Vision Part 4

Some quick thoughts to finish up our series on vision.

1. Seek God's vision for your life

I know the plans I have for you says the Lord, plans to prosper you, not to harm you, to give you a hope and a future.  (Jer 29:11)

Even if you feel like you're in a bad place, God has a vision for your life and a purpose for you.

Matt 6:33 Seek first the kingdom.

When we seek God's kingdom, when we seek what matters to him, he will not only give us everything we need but he will also enable us to fulfil it.

Remember: I am able because God is able.

What is God's vision for your life?

What is hindering you at the moment?  (Are you the hindrance, selling yourself short?)

Look beyond the shortcomings to the possibilities.

2. Be passionate

When we are passionate about something we are more likely to keep going and to keep moving towards the fulfilment of the vision! Jesus is passionate for us, and for his bride the church. Think about the things that move you in some way, chances are that God has placed a passion in your heart to see change brought into those areas.

When we are doing something, if we are passionate, we will keep going, we will learn more and we will do more!

David was passionate about building a place of worship for God. God told him his son would build it, so David directed his passion into preparing for building, for gathering material. (2 Samuel 7:4-16 1 Chronicles 22:2-17). David set aside a huge amount of his own wealth, to ensure that the vision could be completed.

What are you passionate about?

What can you do today to start laying a foundation for doing something in that area?

People will get on board with your vision when you are passionate about your vision and what God is doing.

Who shares your passion?

Who have you shared your passion with?

These people will help to achieve the vision.

3. Vision is always greater than the one

Vision always requires others to fulfil it. We are never alone. Even if we have a vision for a new kitchen - it requires a team of people to make it happen, with each having a part to play. It is the same for us in our lives, our work, our ministry. Whatever your vision for yourself, your family, your relationships, your community, it takes people to be involved, it requires others to help us get there.

David collected material for the temple, Solomon had it built, but he had a huge team of people to help make David's vision a reality. (1 Kings 5:1-17;  6:1)

In fact, if we try to do it alone, we will not achieve our vision as effectively as working together. I'm not expecting I'll need 30,000 people just yet, but may be the vision for a business that you have may start with several people and employ large numbers of people in the future.

Who are we doing life with?
Who are the key people we need in our lives to fulfil our God given vision?

4. Vision crosses the generations

If our vision is only big enough for our own lifetime, it is too small.

I believe that God gives vision that extends through the generations. His blessing are for thousands of descendants. When Solomon built the temple, he was building on what had already been achieved. When he died, many generations that followed used the temple to fulfil the vision of a place to worship God. They may not be physical descendants but they will be people who come after us, who we have passed the baton on to.

Who are you relating to that is older than you, younger than you?

Who will you pass the baton too?

Who are your descendants?

Who are you sharing vision with that can run after you?

I am able because God is able

Vision Part 3

Over the last few weeks we have looked at various aspects of vision such as who we are, (Confident, passionate and committed) what the vision for Citylife Women is, the mind shifts we need to make to continue to reach out to others by being a friend, telling an friend and bringing a friend. Our Biblical mandate is to preach the gospel, share the good news and reach out into our communities. 

We have also discussed what it means to Dream Big. What are the dreams that you have, God's dream for us and how's our relationship with God going? What's working, what's not? What changes would we like to make?

This week we are discussing: I am able, because God is able.

What are we able to do? 

More than we could ever ask, dream, or think of. God's dream for us is big, but not beyond us because God is able.What ever God has called us to, we are able because God enables us by working in us and through us.

1. God is able

Eph 3:20
Now glory be to God ! By his mighty power at work within us, he is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare ask or hope.

We are familiar with this verse, God is able, it is by his mighty power at work within us. It is not of ourselves, it is not relying on us, rather it is God's work within us. It is God's power, his Spirit at work in us, that enables us. As we embark on this year, its important to remember that its not by striving, but by relying on God's work within us, and within others, that accomplishes his purpose. 

Eph  3:20 is clear. It means that God, by virtue of who he is, by his ability, by his power, inherent in his nature, is capable. He is the author, the one who carries it out, supremely, further, more than enough, able to do so much more than we could beg for, ask for, desire, request for oneself, perceive with the mind, have understanding of or consider, and it his his working in us, his display and activity in us.

In other words, whatever we could think up, what ever we could ask for, perceive or consider, God is able to do, within us and through us. 

The question is do we believe this, and are we willing to step out in faith, knowing this, and putting this into effect in our lives?

