‘A life of meaning and purpose is not attained through effort, rather it is uncovered through searching.’
Almost my whole life, I have been trying to attain success and happiness through effort. It never really works for any of us in the long term.
Most days, I don’t try to achieve it anymore; instead, I try to be a vessel for the love and grace of God and simply allow things to be. I have also done a lot of my own searching and urge you to do the same.
To some degree, we all find some form of meaning and purpose throughout our lives, but the question is- is it the good kind or bad?
80% of automatic thoughts are negative; our unconscious minds mostly lean into the negative. But, I have never met anyone who doesn’t want to find positive meaning and purpose.
You are living your life based on some sort of purpose. So, what meaning andpurpose are you living by?
What compels you?
Firstly, if you’re wondering whether your meaning and purpose are right for you, consider if things feel like an effort. If they are, chances are your meaning and purpose aren’t serving you.
In The Inner Man, I spoke about the importance of creating change towards love, joy, positivity, peace, and (necessary) pain. I also spoke of the necessary essentials and objectives we need in our backpacks for this very journey through change.
This journey is our search.
I spoke of 5 big life questions we need to ask ourselves throughout this journey.
The first one-
- WHAT IS THE MEANING OF LIFE?
We discussed before how we all need to go on an inward journey to work out who we are and what we see our identity to be.
I asked you to consider what the truth is for you. Is there a God? If so, what God is he? My belief is that he is a God of love.
I also asked you to think about what compels you and if it is the love of God or something else.
The second question-
- WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF MY LIFE?
This is what we are discussing today and I want you to do a heart and soul search on it.
Anyone I meet, who truly feel successful, loves what they’re doing. It hasn’t come from sheer effort.
I believe our purpose, therefore, has to be love. If we come from any other place, we do not feel the benefits of success.
Love simply leads us to success, purpose, positivity- everything good.
If you are doing your work in love, I believe your results will reflect this.
Are you?
- IS THERE A TRANSFORMATIONAL TRUTH THAT CAN TRANSFORM YOUR LIFE?
I think yes.
I believe that you cannot just earn what you want in life. What do I mean by that? I think happiness should not come from a place of effort.
More on this later.
- WHAT IS THE GREATEST LIE?
I think this comes down to thinking that we can live our best lives by arranging our circumstances, controlling them, and using just our own willpower.
Again, this comes down to effort. The more we force our circumstances, the more unlikely it is that we will live through, and find success in, the love of God.
So this takes us to our final question-
- HOW DO YOU FIX YOUR BIGGEST PROBLEM?
I cannot wait to share this last one with you, but that’s for next time!
Back to that question- what compels you? What is your purpose in life?
I want you to have a think and see what you find. If you let God in, you will never grow weary with the power of Christ through you.
But how do we get there to our best possible lives? We need to fix our biggest problem.
For now, think about these 4 questions in your spiritual journey and what they mean for you- think about the purpose you are living by.
Have a blessed, wonderful day!
Alex Loyd