Andy Lee
This is the final part of the two part series on Destiny Discovery, where we are looking at enabling you to living a life of purpose. It’s all about developing a deeper understanding of your purpose in life, and as a result, enabling you to live with motivation, happy in the knowledge that you are doing what you were made for.
Last month we looked at the first two steps towards understanding who you are. The first step was identifying your natural strengths, and the second step was exploring your personality type, which contributes to your uniqueness. This article follows on to now look at the final steps on this path of discovery. These are: life experience, family, and passion.
Life Experience – I’ve said it before that experience by itself doesn’t necessarily help you to learn and become mature. It’s evaluating the experience that makes all the difference. I’m guessing you’ve been through a lot. We were never promised an easy life, and whether or not you have a faith and a commitment to Jesus doesn’t change that. Jesus promised many things, including eternal life, the gift of the Spirit, peace and blessings, but not an easy life. So I’m guessing you’ve had many experiences that have had varying impact on your life. Times of utter joy, excitement and elation to times of frustration, deep upset and sadness, and everything in-between. What have you learnt from all these experiences, and what is there still to learn?
So let’s imagine that every experience of your life happened for a reason, regardless of whether things happened inside or outside of your control. What would you say your whole life has prepared you to do? In what ways are you stronger, wiser, better, more resilient and more knowledgeable having gone through what you have gone through? How can you now integrate it all into who you are at this point in time? How does it all direct you in your future decisions?
Family – The family environment that we were born into plays such a significant role in who we are today and who we are going to be. What is your family’s historical legacy? Is there a history of a particular profession, skill or business that has carried on through the generations? How do/don’t you want to be a part of that? From observing others, particular people we learn from, such as our parents, we can figure out who we are by eliminating what we are not. For example, my parents were in the catering business, managing restaurants and takeaways. I saw that I didn’t want that for myself. At the same time, I fully appreciated the environment I grew up in, even if it was unconventional and not like most of my other friends. To deny that experience would be preventing myself from fully embracing a part of what has made me who I am today.
Widening the net slightly, what sense of purpose have you drawn from your culture or community? Think about the kind of community or social groups you spend most of your time in. What do you notice in those interactions and relationships? What common thread and themes tie you all together?
Passion – This is about motivation. What type of issues, discussion topics, and news items you see, hear or read about cause you to have strong feelings? It could be a sense of excitement and interest, or a sense of injustice and anger at the situation. When you’re with other people what types of conversation do you find particularly engaging and want to talk more about? What social issues, principles or causes anger and sadden you? These are the kind of clues you’re looking for as you reflect on your passion. A final reflection question to ask yourself is this “Imagine you are 80 years old and looking back at your life. What would cause you the greatest regret if you had not pursued it?”.
So to recap the steps:
• Strengths – The stuff you are naturally good at
• Personality – Your uniqueness in the way you respond to the world
• Life Experience – All the good, bad, and ugly that you’ve been through
• Family – Your heritage and the community you’re a part of
• Passion – Topics and causes that make your heart sing or cry
Once you go through these steps (I’d suggest writing them in a journal), take a step back and reflect. This means taking the time to let all your thoughts gather together and see what emerges. Then I encourage you to take action. Discover the treasure that God has placed within you. These are the empowering steps towards living a life of purpose, on purpose.
“I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfils his purpose for me.” – Psalm 57:2