The Purpose Bowl

Does Your Life have Real Purpose or Are you just Blowing Smoke?
By: David W. Ching
1/9/2010 (Reprint)

I am not going to preach, scold, or tell you what to do. I am just going to give you the facts of life. After all the fish that swam up stream in your beginning, you are the one that hit the mark. If this were not true, you wouldn’t be reading this, now would you? And someone else would be in your spot. So at this moment, I am talking to you; the one fish who made it; the one who made it this far in the spot you fill in this world.
My question to you today is this: Does your life have real purpose or are you just blowing smoke dragging along through life without a sense of purpose?
With all the advancements, technology, and education in our world today; there are millions of people who walk around daily, lost to what their purpose in life is. Their lives are lived without any concept of why they are here. When you ask them what they want to do in life, the answer is usually, “I don’t know.” Or if you ask them where they want to be 10 years from now they reply, “I don’t know, we will just have to see what happens.” This way of living is no way of living and is taking life by chance and not by choice. This is living life hoping something good happens while you sit and do nothing to make something good happen, it is basically just blowing smoke. The sad truth is, many people in our society today have no clear purpose for their lives.
Many times it seems that these people are allowing the world around them to control what and who they become or even if they become anything. They are seemingly living their lives like playing the lottery. They waste time buying tickets and never seeing the results of the big lotto win, but they keep buying tickets regardless. This kind of chance taking in life, in hopes of having a life with purpose, will only see you give up in the end; frustrated; depressed; and with lost hope. Living this way is allowing your life to be out of control and hoping randomly that something good may miraculously happen to you.
However, not everyone is like this scenario in life. Some people take these lotto tickets and tear them up and say, “I am not going to live by chance. I am going to live by choice. I am not going to let this thinking control my life; I am going to take control of my life.” They want to know exactly what purpose their life has and where exactly their life is headed. They don’t want to live out of control, by the chances that may or may not come along. This way of pursuing life allows this person to create a life with purpose and not live a life reacting to what the world around them says they can or cannot become.
I know you are now thinking, “What purpose does my life have? What do I want to accomplish? Who do I really want to be? Well don’t look this way, I cannot help you there; this is something that only you can do for you. There is no “Easy” button or a “Do it for me” button. There is only you, making the decision to take back control of the events that surround your life. Each of us is wired differently, and each has a different life purpose. I cannot give you mine and you cannot give me yours. It is something we have to work through on our own. It doesn’t really matter what you say you’re going to do. What matters is that you are doing something in the process of living for purpose rather than living without purpose.
The hard truth is that many people struggle daily with no purpose and many never actually find it. These people go through life daily with no purpose, no direction, no meaning, and no hope. Their daily life is rolled into one big mess that they would just as well forget than have to think about. They have no control of the day or moment, any more than they have control over the weather where their lives are concerned. They haphazardly wander the barren waste land of a meaningless life; wondering, “What happened, that put them there?”
So do you know what your life purpose is? No? Well you don’t have to decide it all at this very moment. That is not the point or the purpose; and fulfillment will not happen in that manner. Finding your life’s purpose is much more than it all taking place in this moment of time. This is why I call it your life’s purpose and not today’s purpose.
Where Do I Start?
To begin you must begin by setting goals. This does not mean setting one large goal, but it means setting many smaller goals. Say you want to set a goal to start eating properly. Set that goal and work toward that goal first. Your ultimate large goal may be to be healthy and in shape and this one small goal starts the process. You cannot hope to begin a large goal with 100 smaller goals mixed within it all at once, because you will become discouraged and overwhelmed and the next thing you know you will quit the process and never reach the small goals that make up the large goal. In essence, failing to reach any goal you have set for yourself. It is important that each of your smaller goals point to specific areas that will eventually make up the major goal. This is just an example of setting goals with a purpose.
In this example (healthy eating), make it specific and detailed because this gives you exactly what you need to be doing and will help you watch your progress. Remember, it means nothing in what you say you are going to do; but purpose is everything in what you put into action by what you do.
As you begin this step in living a more purposeful life, you will be setting goals and moving forward toward those goals. As you begin reaching these smaller goals, you will gain purpose in your life. As these goals are completed, you will begin to see the major goal being filled in by the smaller goals and you will be able to track exactly how you are doing in this adventure. Life with a purpose is an adventure. However, life without a purpose is a repeat of the same ole things and the circle of destructive behavior will just continue to bring you down. Once you begin to see purpose in your life, you will see that you are gaining control of your life.
When You Were a Child:
When we were children, we would always be asked by teachers, friends, and parents, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” For many boys it was, “A policeman, a fireman, a Doctor, a pilot, or an Army man.” It is said that most people stake claim to what they are going to be when they are children and those who hold tight to those dreams are the ones who are successful in attaining them. What did you want to be when you grew up? Have you achieved that goal or have you passed it off because the people around you stated back then that you would never do it? Check with your doctor and see if he wanted to be a doctor as a child. Most of the answers you will receive will be that they did want to be doctors and that was what they became.
Set your goals and start to move forward in reaching them. If you want to be a brain surgeon, then go for it by taking the first steps to reach that goal. Only you can make the choice; set the goals; and follow those goals through to fruition. Remember at most, your parents only have you for 17 years and the rest of your life is on you. Stop blaming everyone for your lack of drive and goal setting. Stop saying, “I can’t do it and blaming others.” You have the choice to stay where you are or move forward and become who you were called to be.
I have a friend who blames his miserable life on his parents. He claims, “It’s all their fault!” I beg to differ. The problem with this scenario is that he only lived with his parents for 17 years. He is now 42. Therefore, if you subtract 17 from 42, you get 25. That means that he has been on his own with no parental construction for 25 years; more years than he lived with his parents. It is time to stop blaming your parents for possibly screwing up 17 years of your life, when you have screwed up more in the 25 years of your own doing than they ever could in the 17 years they had you.
Set your goals and stick to them and four ways you can go about this are listed below:
1.) Set goals with deadlines that must be met and make yourself keep them. These goals are what you want to do; how you want to do; and where you expect to be with the completion of this goal. What your intentions are for your life and what you desire to accomplish.
2.) Decide what your steps of action will be. What do you specifically need to do to make these goals, desires, and dreams a reality.
3.) Monitor your progress from the beginning to the end of each step. Ask yourself, “Am I doing what I need to be doing to make this happen?” If your answer is, “no” change that attitude to see the results and behavior you need to see to make progress.
4.) Monitor your goals to see if adjustments need to be made. This is your life, your purpose, and your job. This is not your mothers, fathers, friends, or relative’s responsibility. This is your responsibility and choice. You control your destiny and it is you who takes the blame for your falling on your face or your standing tall to the end.
Do not be like those in life who seek purpose all their lives to only die in the end with people saying, “They sure had potential.” Let them be able to say, “They made a difference. They had a purpose. They were productive and not just someone who had a lot of potential.” The choice is yours and yours alone. Pray daily, and ask God to strengthen you in this journey. Good luck and God bless you. Stop blowing smoke and make a life of purpose.