Created for a Purpose
What is your purpose in life?
It’s the answer to all our whys. It gives reason and hope to everything we do.
No one can live without purpose. Without it, we are utterly lost — desolate — clinging to the nearest glimmer of significance. And what’s closer and more accessible to us than ourselves? It’s why, as David Foster Wallace once said, “Everyone worships something.” How beautifully put. Worship is what gives life meaning. It shapes the path we take and offers hope for what lies ahead.
But be careful — because what you sow, you will reap. Every one of us has a calling, though those callings may differ person to person. It’s easy to default our purpose to whatever we feel called to do. And sometimes, that’s true.
Yet purpose is most effective and meaningful when it’s unified in community and grounded in something greater than ourselves. As believers and followers of Jesus Christ, we are not left to guess at our purpose. It’s declared at the dawn of creation (Genesis 1:1) and fulfilled in the person of Jesus Christ. Our purpose was established before time began — and it is for Him (John 1:1-3; Colossians 1:15-17).
Proverbs reminds us:
“The LORD has made everything for its purpose, even the wicked for the day of trouble.” — Proverbs 16:4 (ESV)
No one can outrun God’s purpose. The question isn’t whether our lives have a purpose — but whether we will use them to glorify Him or glorify what He has made. The former leads to eternal life; the latter is temporary and will perish, along with us.
And when we rally together around this shared, eternal purpose, we begin to see it more clearly. It reminds me of what Jesus Himself said,
“For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.” — Matthew 18:20 (ESV)
Hyper-individualism is the death of true purpose. To disunify, to break fellowship, is ultimately to glorify self. It’s self-centered rather than others-centered — the exact opposite of Christ’s way. It elevates mankind, while Jesus said,
“So the last will be first, and the first last.” — Matthew 20:16 (ESV)
But it’s not simple. We live in a time and place where autonomy is celebrated. Everyone has a profile, a brand, and their truth to live by. And as a result, the world, especially in the West, has lost its sense of true purpose. This is why younger generations are experiencing record-breaking levels of anxiety, depression, and a crisis of meaning.
So how do we, as followers of Christ, resist being conformed to this world and instead be transformed by the grace and mercy of Jesus?
1 Corinthians 10:31 offers our imperative:
“So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
We were created for a purpose, and what we live for always gives something back. We can choose to live, eat, and drink for ourselves — and I promise, it will leave you dissatisfied. Or we can live, eat, and drink for the glory of God, who draws near to those who draw near to Him (James 4:8).
