Purpose

Not sure about all of you out there, but for me there have been times when people ask me what is my purpose in life. Do I want to be an Air Force engineer all of my life. There are even times I ask myself what is my own life's purpose, my life's mission, or what I want to achieve in life. In what ever form the question is posed, it boils down to challenging myself to come to a conclusion what it is that I want to do with my life.

Perhaps many would be familiar with answers like "I want to build up a God-loving family", or "I want to be an engineer and contribute to the society", or "I want to be a teacher, where I can positively influence the lives of the younger generation", or even more generic ones like "I want to lead a life where I can be happy", "I want to be part of God's plan to build up the Church by contributing in various ministries", "I want to be a missionary in my every life, to spread of Gospel of truth to those around me".

These nobles wishes and desires seem almost immediately appealing and apparent. It seems to be VERY important to many people that one should have a clear "purpose" or "mission" in life. There can be many purposes that different people can conceive and live their whole lives perfecting that conception. But has God really created us just so that we can have all purposeful, meaningful lives that contribute to the Kingdom of God the way we're perceiving it today? What about the outcast who are down in spirit, living in poverty, having no access to Churches through which they can contribute to build up the Kingdom of God? How then can they have "meaningful" and "purposeful" life the way we're so used to associating these terms. What if we're to lead a life with no "purpose", no "tangible achievements", or "no direction".

"What has always been and still is most dear to me and sweeter and more acceptable is whatever the Lord my God is most pleased to let happen in me and to me, for my only desire is to be found always conformed and obedient to his will in everything" - St Francis of Assisi .

To St Francis, it is not what he wants to achieve through his life of poverty and simplicity, or what his purpose in his life is, that drives him to be who he was and is today. It was his sole desire to be obedient to God that drives him in all his choices, not his perceived "purpose" of his life nor his desired "achievements" in this world that was behind his unwavering love for God and the poor.

The secular world has taught us well to lead a "purposeful" life. Life is too short for us to "waste" our time not knowing what directions we want to take in life. People who are not clear about what they want to do in life, or what they want to achieve in this limited life of theirs is wasting away... But really, should we get so hung up about identifying the "end" and working towards it, or is it wiser for us to focus on the "means" and choose each step of our life wisely. Aren't all of us going to end up dying, and meeting God one day?

The "end" that the world preaches is about being successful, but the "end" that God has meant for us is about our final meeting with Him at the end of time. The "purpose" that the world has planted in our minds is a myriad of possibilities that can be created with our very hands if we want it bad enough and work on it hard enough. The "purpose" that God has meant for us is one and only - to be obedient in whatever situations He has placed before us.

We're not at a buffet from which we can pick and choose what dish we want to be served. We can if we want, but at the detriment to ourselves. Rather, we're at a restaurant where God serves us each dish every day, a dish that according to His perfect wisdom is best for us, and all we're called to do in this life is to obey, to lose our own human control and to trust in His love and His perfect will. THIS is our purpose.

I wonder what took me so long to find my purpose.