LIVE ON PURPOSE

Chapter One GOD DESIRES TO HELP YOU WITH LIFE They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. —Revelation 22:4 Your full potential is revealed in God. God made you so that He can direct your life to fulfill His purpose in you. Jeremiah 10:23 NIV says, “LORD, I know that people's lives are not their own; it is not for them to direct their steps.” The only way to fully become who you were created to be is to give God the right of way in your life. God wants to direct your life to the life of victory that He designed for you. The steps of a righteous man are ordered of God (Psalms 37:23). What is left is for you is to cooperate with God who is already working in your life, believe Him, receive what He has for you, and thank Him. He desires to live with and in you. You become God’s dwelling place when you accept Jesus Christ into your life. God’s plan for you involves Him taking over and becoming your life. Jesus promised that He and God, the Father, would come and dwell within us (John 14:23). With complete dependency on Him, your good end is already assured. Jesus paid the full price for us to live in the presence of God, and it cannot be changed by circumstances. Since God declares the end from the beginning (Isaiah 46:10), you can determine that your future in Christ’s name is good by looking at the last book of the Bible, Revelation, and its last Chapter (Chapter 22). This chapter begins with a description of the river with the water of life that flows from the throne of God and that of the Lamb. We can be assured that the River of Life signifies the Holy Spirit of God (John 7:38). That river flows in us now through the Holy Spirit. God, our Father, and our Lord, Jesus Christ, live in our hearts through the Holy Spirit when we receive Christ. But, He will soon be revealed in the City of the Lord, as foretold in the Book of Revelation. It is the intent of God to set up His Kingdom in the seen world. You can then envision, physically living in the presence of God where everything that causes trouble is barred from entry. This is a glorious future that He has prepared for you. You will live in His Light, which is already yours now as Jesus said that He is the Light of the world (John 8:12). What God promises, He is able to keep. Revelation 22:5 tells us that in the Kingdom that He is preparing for His people, no night will be there any longer; the need for a lamp or sunlight will not exist, as the Lord God will illuminate His people. He shall be their Light, and they shall reign as kings forever and ever. You were created to reign, and God has not changed His mind about you. Through faith, we reach out to the future of this promise and declare it in our lives. You can rest assured that your life is already victorious as far as God is concerned because He already sees you ruling and reigning over this world with Christ. Jesus, as He revealed Himself to John, emphatically stated: “And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to everyone according to his work” (Revelation 22:12). God is aware of what you have been through and wants you to be assured that there is a reward for your patience and that your trials in this life are adding to your testimony of Christ’s victory in you. When John penned the Book of Revelation, he was facing the worst of his trials—banished to a lonely island because of the Word of God. But, God showed up there, and He will indeed show up in your situation even now, as He is the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last. When we know that the end is good for those who prioritize God’s way of life by seeking first His Kingdom irrespective of the circumstances, we can be certain that His Word is true; His River of Life (Holy Spirit of God) will give you strength even now. The Holy Spirit is working with you in your life to ensure that the Word of God is fulfilled for you. Stand strong with this expectation in mind every day. God has a way of turning all things for our good, and He sees to it that everything works together for your own good. Even your current trial will work out for your good. If we know this to be the truth, we can be thankful to Him who will not fail us. This is your season in which you will see God in every situation: My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. James 1:2–4 (NKJV)