.
4. Stay alert. Pay attention to the people, books, conversations and even "random" moments God brings your way. Write down anything that stirs your heart.
5. Refuse worry. Whenever the thought comes that you're living without purpose, answer it with Romans 1:17: the just shall live by faith.

Then keep going. It will keep getting clearer.

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God bless you,
Michael Adegoke