PL 520

The Purpose Driven Life

Rick Warren

Zondervan, 2002

Sam-Abel Gbinsay

Bachelor of Arts in Pastoral Leadership

This Paper is Prepared for Newburgh Theological Seminary and

Newburgh College of the Bible

Date of Submission: 10/06/2023

 The Purpose Driven Life

By Pastor Rick Warren

Introduction

A Journey with Purpose

This book presents a forty-day spiritual journey of life and reading it one chapter a day will

only make your life worth living. As a guide, it will help you answer some of life’s important

questions like Why am I here? What does God benefit for creating me? As this journey ends

you will know that you are not an accident, but God have you here for a purpose. So, let the

journey with purpose begin.

Chapter 1

It All Starts with God

Genesis 1 verse 1 says, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”

If God intentionally created the universe including you, then you were created not to

merely exist but to live (impact and effect your surroundings) for God’s purpose. He is the

starting and the source of your life.

God intentionally created you to have needs and once you discover that life’s meaning

depends on living out his purpose for your existence; he takes care of your needs. Existence

and life begin with God because when he created existence, the most important thing he gave

existence was life. While philosophy seeks purpose through speculation God has given us the

alternative of finding the meaning and purpose of life through revelation, his Word. Jesus

Christ is that revealed Word through whom you discover your identity and purpose when you

come into a relationship with him.

Chapter 2
 You Are Not an Accident

If God did not ask for your approval before he created you, then your birth was not an

accident. The race to which you were born was chosen by God including all other physical

features and skills that you possess. Before you were ever born, God had it all worked out by

choosing the time of your birth, death, and the place where you would live out your purpose.

Woah! It’s amazing to know that there are no illegitimate children even though there are

illegitimate parents. The parents to whom you were born had the characteristics or DNA to

give birth to you as the only one of your kind. Long before God laid the foundation of the

world, you were in his mind, and he did design the world for your purpose borne out of his

love for you. However, when he gave life (his very breath) to the first human ever created; it

was to make him the most important of all his creation. Most importantly, the reason why

God made you is to make you the object of his love because he is love. You are not an

accident because there is God without whom all things, including you, would be an accident.

Chapter 3

What Drives Your Life?

There is no denying that every person’s life is driven by something and whatever drives your

life is the very thing that guides and control your life. Those whose lives are driven by guilt

allow the past to control their future. On the other hand, there are some who are driven by

resentment and such people never let go off their pain but either internalize their anger or

explode it onto others. While it is healthy to learn from your bitter past but never hold onto it

more than is necessary. Some others are driven by fear and fear is a kind of prison that is self-

imposed and stops you from becoming what God intends for you to become. The list of what

drives some people include materialism and approval or seeking validation.

The benefits of a purpose-driven life include the followings: purpose gives one’s life meaning
as life is unbearable without meaning; purpose simplifies your life as it is the standard you to

evaluate and manage your activities; purpose gives your life a focus and thus increasing your

impact: a life with purpose is a motivated life which produces passion; and finally, it is

purpose that prepares you for eternity because when you come to the end of your life it will

be what God says that matters and not what others say. We were not put on earth to be

remembered but instead build an eternal legacy by preparing for eternity.

Chapter 4

Made to Last Forever

You were created by God with immortality in mind and while you will spend forever in

eternity: your life on earth is but for a short time. Been created in the image of God is proof

that you were designed by God to live forever. Your life on may offer you many choices but

for eternity, it is either heaven or hell. While God may have a purpose for your life on earth,

that purpose also involves where you spend eternity after life on earth. Your eternal life is

guaranteed when you say yes to Jesus Christ.

Death or the end of your life on earth is the door that ushers you into eternity. Your life on

this earth is very brief, but it is the consequences of this earthly life that will last to eternity.

Therefore, you must live each day as though it is the last day of your life on this earth.