This is about right thought patterns, changing how we think, not allowing circumstances to dictate to us what we believe about God and who he is. 

How does your thinking hinder God's work in you?

In Judges 6 we read about Gideon. At first he did not have right thinking, he was being dictated to by circumstance. He considered himself the lowest of the low, yet God came and declared him a mighty man of valour. God knew who he really was, but Gideon had to change his thinking about who he was. When he learned that God was able, when he learned that it was God's purpose that was important, when he changed his thinking, then God, at work did more than what Gideon could ever have imagined.

We have something Gideon didn't have, God's power at work in us as well as for us. 

Phil 2:13
For God is working in you, giving you the desire to obey him and the power to do what pleases him.

God is acting in us, so we can effect his work in us by doing his will. In us, God is the operative, to effect and to display his activity. God is at work, helping us to have his purpose in mind. God is at work in us, not just so that we would have it in mind, and intend to, but God gives us the ability to carry it out. God is acting in us, so we can effect his work in us, by doing his will.

2. I am able

Phil 4:13
For I can do everything with the help of Christ who gives me the strength I need.

When I looked at this verse in more detail, I discovered something very interesting. The word "do", means to be strong ( in body and power, robust) but it can also mean, to have power (as shown by extraordinary deeds) to be a force, to be able. In other words, whatever we are called to do, we can do it, not just because God is able, but because in Christ, I am able. I have power, but it is Christ's power within me.Christ endues us with his strength; we receive strength from Christ and we are strengthened in him. Therefore I am able, because God is at work within me, God strengthens me, and works within me so that I am able to do his will.

Phil 2:12
Work out your salvation with fear and trembling. KJV 

Dearest friends, you were always so careful to follow my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away you must be even more careful to put into action God's saving work in your lives,, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. NLT

I'm interested in this verse because we know that God's saving work is in Christ. So what does this verse actually mean? I believe it means that we are to apply God's saving grace to our own lives. The word "trembling" has the meaning of "one who distrusts his own ability completely to meet all requirements, but religiously does his utmost to fulfil his duty". What Paul is saying is: do your best to live the right way, fulfilling God's call and purpose, knowing that you don't rely on your own ability but on God and his ability to make you able.

We are not duty driven, we trust Christ to fulfil all requirements for righteousness, but we do our best to live the right way, and are desirous to live the right way. For Paul, this meant putting his past and everything related to it behind him, and to live totally in God's grace, serving God's purpose and not his own. 

Phil 3:12b-14
But I keep working towards that day when I will finally be all that Christ Jesus saved me for and wants me to be. No dear brothers and sisters, I am not all that I should be, but I am focussing all my energies on this one thing: forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead.....

Earlier, Paul says he no longer counts on his own goodness. He was no longer relying on his credentials, his abilities, but on God's grace and strength. He understood that when he did this, he himself was able to do all that God called him to. He was able, because God is able and enabled him. So often we focus our energies on the wrong thing. We focus on the past, the hurts, pain, successes and failures, our abilities and the circumstances around us. Instead we are to focus on the future; we are to look ahead, focussing all our energies on forgetting the past, not relying on self, but on God, and looking forward to what is ahead; looking to the future, and to God's plans and purposes for us.

Are we relying on our own strength, or on God's strength working in us?

What do you need to put behind you? What is God asking you to let go of, once and for all? 

What is he asking you to press on towards?

When we live this way, when we apply God's love and grace to our lives, then we are able to do what we are called to do. We understand that in Christ we are able. 

Therefore I am able because God is able.

Thoughts from Philippians

Thoughts from Philippians 4:6-13

Don't worry, pray, be thankful, focus on what is true right and positive, and know that we can do all things through Christ.

Here is a principle: stop worrying about stuff, and bring it all to God in prayer. Instead of spending energy fretting, and worrying, spend it with time in God's presence seeking him, handing over your worries and expressing thankfulness and gratitude towards God.

Then, focus on His truth, focus on things that are good and right and amazing. Focus on the truth of God's word; focus on what God has already done and promises to do. Be deliberate. Catch the negative thoughts and the worry. Take them captive to Christ and replace them with his truth.

Let God's truth direct your thought life, let his truth dictate your behaviour. We can do this because we have Christ. He is the one that enables us to do the "all things" that he has called us to. He is the one who enables and strengthens. He provides us with his strength, and he gives us his Spirit to do his will, to overcome, and to have a mind transformed.

