Purpose and Direction
Purpose & Direction
One of the greatest yearnings in the human heart is to identify and fulfill our own purpose in life. There are many voices out in our world that would say that they have found the answer to this search for purpose. This page is designed to give you a brief foundation in the area of life purpose, and then to offer you an answer that is real and proven in the lives of countless people. Take the time to read through this and process the information, after all, living out your purpose is truly worth it!
Values are Key to Purpose
Finding purpose in life is strongly linked with the values one holds in life. True purpose is generally defined as the activity of increasing whatever is of intrinsic value to a person. Whether we know it or not, we all are currently engaged in pursuing a purpose. Many people never take the time to pursue purpose intentionally. One could say we fail to live life on "purpose" when we fail to identify and take responsibility for the values we are pursuing in life. Often we have values that we are operating in pursuit of, that we have never consciously thought through. We are on "auto pilot", and have been programmed by the world around us, our culture, our upbringing, our peers, etc. We must not only answer the question of "what are my values?", but also the question of "How can I know my values are the best ones to have?" Many people have been exposed to schools of psychology and philosophy that speculate about purpose in life, and what is truly of VALUE. Let's quickly look at these ideas:
“There is a fundamental human need for guiding ideals that give meaning to our actions”, states Roger Fisher. Renowned psychiatrist Victor Frankl’s premise is that ‘man’s search for meaning’ is the primary motivation of his life. He speaks of the ‘will to meaning’ as opposed to Freud’s’ ‘will to pleasure’ and Friedrich Nietzsche’s ‘will to power’.
According to some philosophies, purpose is central to a good human life. Helen Keller wrote that happiness comes from "fidelity to a worthy purpose", and Ayn Rand wrote that purpose must be one of the three ruling values of human life (the others are reason and self-esteem - refer Nathaniel Branden ). Some people hold that purpose is not inherent, but instead freely chosen (or not chosen) by individuals. Among these, some say that natural propensities may determine what sorts of purposes a person needs to pursue, but do not guarantee that he or she will pursue them, that being dependent on free choice.
Modern spiritual philosophy sees the purpose in life as improving the environment and world condition for all beings. In the most immediate sense this means each individual finding the special talents which are a gift to serve others. This in turn is found in pursuing a soul level joy, so that the personal and highest individual purpose of life is pursuit of soul level joy. This is the first joy, that which has followed the individual from birth. In most instances it begins with the desire for acceptance and evolves to discovery of each person's genius or gift to serve.
At Overflow Church we believe that real values and purpose come from God. He is our creator and designer, and He alone can give us purpose! He alone has the wisdom and right to declare what is and is not truly valuable. If you want to have real purpose for your life you must come face to face with the creator of that life and allow Him and Him alone to define your values.
One of the greatest yearnings in the human heart is to identify and fulfill our own purpose in life. There are many voices out in our world that would say that they have found the answer to this search for purpose. This page is designed to give you a brief foundation in the area of life purpose, and then to offer you an answer that is real and proven in the lives of countless people. Take the time to read through this and process the information, after all, living out your purpose is truly worth it!
Values are Key to Purpose
Finding purpose in life is strongly linked with the values one holds in life. True purpose is generally defined as the activity of increasing whatever is of intrinsic value to a person. Whether we know it or not, we all are currently engaged in pursuing a purpose. Many people never take the time to pursue purpose intentionally. One could say we fail to live life on "purpose" when we fail to identify and take responsibility for the values we are pursuing in life. Often we have values that we are operating in pursuit of, that we have never consciously thought through. We are on "auto pilot", and have been programmed by the world around us, our culture, our upbringing, our peers, etc. We must not only answer the question of "what are my values?", but also the question of "How can I know my values are the best ones to have?" Many people have been exposed to schools of psychology and philosophy that speculate about purpose in life, and what is truly of VALUE. Let's quickly look at these ideas:
“There is a fundamental human need for guiding ideals that give meaning to our actions”, states Roger Fisher. Renowned psychiatrist Victor Frankl’s premise is that ‘man’s search for meaning’ is the primary motivation of his life. He speaks of the ‘will to meaning’ as opposed to Freud’s’ ‘will to pleasure’ and Friedrich Nietzsche’s ‘will to power’.