Chapter 5

Seeing Life from God’s View

Whether you see life as a carousel, a puzzle, a journey, or a minefield; it is your perspective

on life that determines your destiny and what you place priorities on. It is impossible to fulfill

God’s purpose for your life without first challenging conventional wisdom of what is life and

them replacing it with the biblical views of life. God’s word offers us three ideas that are

considered the foundation of a purpose-driven life, and these are: life is a test, life is a trust,

and life is a temporary assignment.

Life as a test is seeing in tests of character, faith, obedience, love, loyalty, and integrity

throughout the Bible. More than a test life is also a trust. The gifts, talents, and opportunities

that we have were given to us by God and require us being good stewards. There is nothing

we own that Gd did not give to us. Trust promises God’s affirmation, promotion, and

celebration.

Chapter 6

Life Is a Temporary Assignment

To make the most of this temporary life on earth, one must note that it’s extremely brief when

compared with eternity. More than its brevity, life is also a temporary residence, and you are

just passing through as a traveller. As God’s ambassador on this earth, you are not to become

comfortable with this world to the point of falling in love with its way of life. If you do, your

commitment and loyalty to God would be compromised.

The longings, discontent, and dissatisfaction in this life are meant to keep you from being

attached to this world as they will be fulfilled on the other side of eternity. You must put

premium of eternal values and not temporary values. Like Abraham and others in the Bible,

those who treat this life as a temporary assignment are considered the heroes of faith.

Chapter 7

The Reason for Everything

All of creation, including you, reveals God’s majestic and glory. In the Old Testament God

revealed his glory in the form of fire, thunder, cloud, and light. However, in the New

Testament, the glory of God is revealed in and through Jesus Christ as “the Son is the

radiance of God’s glory.” While all the rest of God’s creation continues to bring him glory, it

is fallen angels and human beings who failed to bring glory to God which became the root of

all sin.
You bring glory to God by fulfilling your purpose on earth for which you were created and

that includes worshipping him, loving other believers, becoming Christ-like, serving others

with our gifts, and by telling others about him. To live a life that brings glory to God, you

must believe that God loves you and made you for his purpose. Finally, you must receive

Jesus into your life as Lord and Savior.

Chapter 8

Planned for God’s Pleasure

Your birth is God’s pleasure as your existence and life is to his benefit, his glory, his purpose,

and to his delight. Your worth in life is determined by understanding the reality that bringing

enjoyment to God and living for his pleasure is the first purpose of your life. Whatever you

do to bring pleasure to God is an act of worship, that inbuilt need to connect with God. More

than just a music, worship is a lifestyle. We can therefore say that worship is not to your

benefit but to God’s.

What touches God’s heart in our worship is not the worship tradition (rules taught by men)

but the passion and the commitment. You should not see worship as part of your life but

rather see it as your life continually. The secret to a lifestyle of worship is to do everything as

if we are doing it for Jesus and falling in love with him.

Chapter 9

What Makes God Smile?

There are five acts of worship that bring God pleasure and make him smile. Loving God

above everything else brings him smile. You also bring God smile when trust him completely

even without understanding all the details. Another way to make God smile is to obey him

wholeheartedly, that is doing without reservation or hesitation as there is blessing in

obedience.
You want to know what makes God smile? You must learn to praise and thank him

continually in expressing your adoration and gratitude to him. Forgetfulness is

ungratefulness, and ungratefulness is unrighteousness and that’s why God said, “I am not

unrighteousness to forget your labor of love,” Heb. 6:10. The last act of worship that makes

God smile is using your abilities to get on with your life and fulfill the purpose you were

made for.

Chapter 10

The Heart of Worship

While we are taught in today’s popular culture to never give up or give in; on the contrary,

the heart of worship is surrender to God in love. The three barriers that often stop you from

surrendering to God are fear, pride, and confusion.

To surrender to God, you must be able to trust him and admit to your own limitations. What

journey starts without a destination and that was Abraham’s journey. The most important part

of a journey is the destination and not the starting. However, in surrender, Abraham believed

God by following his leading. A life of surrender to God leads to peace, freedom, and

experiencing God’s power as it is the only way to live.

