Truly one of the things that began to transform my life into one filled with excitement, joy, and surprising energy was the knowledge that God had created me for a divine “purpose.” The knowledge of this truth will do the same for anyone who embraces it with all their heart. The minute this truth came into my consciousness I focused all of my strength and resources into fulfilling that truth. The knowledge that God had a divine purpose for my life filled me with both a peace, and at the same time an excitement, that I left all to walk towards my destiny.
Students at a number of colleges took surveys in which they answered serious questions about life. The number one question that the students wanted answered was “why am I here?” Specifically, students wanted to know why they are here on earth. They wanted to know “what is my purpose? ” All men and women carry this universal question regardless of their language, nation, race or education.
All men and women know in their innermost being that they are “special.” God in His wisdom and love planted this truth into our hearts. Yet, sadly, when Adam chooses to believe the lie of Satan in the Garden of Eden, he traded away that which made him special for a lie. When Adam ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, he traded God’s interpretation of special for his own thought processes. Adam traded the quiet peace of knowing God’s unmerited love for the ever-changing muddied sea of man’s reasoning. From that day forward man “measured” his value by an ever-changing arbitrary system.
From that day forward Adam began the long arduous and frustrating journey of trying to prove he was special by something he could accomplish, own, or earn by some recognition that man bestowed upon him. Every time he reached one of these goals, he thought would restore him to the peace he knew when he walked with God. Adam was bitterly disappointed and soon found himself on another treadmill to try to prove he had value.
Nothing, including wealth, accomplishment or recognition in the world can give us the peace that we long for. That peace comes from just one source. God has so designed us that He will not allow anything less than fellowship with Him to give us true and lasting fulfillment.
I was once asked to return to a Seminary and do some teaching. I asked the Lord what he wanted me to teach on. His answer was, “Teach them the difference between value and productivity.” The Lord went on to teach me that there is a great difference between the two. Almost every man woman and child on earth believes that our value is based on our ability to produce. It is the system by which this world functions. This worldview basis is on the principle from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. In truth, we never become truly productive until we recognize just how valuable we are.
The Lord went on to explain that the “value” of something is determined by the price someone is willing to pay for it. He continued by saying, “I paid the highest price that can be paid for mankind when I sent my Son Jesus to redeem mankind.
John 3:16-17
16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
NKJV
As I entered the room at the Seminary there were about forty or so men and women in the room. Yet, what I saw was shocking. Instead of seeing eager and progressive Seminary students, I saw a group of starving and mal-nourished men and women dressed in little more than rags. The Lord had opened my spiritual vision to behold this sight. As I taught the difference between “value” and “productivity”, it was an amazing sight to behold. The students began to loosen their rags and flesh and muscle began to be added to their bodies. When I finished teaching the classroom nearly erupted in rejoicing.
I will never forget one couple from the Philippines who stayed behind to talk to me. This couple was sitting behind a table and crying. Tears were flowing and they were filled with sorrow. I went over to them to ask what was wrong and they began to tell me their story. They said, “Bro. Rogers, this teaching was just for us today.” They went on to say, “You see, we were ministering in the Philippians but we were not doing well by man’s standards, so we decided to come to this University and earn our Masters degree. We said if we have our Masters degree, we would then be recognized and important. We are ready to graduate and we are now heavily in debt. We are less known now than we were in the Philippines. We have no ministry here and everyone here has degrees and positions higher than ours. We are so discouraged we can hardly go on.”
This brings us to the second covenant key to our destiny. That is the key of “problems.” When Joseph discovered his destiny by the dreams the Lord gave him, he shared those dreams with others. As he began to share his dream, it immediately began to send him down a long journey of problems and pain. I believe that one of the main purposes of the problems we begin to encounter when we start on our journey of “purpose,” is to deliver us from what we think is “success.” The longer we cling to our false ideas of what success is the greater and longer lasting will be the problems.
What the Lord is really doing during these seasons of “problems,” is removing the “tree of knowledge of good and evil” from our life. I tell you this; the “tree of knowledge of good and evil” is so ingrained in us that it often takes us a lifetime to erase its unrelenting influence. The fact that we are so opinionated proves our faulty measuring system. Are we not quick to give our evaluation of people, things and events to as many as will listen?
When the Apostle Paul made the following statement, he was speaking as one who had experienced and learned to walk in the “seven covenant keys of destiny.”
1 Cor 2:1-4
2 And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God.
2 For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.
3 And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.
4 And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:
KJV(emphasis mine)
Still, it is not easy to learn these lessons, and perhaps harder still to hold on to them. Perhaps now we are beginning to understand that after we discover that we have a divine purpose the Lord will begin to allow ever-increasing problems into our life until we no longer have any other opinion about success and value than His.
What happened to Joseph when he shared his dream with his brothers?
Gen 37:5
5 And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more.
KJV
Does that sound familiar? Our temptation here will be to become angry, upset and disappointed in our brothers for their failure to see how important and valuable our dream is. When in truth the Lord is not so much after our brothers as He is to deliver us from “the tree of knowledge of good and evil.” Remember, our problem is tree of personal opinion. It took many years of discipline and difficulty for Joseph to be delivered from His opinions. Watch what happens to Joseph’s opinion of himself after he has gone through the years of problems and discipline. His answer to Pharaoh is truly revealing.
Gen 41:15-16
15 And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I have had a dream, and there is no one who can interpret it. But I have heard it said of you that you can understand a dream, to interpret it.”
16 So Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying,” It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh an answer of peace.”
NKJV
Prior to his season of discipline and problems Joseph would have answered Pharaoh in a much different manner. Instead of saying, “The answer lies with God,” he would have said, “Yes; I am gifted to interpret dreams.” And Joseph would have listed all of his qualifications and showed him his resume’. Do you know what would have happened if he would have done that? He would have gone back to prison. It would not have been Pharaoh who sent him back, but God. How many times will we have to be sent back to prison before we learn to answer, “It is not in me?”
MORE TO FOLLOW
Apostle Bob Rogers
check out www.onemillionvoices.wordpress.com