According to some philosophies, purpose is central to a good human life. Helen Keller wrote that happiness comes from "fidelity to a worthy purpose", and Ayn Rand wrote that purpose must be one of the three ruling values of human life (the others are reason and self-esteem - refer Nathaniel Branden ). Some people hold that purpose is not inherent, but instead freely chosen (or not chosen) by individuals. Among these, some say that natural propensities may determine what sorts of purposes a person needs to pursue, but do not guarantee that he or she will pursue them, that being dependent on free choice.
Modern spiritual philosophy sees the purpose in life as improving the environment and world condition for all beings. In the most immediate sense this means each individual finding the special talents which are a gift to serve others. This in turn is found in pursuing a soul level joy, so that the personal and highest individual purpose of life is pursuit of soul level joy. This is the first joy, that which has followed the individual from birth. In most instances it begins with the desire for acceptance and evolves to discovery of each person's genius or gift to serve.
At Overflow Church we believe that real values and purpose come from God. He is our creator and designer, and He alone can give us purpose! He alone has the wisdom and right to declare what is and is not truly valuable. If you want to have real purpose for your life you must come face to face with the creator of that life and allow Him and Him alone to define your values.
Christians would assert that man's purpose is about living in relationship with our God. Conforming our life to His values and plan for us really does unlock ultimate fulfillment and happiness! An example of this understanding is Rick Warren's teaching on the Purpose Driven Life.
Relationship is Key to Purpose
There are many schools of thought that point to relationship as being a key aspect of purpose. Buddhism defines relationship as the ultimate of purpose. American culture has become progressively more and more post modern, and as it has, the ideal of relationship has become more the highest ideal and value. In American culture we have turned more and more to people around us to give us purpose. We have been conditioned to wear the latest fashions, buy the right products, belong to some cool peer group, or be with an attractive person in order to have relevance and value. Even psychology has reinforced this twisted thinking! According to Maslow's hierarchy of needs, relationship, acceptance, and sexual intimacy is fundamental to meeting human needs and conducive to building happiness. Or moreover, that the pursuit of these things, though not necessarily directly, are the underlying purpose of one's actions. In other words if you will work hard to be cool and sexy, then you will have purpose and be happy. Here is the truth. Although it can be very codependent and dysfunctional to hold relationship to others and our culture as a highest value, it is very healthy to have relationship to your God as your highest value. It is when your relationship to God is healthy that your relationships to others becomes healthy. Jesus teaches that a right relationship with others around us is very important. Jesus was one of the most stable and fulfilled individuals who ever lived. People wanted to follow Him because of what they saw in His life, and here is what He taught:
"Seek first the Kingdom of God, and everything else will be added to you" Matthew 6:33
Translation: Make your highest values to be governed by God's principles for life, and you will have everything in life you could possibly hope for, you will be full of purpose and happiness!
"Love the Lord your God with all your heart, your mind, and your strength...this is the greatest commandment" Matthew 28
translation: There is no higher value in life than pursuing relationship with God. You have to value that relationship above all other things and go for it with everything that is in you!
In order to have true purpose...our message is that you must follow the teaching of Jesus. You must make some choices if you are to attain the purpose and fulfillment He spoke of. What will be your world view for life? Are you going to live from the stanpoint of your culture? Are you going to live from the standpoint of one of countless religions? Or will you live from the standpoint of a follower of Jesus...will you decide to be a true Christian? Not like the watered down people you may have encountered that say they are Christians but are no more truly living on purpose than anyone else around them. Will you be a true follower of Jesus who pursues a relationship with God as the number one, overriding value of life?