His Purpose Prevails

Proverbs 19:21
Many are the plans in a person’s heart,
    but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.

A few years ago Rick Warren’s book, The Purpose Driven Life, flew off book shelves. People wanted to know their purpose. Have you ever been introduced to someone and the person introducing you tells them your job? “Hi. This is Penny. She is a technical services manager in an academic library.” Yes that’s my job, but it’s not my purpose. When I think about whom I am and what I do, I can list numerous responsibilities and talents, but they don’t explain my purpose. I can plan activities and goals, but if they don’t match my purpose, they won’t pan out.

Proverbs 19:21 speaks loud and clear to me. If my purpose doesn’t align with God’s purpose for my life, everything I try to do, will not work out for the best. The Lord’s will prevails. Not mine. I am responsible for listening to God’s call and fulfilling the purpose God’s given me. I know without a doubt, God wants me to share the love of Jesus with others. He wants me to be kind and read his word. He calls me to follow, pray, and obey. I may do all these things through the talents he blessed me with, in the job he led me to, or among my family and friends. Then I’m on the right track because I’ve allowed God’s purpose to permeate my life. Thank goodness God has my best interest in mind as he leads me through life.

Compassion

Psalm 145:7-9

They celebrate your abundant goodness
    and joyfully sing of your righteousness.

The Lord is gracious and compassionate,
    slow to anger and rich in love.

The Lord is good to all;
    he has compassion on all he has made. NIV

Ephesians 4:32
Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. NIV

My daughter shared a quote with me this week from Rick Warren-“Our culture has accepted two huge lies. The first is that if you disagree with someone’s lifestyle, you must fear or hate them. The second is that to love someone means you agree with everything they believe or do. Both are nonsense. You don’t have to compromise convictions to be compassionate."

As a believer and follower of Jesus Christ, I’m called to love and have compassion. Jesus didn’t spend his time sitting around with his disciples gossiping and judging people. Instead, he reached out to those who needed him the most. His purpose— to draw them closer to the Father, to show them the joy of following the one true God, and to redeem them from sin. A tightrope has been drawn that requires a firm balance. As a Christian I hate sin, but love people. The tricky part is that we all sin. So I am called to love everyone. I may not like the personality or choices of the person, but God tells me to show compassion and love. I pray that I can continue to show God’s redeeming love as I live for Christ.

How do you show compassion?