Chapter 11

Becoming Best Friends with God

The unlimited access and unhindered relationship Adam and Eve had with God was lost at

the fall and since then, very few Old Testament believers had the privilege of friendship with

God. However, the death of Christ Jesus on the cross paid the penalty for sin and broke the

middle wall of partition that separated us from God thus giving us access to God. Your

friendship with God is assured through the grace of God and the sacrificial death of Jesus

Christ.
One way through which you can become friend of God is by constant communication and

includes sharing your very life experiences with God. A friendship with God is also

established through continual meditation or thinking about his Word. Through meditating on

God’s Word, he shares his secrets with you as one benefit of the friendship.

Chapter 12

Developing Your Friendship with God

Honesty with God is the core foundation of developing friendship with him. When God

expressed his frustration to Moses about Israel’s disobedience, that’s true friendship.

Choosing to obey God in faith is another way you develop friendship with God. This is

learning to trust do what God says even if you can’t trace him.

Developing your friendship with God, choose to value the things that God values by caring

about the things he cares about. Finally, developing your friendship with God must be desired

more than anything else. More than anything your friendship with God is a relationship with

God that will last forever.

Chapter 13

Worship That Pleases God

The kind of worship that pleases God must be accurate and based on the truth of Scripture.

Since worship is your spirit responding to God’s Spirit, it must also be authentic for it to

please God. It is the attitude of your worship that God sees beyond the words you pour out.

There is no one approach to worship that pleases God and whether you are a naturalist,

traditionalist, activist, and intellectually like me, your worship must be in the spirit of truth

and authenticity.

A worship that is thoughtful also makes God please as thoughtless worship is referred to as

vain repetitions. Thoughtful worship also means making our worship understandable to

unbelievers. That leads us to the final point which is, a worship that pleases God should be
practical as in “offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God- this is your

spiritual act of worship.”

Chapter 14

When God Seems Distant

The deepest level of worship in the life of the believer is praising God even when you are

going through trial and pain and loving God when he seems distant. In your worship you

must learn to seek God rather than seeking experience of feeling because at times you may

have no sense of his presence. While God wants you to feel his presence, he is more

interested in you trusting him in faith and not faith.

When you don’t feel the nearness of God in your life, it is best that you tell him exactly how

you feel. You must always focus on God’s unchanging nature including good and loving, and

all-powerful. Also trust God to keep his promises and remember to draw from the past, what

he has done for you.

Chapter 15

Formed for God’s Family

God is identified in family terms as Father, Son, and Spirit in loving relationship and his

eternal plan is to make us a part of that family. It is through faith in Jesus Christ that we

become children of God, and he becomes our Father. To qualify to share in the family

inheritance, one must be born again, be changed into Christ likeness, be freed from all

suffering and death, and to share in Christ’s glory.

Baptism is a ritual that also signifies inclusion into God’s family. Jesus commanded us to go,

make disciples of all nations and baptize them in the family name as, Father, Son, and Spirit.

It is an expression of your faith in Jesus Christ that you died, buried, and resurrected with him

to a new life into God’s family. As part of God’s family, you are made holy through Jesus.

Chapter 16
 What Matters Most

Love is the foundation of every commandment that God gave us is that in loving others we

become more like him because God is love. The believers’ love for each other is their greatest

witness to the world. It is through fellowship with other believers that you learn the skills of

loving others.

To live life without love is meaningless and worthless and that’s why love is the most

important part of life. Love God and love people are the two most important commandments

as summarized by Jesus. Love is eternal will last forever and we will be evaluated on our love

in eternity. While the best expression of your love is time, the best time you can love is now.

Chapter 17

A Place to Belong

You cannot fulfill God’s purpose by yourself but was created for fellowship and family. The

church is the body and bride of Christ, and you can’t have relationship with Christ without

maintaining your relationship to the body in fellowship. Being a part of a local church

identifies you as a genuine believer and the church family moves you out of self-centered

isolation.

