Devotional

The apostle Paul knew who he was and what his life was about. In modern day terms, we would speak of it as ‘identity.’ Paul’s clarity and focus of his life is inspiring to many. People will spend a lifetime in search of this same clarity. The context of this verse is that Paul was warned that suffering and death were ahead for him. But safety and ease were never his concern. He had one focus, to be a faithful minister of the gospel.

We came into this world with nothing. We add value to it only through what we achieve. In this sense, life has value because it is a resource to use. How are we going to use it? What will our life mean as we live and learn and achieve? Having a clarity of purpose gives a life focus. We will not be tossed back and forth by every trend or whim.

For Christians, we have this clarity because we know that God has a purpose for each of us. Even if we are not as clear as Paul about it, we know that our life is for God’s purpose. The bigger concern is not whether we are comfortable or healthy or even safe. The bigger concern is that we complete the work God has set for us to do. So we trust him to lead us, and when we look back we measure our success by how much we have been useful to Him.

God bless you and your family
Brett