The Sunday Mail
Pastor Tinashe Zinyemba Christian Youth
WE continue this week on our discussion on purpose. There is no way we can discuss such a topic without making mention on one of my favourite ministers of the gospel, the late great Dr Myles Monroe. I paraphrase an article from one of his books on purpose through which I know you will be blessed. Read on: Until purpose is discovered, existence has no meaning, for purpose is the source of fulfilment. There are millions of unfulfilled young people out there. They are busy, active, dedicated, faithful, famous people who are accepted, respected, revered and admired.
But deep inside they are tired, frustrated, bored, disillusioned, confused, empty and depressed. Their lives are aimless. Day after day they go on smiling, pretending and living up to an identity and a reputation that is different from their true selves.
The lie they live and the inner yearning to be freed from the tyranny that binds them are a constant source of internal conflict. Whether black, brown, yellow, red or white, you and I are pulled by destiny toward a meaningful, fulfilling life.
Each of us must discover this personal purpose and pursue it relentlessly, or we will fail to live a rich, whole, meaningful life.
Human beings, no matter who they are or where they live, all want to be “successful.” This success is usually defined by the superficial rewards that are so glorified by the media: wealth, power, fame, luxury and prestige. The goal of material achievement is drilled into us from an early age. Parents urge their children to work hard so they can be “somebody.”
Schools add to the pressure by using competitive grading and by offering rewards for outstanding performances. Bookstores are loaded with manuals that instruct readers on how to get to the top of their fields so they can accumulate power, wealth and influence.
And magazines, complete with cover photos that glamourise the rich and the famous, boldly promise short-cuts to success.
This relentless pursuit of “success” has produced some unglamorous results. Divorce and suicide rates continually climb. Violence, environmental destruction, white collar crime and emotional depression plague every community.
This poverty of satisfaction and meaningful existence is no small matter. A professional career and a large bank account cannot provide these absent ingredients. No amount of accomplishments can replace the power and the motivation of finding your own special niche and working toward your dreams.
Inner emptiness is the lot of those who lack a clarity of purpose or those who struggle to live up to someone else’s definition of success, be it that of a parent, a spouse, a boss or society in general. Reaching the top of the professional or social ladder is meaningless if it sacrifices personal gratification and well-being.
As children, we learned to see academic, professional and financial achievements as good, and failures of any kind as bad. Thus, the measures of achievement we received from the previous generations have always been outwardly directed.
Success in the eyes of others has been assumed to be personal success, for acclaim from others is the accepted requirement for receiving the “successful” label. Fulfilling purpose must be the primary goal of every person. Without a commitment to that purpose, there can be no lasting success.
Everyone on this planet was born with and for a purpose.
Without purpose, life is an experiment or a haphazard journey that results in frustration, disappointment and failure.
Without purpose, life is subjective, or it is a trial and error game that is ruled by environmental influences and the circumstances of the moment. Likewise, in the absence of purpose, time has no meaning, energy has no reason and life has no precision.
Dr Myles defines success in the following way: Purpose is the original intent for the creation of a thing, the original reason for the existence of a thing, the end for which the means exist, the cause for the creation of a thing and the desired result that initiates production.
It is also the need that makes a manufacturer produce a specific product, the destination that prompts the journey, the expectation of the source, the objective for the subject, the aspiration for the inspiration, and the object one wills or resolves to have.
Every product is a child of purpose. In other words, before any product is made, there is a purpose established in the mind of the manufacturer that gives conception to the idea. That becomes the substance for the design and production of the product.
Thus, purpose precedes production.
The Master Manufacturer of all created things has made all His creations for a definite purpose and has established that purpose as the ultimate definition of success.
God created you with a definite purpose in mind. Your existence is evidence that this generation needs something that your life contains.
Nothing is truly yours until you understand it – not even yourself. Some people are born knowing what they want to do and even how to do it. The rest of us must spend hours figuring out what to do with our lives. We must ask the primary question “Why am I here?”, and reply with an unqualified answer: “To be myself and to express myself fully.”
Explore your uniqueness and find out what differentiates you from the billions of people who inhabit this planet. Then pursue your aspiration deliberately and consistently. Capitalise on the natural skills and talents with which you were born, and don’t lose them.
When others belittle your special gifts and try to remake you according to their plans and purposes, refuse to yield to their domination. Remember, if you don’t deploy yourself, others will soon employ you.
Above all else, pursue purpose with a passion and experience the reason for your life.
Proverbs 20:5 says, “The purposes of a man’s heart are deep waters, but a man of understanding draws them out.”
Till next week, God bless
Tinashe Zinyemba is a pastor with New Life Covenant Church. Feedback: [email protected]