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Dream Big

What is your dream for this year?  When we get to the end of the year together, what do we want to say has been achieved in our personal lives and in Citylife Women. What are the hopes and the dreams that we have. God wants us to have hopes and dreams. He wants us to think big and not to limit him by our small thinking.
God has plans for us, he has dreams for us to live out within his kingdom.

God's dream is that all of us would live in communion with him, in relationship that is confident and secure and from which we can step out into the world and his purpose for us. What is your dream? How big is it? What is your life dream? When we choose to live according to God's purpose, he says that nothing we think of will be to big for him.

Let's not get caught up in small thinking and small mindedness. Let's not get caught up in our own 'stuff'. As women, God has a plan and purpose for us to pursue, he has a dream for our lives that is bigger than us, but not bigger than him. In Ephesians 3:20 God says that he is able to do exceedingly abundantly and so much more than we could ask or think. We know this and we understand this but do we actually believe it and put it into practice in our lives.

What are you dreaming for? What is your vision for your family, your relationships, your workplace, your job etc.

Joel 2:28,29
Then after doing all these things, I will pour out my Spirit upon all people,
Your sons and your daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams and your young men will see visions.
On those days I will pour out my Spirit , even on servants - men and women alike.

God says that his Spirit will fall, he will enable all to have dreams and visions. "Even on servants" implies that even those who filled what would be called a 'lowly' position would not miss out. we are not so familiar with servants but God is clear. The opportunity is available to all. At the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, this prophecy was fulfilled. God's Spirit was poured out. That includes us! This is for all people everywhere who believe.

God's desire is that we dream and dream big. Joseph had big dreams. They seemed impossible dreams. But God brought them to pass. God says that nothing is impossible for him. He is able to do so much more than we could even dream about. It took time for the dream to be fulfilled, it took Joseph away from his home and onto a foreign land, but his dream was fulfilled. As a result, many nations were saved from famine, his family were saved.

Joseph was diligent whoever he was placed. When he was placed into slavery he worked diligently at what he was given to do. God blessed his desire to serve well. When he ended up in prison, he didn't whinge, he just got about serving where he was and in due time, God lifted him up. Are we too proud to serve in the humble things, because we have a big dream? Joseph wasn't, he was prepared to serve in the whatever was at hand and God honoured it. Read his story for yourself in Genesis 37-45.

What are your hopes and dreams? When we have hopes and dreams we can apply faith and start to do what God is calling us to. God has a dream for us, and he makes a way. God had a dream for Paul the apostle. Paul had his own plans and ideas. His petty dream was to persecute Christians when he found them. But God got a hold of him.

In Acts 9:1-15 we read of his conversion and the change in his game plan. Paul saw that there was something better for him, when he got on board with God's agenda, and dream for his life. Paul's dream changed his life from one of persecuting others to one of taking the gospel message further than anyone else had taken it. It was a dream to see people saved by God's love that took him to nations, into the presence of Kings and onto a journey of life that was much more exciting than his original plan for himself.

There are some questions that can help us.

Where are you up to in your journey of faith? What does your relationship with God look like?
Am I fighting God's plan for my life?

Paul had been fighting against God's plan, but when he had a revelation of who Jesus is, he stopped fighting. In fact, Jesus said to him "its useless to fight against my will". Girls, if you are fighting against God's will for your life, you won't get far, but if you stop fighting and get on board, you will go places you dreamed of and some that you haven't even dreamed of yet. But God has dreamed of them for you.

When we are on a journey, its always good to stop, take a look at where we are and assess what we need to do to move forward.We can reflect on where we are up to. Have we followed the right path and direction, or do we need to make an adjustment? When I go away, I know where I want to head to. This is my "dream". But I won't get there if I don't do anything about it. I won't fulfil my dream if I don't take steps to make it happen. There is preparation - research and booking, there is saving up. Then I check how I'm going, and I start out driving and then along the way I assess where I'm up to, how far I've come and what I need to do to cover the final stages etc.

What is working for me? What obstacles am I facing? Are they real obstacles or imagined ones? What do I need to do to make progress?

There will always be things going well, and things that are not easy. Joseph had some obstacles in his life, but he served diligently anyway. He knew that he had some things that he needed to do. He could not get out of slavery himself, or out of prison, that was in the hands of other people and out of his control. But he knew what to do to make progress. He knew to serve with excellence and a good attitude, he knew to keep his heart right and his efforts paid off. He was recognised for his diligence, his honesty and his good attitude. Eventually he was brought before Pharaoh and within a moment of time his destiny was achieved and his dream was fulfilled.

How committed are we?

