09/17/2023
https://open.substack.com/pub/stutterer/p/the-beginning-of-a-new-purpose?r=qu1my&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
Hey everyone! It's been awhile since I've posted on Facebook, but I'm sharing here the new Substack that I've begun in the pursuit of investing in my long-dormant talent to writing. I feel that the world will be needing faithful individuals in the future to come, so I'll be engaging a lot more in this! Please consider subscribing so you can find more of my work in your email!
For those less inclined to click, my post can be found right here below! 👇
-The Beginning Of A New Purpose-
“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”
Ephesians 6:12
Life is a journey that can have so many of us, if not all of us, feel like we’re constantly sliding back in what seems like a never-ending conflict. We are all born of passion, of dreams, of hopes and ambitions that embody the very essence of our soul, the ability to soar to heights that the world can see, and finally be recognized for our efforts in a place that dared us to fail. We are wired to have faith, because every action we take is in the hope that it will come to fruition. The equation of struggle against those dreams comes down to the simplicity of our souls, torn apart by a conflicted and corrupted world that conspires to destroy all that is good and truly honorable without blame. As children, we are pure and have our eyes filled with the stars, and as adults, to see that light dim a little more every day before we realize how far we fell. Now, we witness a world filled with depravity and desperation, and yet no one can give an answer as to why we lose so much and continue to. Is it the failure of our medicine, our leaders, our money, our decisions, our family, our friends, ourselves? Or is it a failure of the spirit, a collapse of a sense of purpose in a world of madness? All of these can be attributed, but all concludes to one simple truth: We have to make a choice on who we will be, because if we cannot be the solution, then no one will be.
“And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
Joshua 24:15
It is said as the first commandment that God is a jealous ruler, one who does not tolerate a double minded man who bides their time to find their reason, and commands us to make a decision this day on what we will live for, and how we will live according to it. Life is a short blink of existence that can end in a moment, and how we live in this life will be judged in eternity on how we used the few precious moments given to us as an opportunity. Is it so hard to believe that your drive to wake up every day is the soul within you that seeks it’s reason to be fulfilled? We live every day in monotonous, rather meaningless charades of acting in habit, believing that one day our time will come and we’ll finally find our place. But even so, we’re constantly offered an opportunity at a greater purpose in life, so busy in this world that we forget to listen. In 1 Samuel, God called Samuel to be in service to His temple, to soon be the prophet that witnessed the beginning of King David. Four times God called to Samuel in the night to answer, and he woke up three times to answer his father, believing it was him that called, and those two times he went back to sleep. The third time, his father realized that God was calling, and told Samuel to answer and listen. God’s plan for Samuel was to be raised in the temple and taught His ways and His commandments, and to soon become the man to anoint the first, and the second and greatest king of Israel. At a much later time and yet a similar story, God called Jonah to go to Nineveh, an Assyrian city that was as wicked as one could come, of whom God desired to give one last chance to repent and wanted Jonah to go as His ambassador. Jonah refused His call and attempted an escape on a ship, of which was swallowed by a whale so that God would be able to offer Jonah a chance to meditate and repent of his decision to flee because He chose Him to complete this task. Jonah prayed these words in those days:
“In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me. From deep in the realm of the dead I called for help, and you listened to my cry. You hurled me into the depths, into the very heart of the seas, and the currents swirled about me; all your waves and breakers swept over me. I said, ‘I have been banished from your sight; yet I will look again toward your holy temple.’ The engulfing waters threatened me, the deep surrounded me; seaweed was wrapped around my head. To the roots of the mountains I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in forever. But you, Lord my God, brought my life up from the pit. “When my life was ebbing away, I remembered you, Lord, and my prayer rose to you, to your holy temple. “Those who cling to worthless idols turn away from God’s love for them. But I, with shouts of grateful praise, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. I will say, ‘Salvation comes from the Lord.’”
Jonah 2
God had the whale spit out Jonah, and sent him to complete what is still considered to be the greatest evangelical campaign in the history of the world, converting over 600,000 people in the span of a single day from the king on down. And God spared the city of destruction, all because Jonah answered this call.
