It’s All For you
A few years ago, I became obsessedwith knowing my purpose. As I continued to read my Word and matured, I realized what I was really questioning was my calling. A calling is how God wants His people to use their gifts. The problem I encountered was the enemy had berated me so much that seeing and appreciating my gifts were hard. On top of that, it seemed the gifts people would praise me for – if I’m being honest – I didn’t necessarily want.
I was deemed good with finances and budgeting and other administrative tasks, but what I really wanted to be good at was creative ventures. It took me awhile to realize that it is possible to occupy both spaces; I could be good at administrative tasks and creative ones. I also had to learn that just because I’m not naturally gifted at something, it doesn’t hinder God from using me in another area.
Eventually, I realized I was being ungrateful and along with praying for God to align my desires and wants with His, I asked God how He wanted me to use my gifts. As a result, God illuminated a gift I disregarded for years.
He reminded me of scenes I would write about because the image in my mind was too amazing. He reminded me of the snippets that lengthened to longer passages and my idea to create a YA series in middle school. He reminded me of how in college I desired to cowrite with a friend to transform her dream into a novel and how I would transcribe my feelings into song lyrics. Writing had become so comfortable and second nature that I didn’t view it as a gift.
As I mentioned before, our purpose is to live for God and share His gospel. However, the how is what stumps a lot of people. If you are also in this rut of deciphering how God wants to use you, my suggestion is to seek Him. Willingly and truly, surrender all your wants and desires to Him. Get yourself in a quiet place where you can hear His voice. This may include fasting from food, social media, television and/or the telephone. When you pray, give room to allow God to answer you. Sit in more silence from the world and use that time to communicate with God. I heard one content creator say and when you do that, make sure to have a pen and a journal handy to write down what God says. I, oftentimes, use the notes app on my phone. Remember, 1 Corinthians 10:31 (NIV) says: ‘So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” Therefore, whatever gift you use to spread God’s gospel and goodness, make sure it’s what He wants you to use. He may not want to use the gift you desire, but another one. God may also need to prune you to get you to a place where He can trust you with the gift He wants you to use. I’ll be honest if God would have blessed me in the career field I wanted when I was younger, I would probably not be in the place I am today. Therefore, whatever gift you use to spread God’s gospel and goodness, make sure it’s what He wants you to use.