The church family helps you grow to spiritual maturity when you are active in its worship

services. The body of Christ needs you to share in Christ’s mission in the world and as God’s

instrument in the world; the church will help keep you from backsliding. The church of Gd is

the only place on earth you a purpose to live for, people to live with, principles to live by, a

profession to live out, and power to live on.

Chapter 18

Experiencing Life Together

Life was meant to be lived and shared in genuine fellowship and no better place to find such

fellowship than the church. It is in real fellowship that you experience authenticity with an

atmosphere of honesty and humility. Genuine fellowship is also the experience of mutuality,

the art of giving and sharing, and depending on each other. Also, where real fellowship exists,

people experience sympathy and mercy.

Where there is real fellowship there must also be genuine forgiveness because resentment or

bitterness will only destroy fellowship. Wherever imperfect beings gather for fellowship,

someone is always going to be hurt whether intentionally or unintentionally, but the

fellowship is maintained by grace, mercy, and forgiveness.

Chapter 19

Cultivating Community

A community that lives right with God requires commitment on your part through the Holy

Spirit, and it takes honesty to cultivate said community. Honesty in communal fellowship is

speaking the truth to one another “in love” because an “honesty is a sign of true friendship.”

Furthermore, to cultivate community will require humility, courtesy, confidentiality, and

frequency.

Humility bridges in relationship and so the Bible encourages us to “Clothe yourselves with

humility toward one another.” Building community among believers should never be based

on convenience but conviction. Every community of biblical fellowship be authentic, have

mutuality, sympathy, forgive each other, honesty, admit its weaknesses, courtesy,

confidentiality void of gossip, and given to frequency.

Chapter 20

Restoring Broken Fellowship

One main area of ministry or service for the believer is the ministry of restoring relationships

because broken fellowship is a disgraceful testimony to believers. The ministry of

reconciliation is the ministry of blessing as it’s the mark of being a child of God. As a peace

maker there may be times when you will have to avoid conflict, at other times create it, and at

some point in time you must have to solve conflict.

As a minister of reconciliation innstead of gossiping about the problem, talk to God about it,

and take the initiative first. You must learn to sympathize with the feelings of others and

confess your part in the conflict; focusing on attacking the problem and not the person,

cooperate as often as is necessary, and finally, place your emphasis on reconciliation and not

resolution.

Chapter 21

Protecting Your Church

Since unity is the soul of fellowship it should be the goal of every believer to protect unity in

the church. You protect unity in the church by focusing on what you have in common and not

on your differences, and by being realistic in your expectations. Being realistic is knowing

the difference between the ideal and the real in your church.

In protecting the unity of your church, you must also choose to encourage and not criticize;

you should refuse to listen to gossip; practice God’s method for conflict solving by working it

out between you two as the first step; and always support your pastor and church leaders.

Chapter 22

You Were Created to Become Like Christ

“Let us make human beings in our image and likeness,” speaks to the reality that you were

created by God to be like his Son, Jesus Christ. Made in God’s image, we are spiritual beings,

we are intellectual, we are relational, and we also have a moral consciousness. While we lost

the natural likeness of God at the fall, the moral likeness was retained but corrupted. Through

Jesus Christ, the moral likeness is redeemed and restore as he is “the exact likeness of God,”

“the visible image of the invisible God.”

The process of a Christlike life is called sanctification which is produced through inhabitation

with Christ living in you. In doing so, you must cooperate with the work of the Holy Spirit by

letting go of your old ways, change the way you think, and put on the character of Christ by

developing godly habits.

Chapter 23

How We Grow

Growth as a Christian involves the will and the commitment to grow. The two important parts

of spiritual growth are “work out” which is you part, and “work in” which is God’s part, thus

making spiritual growth a collaborative effort between the believer and the Holy Spirit.

Furthermore, there also must be a change of thought because what your behavior is motivated

by what you think.