Dreams take commitment. Dreams don't just happen, they take time and energy.

How committed am I to the process and to seeing my dream fulfilled? What am I doing with my time?

So often we find ourselves time pressed, but is it because we are living a full life pursuing our dreams or is it because we spend a lot of time mucking around, and wasting time on things that are not important. I'm not talking about taking time out when you need it. Part of a healthy existence is quality down time, time to relax and to recharge. I'm talking about the time and energy we waste on useless things, the hours on Facebook, or other social media etc.

When we answer these questions, we can ask some final questions.

What changes do I want to embrace? What opportunities are there right now, for me to embrace?

When we know where we are up to and where we want to go, we can look at the changes we need to make and then make them. When I am heading in the wrong direction, I only need to make a few changes and I'm back on track. When I'm heading in the right direction, I may need to make some changes to stay on track.

There are many amazing and wonderful opportunities for each one of us.

What is God asking you to embrace today?

Citylife WOW 2013

This year will be an amazing year for Citylife Women.
Women on Wednesday is a key part of that. Be sure to connect with others and hear what is happening right across Citylife Women.

There are great opportunities for us this year to build on the success of last year and to continue to grow in community and in faith.

This is not a one man show. It requires all of us together to build something significant for the kingdom. God gives us the mandate to go and make disciples and it requires all of us together.

There will be a few changes this year along the way but they will bring blessing and growth.
God wants to bless us, he wants to bless Citylife Women and he will build his church.

1 Timothy 2:4
God wants all to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth
1 Peter 3:18
But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

God's desire is twofold - that people would be saved and that they be discipled and disciple others.

WOW is totally about these two things. We will do lots of fun things this year, but basically it is about seeing women saved and brought into relationship with God through faith in Christ and his atoning work on the cross and its about ensuring each women is loved and discipled to full fill God's pan for her life.

Strategy
WOW - Women on Wednesday
Creating a place where women can:
Connect with God through worship
Learn to live the Christian life  through lifestyle application of the word
Connect with other women
Bring along their friends
Develop leadership potential
Visiosn:80% non-Sunday attenders

So how do we make this happen?

What is our part?

1. Belonging
We are community of women.

We want to create a place where people feel they can belong regardless of where they are on the journey towards faith.

It is not just about a doctrine, or practices. Of course these have an important place, but it is also about belonging. What we believe is important, and we will not dilute what we believe, but we will share it with love and grace.

How we present the truth will vary over time and place, but it will still be truth.

We rely on the word of God as our source of truth and in the belief that God loves everyone, that he sent Jesus as saviour, that Jesus is the way to salvation, that heaven and hell both exist and the only way to salvation is through the atoning work of Christ.

But as people are on the journey towards this understanding and towards faith we want women to know that there is a place that they belong.
We are a community of women, doing life together, growing, and becoming who God calls us to be.

What is a community. There are many definitions relating to different spheres of life.

Common ownership and participation - in other words a sense of belonging, inclusion and involvement.

We want to create a place of love and acceptance of people regardless of where they are up to.
This does not mean we won't be challenged to change and to grow.

It does mean we are creating a community of women who are willing to accept people wherever they are at and to walk the journey of life towards faith and Discipleship with them.

Jesus accepted people, he loved them and gave the call to follow him. He is our example.
John 8:1-11.

The woman caught in adultery. Jesus did not condemn her, he accepted her as she was, extended grace and cared about her enough to say - Go and sin no more. No condemnation, just acceptance, love and a challenge.

How can we create a place where people feel they belong?

By loving them, not judging them, by welcoming them, by including them in our circle of friends, by caring.

By keeping a positive attitude when we are here and by not criticising others!!

By making sure that whatever we do, we do it with excellence because we want them to experience something that tells them that no matter their background, no matter what has gone before, they are important and they are valued.

2. Focus on them
A midset shift that this is about others and not about us. This is about unsaved people.

The focus of what we do is to be about those who do not already know Christ. We exist to reach unsaved people and share God's love with them.
Of course the question that arises is "what about me and my needs?"

Two things here!

In Jesus, every real need we have has been met. We need to learn to live it out.
This also highlights the importance of friends and life group (though this should also have an outreach/other person focus,)

The key thing is that in Christ we have everything and those without Christ have nothing.

The New Testament has two key things - GO - this is going into the world and sharing the love of Jesus with the people in your circle of influence.

The second is MAKE DISCIPLES - looking after people, helping them in their walk with God, getting involved in lifegroup and reaching out to others.

