Purpose. I’ve been thinking this week about what God’s purpose means in my life. While I realize books attempt to show us how we are each given a purpose only we can carry out, I’m not convinced our purposes are uniquely individual. Oh, I do believe we are all here for a purpose, don’t get me wrong. But here is my humble opinion.
We are each given gifts. God has a plan for our lives. But, we are called to love the Lord, our God, with all our hearts, minds, and strength and to love our neighbor as ourselves. This is the greatest commandment which sums up all the other commandments of the law into one. If we obey this commandment, we will live according to God’s plan. It is my humble opinion that the gifts we are given are to be used to bring glory to God, and to spread the truth of His goodness and grace to as many as possible. He expects us to do good to others, to be kind, to love, and to place our whole trust and faith in Him.
So I’ve come to the conclusion that God’s purpose for me, and maybe every one of us, is to love with every fiber of my being. This will show others the power of God’s goodness and glorify Him. Exodus 9:16 (NLT) says, “But I have spared you for a purpose–to show you my power and to spread my fame throughout the earth.” Doesn’t love sum up everything? Isn’t God love? If I live my life with love in my heart, cultivating the fruit of the Holy Spirit, I will be living in God’s will. Galations 5:22 NLT: “But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”
This is the kind of life I want to live. Am I there yet? Not 100%. I’m still a work in progress! I believe each day of our lives we learn how to become better people. Our earthly time just might be for that purpose. To learn how to truly love.
Since it was a quiet week, I actually did a lot of coloring. I just love color and how different shades go together to create something pleasing to the eye. I also experimented a bit with using Crayola crayons to color in backgrounds. I will admit holding a crayon feels a lot different than holding colored pencils. So here we go:
Illustrator: Christine Karron
Picture title: Beloved
Illustrator: Hanna Karlzon
Illustrator: Stefania Miro (done with glitter gel pens)
Illustrator: Kameliya Angelkova
Done with glitter gel pens
Illustrator: Joel S. Avren
This and the next two pictures are from the same book. I was experimenting with shades of the same colors. Only four more pictures and this book will be complete. I wish they would publish another like this!
Illustrator: Hannah Lynn
Publisher: Tyndale
This Bible was a gift from my daughter a few years ago for Mother’s Day.
While waiting for church Sunday morning, I decided to pull out my gel pens.
And that’s the end of my sharing for this week. I wish you days of joy, love, and God’s goodness. Until next week…
Carol Ann Erhardt, Author 