You change your thought pattern by adopting the way God thinks about you, about sin, God,

people, life, etc. To think Christlike is to stop thinking immature self-centered thoughts and to

begin thinking maturely, which is thinking that is people focused.

Chapter 24

Transformed by Truth

It is the truth of God’s Word that transforms us by replacing lies with truth in the process of

our growth. Jesus said, “Sanctify them by thy truth; your word is truth.” Nothing remains the

same whenever God speaks because his Word is alive. We should treasure the Word of God

more than food because it is the spiritual nourishment we need to fulfill his purpose.

It must be the priority of every believer to feed on God’s Word by accepting its authority and

assimilate the truth of God’s Word by receiving it, reading it, researching it, remembering it,

and reflecting on it.

You must also apply the principles of God’s Word if you must be transformed by its truth.

James said, we should be “doers of the Word and not hearers only.” There is blessing in being

a doer of the Word of God.

Chapter 25

Transformed by Trouble

Whether big or small, every problem you face in life is meant to draw you closer to God and

they are used to develop your character. Nothing happens to you without permission as he is

in sovereign control. In difficult circumstances our hope should be based on the truth that

God is in control, “We know,” that there’s a Grand Designer behind everything, “that God

causes” “everything” including the good and the bad “to work together” not in isolation but

“for the good” “of those who love God and are called” “according to his purpose.” The

purpose of God is greater than our problems as every difficulty you God through is an

opportunity to build your character.

In responding to problems as our Savior would, you must remember that God’s plan is good,

“You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good.” You must also rejoice and give

God thanks and refuse to give up.

Chapter 26

Growing through Temptation

Martin Luther said, “My temptations have been my masters in divinity” on the path to

spiritual maturity. God allows you to experience temptations to develop the fruit of the Spirit

in your life. Genuine peace from God is develop within us by allowing times of chaos and

confusions in our lives and not letting things go as we planned. For example, you never had

patience, you develop patience in a situation where you are compelled to wait while being

tempted to be angry.
The four-step process of temptation often used by Satan starts with a desire inside of you that

is usually self-centered. Desire is followed by getting you to doubt God’s command against

sin. Deception is the third step of temptation as Satan is incapable of telling the truth. Then

comes disobedience when you decide to act on the thoughts that have been processed in your

mind. To overcome temptation, refuse to be intimated, always be prepared for temptation

especially the pattern, and request God’s help always.

Chapter 27

Defeating Temptation

The keys to defeating temptations include refocusing your attention on something else

especially with regards to thoughts; be honest enough to reveal your struggle to a mature

goldy or support group; and resist the Devil. The first step to resisting the Devil is to say yes

to Christ through salvation as the helmet of salvation is your defense against evil thoughts

suggested through the mind. The Word of God must be used as your weapon against Satan

instead of arguing with the temptation.

Realizing your vulnerability is also key to defeating temptation and never become puff up or

prideful.

Chapter 28

It Takes Time

Just as physical growth takes time and process so does spiritual growth as God is more

concerned in how strong you grow and not how fast. Accepting Christ into your life is only

the beginning of a lifelong process of daily conforming to him through battles and struggles

until you arrive at maturity known as “the fulness of Christ.” The process of spiritual growth

takes time because we are slow learners and there are a lot that we must unlearn. The fact that

we are afraid to humbly face truth about ourselves makes growth often painful and scary.
Another reason why spiritual maturity takes time is that habits develop over time and that

will require constant practice. Therefore, in your growth process believe that God is working

in your life even when you don’t feel it and keep a record of lessons learnt; and don’t get

discouraged with the gradual process.

Chapter 29

Accepting Your Assignment

You were not just created to exist as to exist is to occupy space, but you were created to live

(to affect your surroundings) and the fourth purpose for your living is to serve God. The

outcome of your redemption here on earth is that you were saved to serve God. Not only are

you saved to serve God, but you are also called to serve God and that call to service is not

limited to pastors and missionaries, but all Christians are called to service.