What are we personally doing to go - to embrace the opportunity we have all around us?

God wants all to be saved. God wants those who are saved to be discipled and to disciple others.
This is not about personality, this is about loving others.

The Bible says that we are to be prepared to give a reason for the hope we have and to make the most of every opportunity.

1 Peter 3:15,16
Instead,you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if you are asked about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it. But you must do this in a gentle and respectful way.

Col 4:5-6
Live wisely among those who are not Christians and make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be gracious and effective so that you will have the right answer for everyone.

We may baulk at this, but its really quite straight forward.

Be a friend - we all have people that we know through life - at work, our families etc.
We can care about people and be a friend.

Tell a friend - As we develop relationships with people, we will find opportunities to share the hope that we have.

We do not need to force it, we just get to know them and listen to the prompting of the Holy Spirit. It is his job to convict people, and draw them towards salvation.

We lift up the name of Jesus in our actions and in our words, by living in relationship with him, and in sharing God's love for others.

Bring a friend - we all have the opportunity to bring people with us.
To invite others to come with us on the journey. (I'm talking the unsaved, unchurched here and not about pinching other Christians from else where).

Praying - one of the most effective things as we launch into this year is to simply take time to pray for other people to come to know Jesus.

God wants all to be saved. Our main focus is them, and not us.

3. Faith
Without faith it is impossible to please God.

Heb 11:6
So you see, it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that there is a God and that he rewards those who seek him sincerely.

Lets not be fatalistic about what happens.

Let's believe that God wants to bless us, to build his church. Lets transform our thinking.
Maybe we need to lose the "I tried that and it didn't work" and replace it with an optimism that is grounded in faith in a mighty God.

"who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we ask or think, according to his power at work in us". Eph 3:20 NIV

Heb 11:1
Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. NIV
What is faith? It is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. It is the evidence of things we cannot see yet.

We can be certain that God wants people to come to salvation. We can be certain that God wants people in relationship with him, and in relationship with others.

Conclusion

God wants us to be a community of believers who are part of a broader community of women seeking to grow in the journey of life and encouraging others ro come on the journey with us.

Will you be a part of it?

A thought

Psalm 37:3,4
Trust in the Lord and do good, then you will live in safety and prosper.

Delight in God, and he will give you your hearts desire.

What I note about these verses is God's amazing promise to us. All we have to do is trust in him, delight in him, put aside our own agenda. But, many people, including many Christians, want the promise,want to live safely and to prosper, but don't want to fully trust God or do good. They want the benefits of the promise without having to do their part.

If you will trust God and do good, he will give you everything you need and more.

Trust in the Lord and do good. It's not hard really, yet it will take everything we have. Love God with all your heart all your soul, all your mind and all your strength. This is what Jesus said is needed. Remember, He died and rose, so that in him, through faith in him,we are made right before God. What an amazing thing God has already done for us.

In response, as we determine that no matter what, we will love God with all we have, that no matter what, we will trust God in all things, that no matter what, we will do good, then God's promise is that he will prosper us. This is not necessarily material prosperity, but God does want us to proposer in all areas of life, in our familes and relationships, our work, our finances. He promises abundance for every good work (2 Cor 9:8-11).

The question is: Are we willing to trust God in all things at all times, and to do good wherever and whenever we can?

Purpose Part 1

Call and Purpose
As we read the Bible we see that there are both the call to salvation and a call to following God's purpose There are many examples of God's call to his people. The disciples were called by Jesus when they were doing their work as fishermen. Jesus himself was called to the ministry and set apart from birth. Paul, in Acts 9 was called directly by God and was set apart for ministry when Ananias prayed with him. Timothy was called to work with Paul and to partner with him. 

Each of these people had very different roles to play in God's plan and purpose. There are many and varied ways that people are called but God calls each of us to his plan and his purpose.


What does this mean for us?

1. Called by God
We are called by God to salvation. God's call is to us to follow his plan and his purpose for our life.We have a call from God to salvation and to a life of following Jesus, in relationship with him. It is our choice as to whether or not we follow the call, and choose to believe. In Luke 5:1-5 Jesus calls the disciples, Peter, James, John and Andrew. They gave up everything they had to answer the call of "Come follow me."

We understand this as their call to ministry. Jesus was very deliberate in his call. These men chose to act on the call and to follow Jesus. The rich young ruler of Matt 19:16-22 also received the call to follow Jesus.
This young man was called by Jesus to follow him, but because he did not understand that life is about relationship with Jesus, he turned away from the call. He was sad because he was rich and could not see past giving up his "good life" for a greater life of relationship with Christ. 

