God's Plan for our Purpose

God's Plan for Our Purpose
By: Emily VanDeKeere

Jeremiah 29:11"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you hope and a future."

There is always a purpose for things. There is a purpose to why we learn and go to school, there is a purpose why we have a president, and there is even a purpose as to why we pray to God. But I have always wondered what our purpose is and why God sometimes puts us in a certain place. So what is our purpose?

 Even though God puts us in certain places for a reason, we may not always know his purpose yet. For example, I don't entirely know why I was brought to Holy Cross except that my parents wanted me out of my old school. But as I think about it more and more, I've sort of put two and two together. What I figured out was that the younger grades look up to the older kids and that you can impact the younger grades in even the smallest ways. And I have seen this happen in my three/four years at Holy Cross. In fact, eighth grade has entirely has made a difference to the younger kids. This was eighth grades purpose but do you know your own purpose? I 'll get to that point in a second but I think now would be a great time for a story!

When I arrived at Holy Cross, I didn't really think that I would have much of a purpose. For the first two years of school at Holy Cross, it was just like regular school where you follow directions, turn in assignments, and pay attention in classes. Faith families in chapel were also pretty normal too. Just to clarify, faith families is a short time where the older grades such as sixth, seventh and eighth grade lead the younger kids in a mini lesson about what was learned in Chapel that day. Leah, a seventh grader and I were put together as Faith family leaders, but really she would mostly lead the Faith Family. However, in seventh and eighth grade I have realized that there has been a purpose all along. I started to notice how much the younger classes look up to the older classes such as seventh and eighth grade. You can impact their lives and lifestyle values as well. You really see it everyday. Sometimes the younger kids that are in kindergarten through fifth and even sixth grade might come up and hug you or say hello. And when I lead Faith Families every other Wednesday, I not only see the younger kids become more friendly and active, but I also see  that the other Faith Family leader, Cate has become a little less shy and leads more often. You see my point is that even if you can't see your purpose in the beginning, you can see it more clearly in the end.

People in the Bible had a purpose that God had planned for them. In fact, God's one and only son, Jesus Christ had a purpose that God made or him and that Jesus knew about. God planned that Jesus, would be the world's Savior and save us from sin. But before Jesus would go to die on the cross, he spent his time preaching and making an impact on the people around him. He would talk about God's love for us as well as impacting other people such as the family who's daughter had died and Jesus rose her from the dead. Or the woman who was going to be stoned to death and Jesus saved her from dying and told her to "Sin no more". Jesus caused people to believe in God and free them from the grasps of sin. 

Everyone has a purpose in life. And no matter what that intention is, just know that God planned for you to take on an objective in life so that you could learn more about God's plan for you through your action as well as impacting the people around you. Everyone is unique and special in God's eyes and our purpose makes us even stronger individuals. Whether you are a surgeon who saves people lives daily, or even just a Starbucks barista who smiles and says hello to all of your customers, your purpose is important. Maybe you think that you don't have an aspiration for your life yet, but that's okay because God has got it all worked out. By trusting God, you can have a better understanding of your purpose. So get out there, and find your purpose and God will be there for you every step of the way.

Matthew 5:13-16 "You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet. You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and hide it under a bowl. Instead they put it on a stand and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in Heaven.


Click here for a short Wideo that continues to talk about my message!