Whether your assignment is visible or behind the scenes, the reality is, you are commanded to

serve God in the same way Jesus came to came to serve and to give. Through service you are

justifying the purpose for your existence because life is meant to for service or ministry.

Chapter 30

Shaped for Serving God

God shaped you the way he did and made you to have the needs you have for a specific

service as you “are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works.” Your

SHAPE as you were designed by God includes Spiritual gifts, Heart, Abilities, Personality,

and Experience.

Your spiritual gifts are your God-empowered abilities for serving him and the body of Christ,

the church and must be unwrapped for that purpose with passion and desire. Your emotional

heartbeat also helps you understand your shape for service and that service which comes from

the heart is evident through your enthusiasm and effectiveness.

Chapter 31
 Understanding Your Shape

Your shape for serving God involves applying your abilities whether it is physical abilities or

mental abilities and that’s why no one can ever play the role God planned for you. The only

person who will ever be able to use your abilities on earth is you. What you are good at doing

is God’s will for your life.

You were also shaped to use your personality in serving God and your personality is one of

its kind. Whether you are an introvert or an extrovert, a person with variety or routine, there

is no right or wrong personality for ministry. Therefore, employing your experiences is

another way you are shaped for service, and these include family experiences, educational

experiences, vocational experiences, spiritual experiences, ministry experiences, and painful

experiences.

Chapter 32

Using What God Gave You

Serving God out of your shape is the best use of your life instead of wasting time and

worrying about abilities you don’t have and may never have. It is to your advantage that you

discover your shape, accept, and enjoy it, and then develop it to full potential by assessing

your gifts and abilities; you should consider your heart and your personality; and examine

your experiences and extract the lessons learnt.

Accept and enjoy the way God’s sovereignty fashioned and shaped you for his purpose. This

is important because it is your shape that determines your specialty in life and ministry. Never

let Satan steal your joy by comparing and conforming your ministry to the expectations of

others.

Chapter 33

How Real Servants Act

In your relationship with Jesus, greatness is determined in view of service because being like

Jesus is being a servant. While your ministry is revealed by your shape, it’s your heart of

service that reveals your maturity. To know that you have the heart of a servant, real servants

are available to serve, and they pay attention to needs.

Without making excuses and waiting for the best moments, real servants do the best with

what they have, and they perform every task with equal dedication. Another quality of real

servants is that they are faithful to their ministry by fulfilling their responsibilities, and they

keep a low profile without calling attention to themselves.

Chapter 34

Thinking Like a Servant

As a servant a priority must be placed on the heart with which you do what you do and not

necessarily what you do; that’s why servants think more about others than about themselves.

Servants also think like stewards or managers and not owners always remembering that God

owns everything; and instead of focusing on what others are doing, servants think about their

work.

Servants have appreciation for their core identity because they base their identity in Christ

and never look for validation outside of Christ. For servants, ministry is an opportunity and

never thought of as an obligation and that enables them serve with gladness of heart.

Chapter 35

God’s Power in Your Weakness

God doesn’t only want to use our strength, but he also wants to use our weaknesses as he

loves to use imperfect and ordinary people to do extraordinary things for his glory as the

scripture says, God can use you if you allow him to work through your weaknesses by

admitting your weaknesses and being content with your weaknesses. Your weaknesses will

cause you to depend on God and prevent you from being arrogant.
God’s power in your weakness is also demonstrated when you can honestly share your

weaknesses and glory in your weaknesses. Your weaknesses encourage others to think that

they can also be used by God. A true quality of leadership is credibility and not perfection and

credibility is developed through honesty.

Chapter 36

Made for a Mission

While you must have a ministry in the Body of Christ; your assignment in the world can be

referred to as your mission which is your service to unbelievers. Jesus said, “As the Father

has sent me, I am sending you” as ministers of reconciliation “been sent to speak for Christ.”

You must consider your mission as a continuation of Jesus’ mission on earth.