God is not here to unite all of mankind under a common banner, because doing so would denote any and all belief. In fact, the very basis of meaning in this world is to go against all that has been established, because it has been defined by a people that are corrupted in darkness and sin, even in our own hearts.
“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”
Jeremiah 17:9
Therefore, Jesus came to this world to declare a New Testament of faith, that it will never be our works to save us, but by His final sacrifice of the debt we deserved to pay for, and yet were spared of destruction to be free to eternal life. This choice means letting go of our very nature to now embrace the potential within us that is unleashed by the power of the Holy Spirit, once separated from us from the blood debt of our sin. The greatest commandment of this new age was one simple action: Love your neighbor as you would love yourself. And thus, following the example of Christ and to let go of all of our ties to this world is necessary to living a life that is unbound from any kind of influence that can drive us back to our old ways. This is the choice that so many of us would never be brave enough to take completely, even myself in the daunting knowledge that we would have to stand up against the tide of this world against all odds. That is why God reminds us that we will never be alone.
“I look up toward the mountains. Where can I find help? My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth. He will not let you fall. Your guardian will not fall asleep. Indeed, the Guardian of Israel never rests or sleeps. The Lord is your guardian.
The Lord is the shade over your right hand. The sun will not beat down on you during the day, nor will the moon at night. The Lord guards you from every evil. He guards your life. The Lord guards you as you come and go, now and forevermore.” Psalm 121
This passage from David was written at a point when we was driven into exile from Saul, the current king of Israel, who wanted him dead for many years, and his heart was anguished at the thought of never knowing if his life would be able to overcome this battle. Eventually, Saul had died, and David became the new king of Israel as he was anointed many years before as God’s chosen. “Do not fear” has been repeated many times in Scripture, especially in Isaiah, though Jesus spoke these words after His resurrection, and it gives it an entirely new meaning as death was finally defeated:
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33
It’s easy to forget that we are made in God’s image, also meaning that we have the potential of eternity born within us, left simply to a personal choice of whether or not we would take God’s hand so that He can show us the purpose He had designed us for, on a scale that goes beyond time itself in a greater plan. We are born into a world that is corrupted by darkness and evil, as the devil had taken his throne in this existence as the chain of all mortality. That is why the destiny of our soul and the mercy of God is the single thing standing in the way of devastation, because we are meant for more than even death itself. As Jesus had said, “I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.” John 15:15
Making decisions in life that can truly make a difference can belong only with God because He sees more than we do from the beginning to the end of time, and it’s some of the most frightening choices we can make in the wake of a world that wants nothing more than to destroy. That is why the Holy Spirit is found within us, because it’s the omnipresent pairing with God that will guide us and give us strength as long as we hold on.
“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; as you are precious and honored in my sight, because I love you.” Isaiah 43
I write this passage because we’re living times right now that have cost the lives of so many people that never had the chance to hear of any semblance of hope in this life, and the answer to prayers is found in the callings that we answer from God to do something. With rampant crime, suicides, corruption, pain and desperation, there is so much that is on the line of finding salvation in a broken world. People need to understand that their importance goes beyond the barrier of time or any mortality, and that they are here for a reason that continues on in eternity. God fights for us because He loves us, and that loves transcends beyond any description that can be said in words, except that He loves us enough that He sacrificed Himself in our place so that we could be free to make a choice. It is not a luxury that we can take for granted either, because every single day that passes is one missed in witnessing the difference we can make by His power, by the lives we can save or the joy we can bring to one another. Coming back to the beginning of this passage, we have to make a choice, and our choice to embrace our destiny and denying this world is the prayer that the world wants answered, because God will send you to complete it. We are the difference that can change everything, and we are the next generation that has to carry a torch that is slowly fading away in false leadership. If your heart feels empty and lost, there is a reason for it: You were made for more than this. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.” Jeremiah 29:11-14
“Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,” even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you... search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
Psalm 139:7-12; 23-24
“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” Ephesians 6:12 Life is a journey that can have so many of us, if not all of us, feel like we’re constantly sl...