The call requires us to give up our old way of life and to embark on a new life of relationship with Christ.
In Corinth, Paul says that they were called by God. God's call is the call to salvation, the call to believe in Christ and to follow Jesus. It is the call to relationship with Christ.

What is our response to the call?

What is God asking us to give up, so they we fully answer the call to relationship with Christ.

2. Chosen
Matt 22:14
Many are called but few are chosen. 

What is the difference between being called and being chosen. Jesus said many are called, but few are chosen. Jesus put out the call to many to follow him, but not everyone did. But when we answer the call and believe, we move into the life of "Chosen in Christ".


1 Peter 2:9
We are a royal priesthood and a chosen people.
What does it mean to be chosen?

Simply, those who believe are those who are chosen. In fact the Bible has a lot to say about what it means to be chosen. It all stems from relationship with Christ Jesus. God has a plan and a purpose for each of us and we step into that plan as chosen people when we believe. We were chosen before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless

Eph 1:4
Even before he made the world God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes.

Eph 1:11-14
Further more, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance and makes everything work out according to His plan. God's purpose was that we Jews who were the first to trust in Christ would bring praise and glory to God. And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit he promised long ago. The Spirit is God,s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so that we would praise and glorify him. 
When we believe, we become part of God's chosen people, and his blessings become active in our lives, we move from "called" to "chosen", from outside of his people to become his people. We move into all that God has planned for us.

Are you living as God's chosen, taking hold of all that he has for you?

3. Purpose
God's purpose for us is related to his desire for people to know him and live for him, in all that he has planned for them. His main purpose for us is to go and make disciples of the nations, to go and preach the gospel to all the world. (Matt 28:18-20 and Mark 16:15). This is actually the main reason for the Call we have and why we are to live as his chosen people. This is also where the second sense of "calling" becomes relevant because God has a plan and purpose for each of us.

John 15:16a
You didn't choose me, I chose you, I appointed you to go and produce fruit that will last,

We are chosen by God, chosen to bear fruit for the kingdom, and chosen to glorify God. There is a twofold reason for our call. 1 Peter 2:9 says that we are a royal priesthood, a chosen people, that we are to show others the goodness of God and to declare the praises, of God who "called you out of darkness into his wonderful light". We are called to praise God and to glorify his name before others, living a life that honours Him. There is a purpose in this. We are called to honour God and to bear fruit for the kingdom. 

How do we do this? We declare God's goodness to the people we meet. This is built around relationship with people, with honouring God in how we live and in what we say and by showing God's love and kindness to people. Eph 1:11-14 says that our salvation, our new way of living, is to bring praise and glory to God. In Col 1:9-11 Paul prays that we would have a complete understanding of his will, of what he wants to do in our lives, so that the way we live will honour and please him and that we would continually do good kind things for others. It is about God's purpose for the world.

As we seek to honour God with our lives, as we start to do things for the purpose of God, the individual "calling" our particular part in that becomes clearer. As we gain an understanding of these things, in our relationship with God, we begin to get a sense that there is a more specific thing that God has in mind as his purpose. Paul was called to be an apostle to the gentiles. His initial work was within the Jewish world. He had been persecuting Christians, but once he heard God's call, once he became "chosen" he went about speaking to others. (Acts16)

Timothy was raised in a Christian home and in Acts 16:1-2 we see him respond to the purpose of God by joining the Apostle Paul. It was a beginning, but it took many years for it to become fully active. Timothy worked in partnership with Paul, towards the same purpose, the salvation of others, but they had different roles. Timothy was pastoral and was given the role to teach and to train others, but it was all so that there would be fruit for God's kingdom; people saved and living for God each day.


What purpose are we fulfilling in our lives, our own purpose or God's purpose?

If we want to know what our purpose is, then we need to get about sharing God's love and kindness with others. 

Who am I sharing God's love and kindness with? 

Who is on my heart? Who needs to hear about God's love?


How will I do that?


Conclusion
The call is to relationship. We can ask ourselves: 
What is my relationship with Christ like at the moment?
What needs to change?


We respond to the call by believing and by entering into a relationship with Christ, by following him.

The purpose is to show God's love and kindness to the world.
We can ask ourselves:
Who am I showing God's love and kindness to?

As we get about this, as we respond to the call, living as a chosen people, as we build relationship and seek to follow Christ, he will take us on deeper into his calling and purpose.