Your mission is a wonderful privilege that involves working with God and representing him,

and telling others how they can have eternal life is thought of as the greatest thing you can do

for them. Your mission also has eternal significance by impacting the destiny of others and

it’s your mission that gives your life meaning. Finally, God’s timeline for concluding history

is connected to the completion of your mission on earth.

Chapter 37

Sharing Your Life Message

As a believer God is making his appeal to the world through you and that message includes

your testimony, your life lessons, your godly passion, and the Good News of salvation. Your

life message primarily includes the testimony of how accepting Christ made a difference in

your life divided into four parts: your life before you met Jesus; how you realized you needed

Jesus; how you committed your life to him; and the difference Jesus made in your life since

you allowed him.

Your life message also includes all the lessons you have come to learn in the laboratories of

life known as experiences (with God and from others) that help you “stay the course.”
Sharing your godly passion is also another aspect of your life message which are the things

you care about the most with regards to God. Finally, your life message includes the Good

News of how God makes people right with himself.

Chapter 38

Becoming a World-Class Christian

As a believer, you have the choice to become a worldly Christian who is self-centered or a

world-class Christian who knows that he was saved for a mission. Today, with the world now

a global village and at right at your fingertips; the only barrier to spreading the Good News is

you.

Becoming a world-class Christian means shifting from self-centered thinking to people-

centered thinking; form local thinking to global thinking because God is a global God. Learn

to pray for the world including specific countries. To become a world-class Christian, you

must also shift from the here and now thinking to eternal thinking. Finally, your thinking

must be shifted from excuses to thinking of creative ways to fulfill your commission.

Chapter 39

Balancing Your Life

God’s five purposes for your life as summarized in the Great Commandment and the Great

Commission are categorized as follows: Love God with all your heart; Love your neighbor as

yourself; Go and make disciples; baptise them into God’s family; and teach them to do all

things.

To internalize the Great Commission and the Great Commission, it is important to talk it

through with a spiritual partner or small group; always give yourself a regular spiritual

checkup by evaluating yourself; write down your progress of life lessons in a notebook; and

finally pass on to others what you know.

Chapter 40
 Living with Purpose

The three things people often struggle with in life are identity, importance, and impact. To

answer the questions of Who am I, Do I matter, and What is my place in life? You must

develop a purpose stamen for your life. It is a statement that summarizes God’s purpose for

your life and points the direction of your life. Your purpose statement also defines success for

you, clarifies your role, and expresses how God uniquely shaped you for his service.

You purpose statement should consider questions like: What will be the center of my life and

for whom will you live? What will be the character of my life and what the kind of person I

will be? What will be the contribution of my life and service in the Body of Christ? What will

be the communication of my life as my mission to unbelievers? The final question is, what

will be the community of my life to demonstrate my commitment to other believers?

Chapter 41

The Envy Trap

Envy is a trap with which if you are not careful how to deal with it; you can miss God’s plan

for your life. Instead of focusing on what God created you to be, envy makes you resent and

reject how God made you and instead you crave for what others have. There harmful effects

of envy can result into denying your uniqueness and dividing your attention. Envy also

causes you to misuse your time and energy and it opens you up to other sins.

There are several ways you can get rid of envy, and they are: you must stop comparing

yourself with others because comparison kills. Always celebrate God’s goodness to others;

you must learn to be grateful for who you are and what you have; and finally, trust God when

life seems unfair.

Chapter 42

The People-Pleaser Trap

While it is true that you were made for relationship, never let your longing for belonging be

abused and misused. The fear of being criticized and rejected by others is one common

reason why most people are never able to live the purpose driven life. While the fact remains

that you can never please people, you must therefore concern yourself with what God wants

you to do instead of trying to please people just to get validation.

People-pleasing is harmful to your life because it will cause you to miss God’s will for your

life and it can prevent your faith from growing. People-pleasing can also lead you to other

sins and causes hypocrisy as well. Finally, people-pleasing silences your life-message and

therefore, you must remember that even God can’t please everyone.