God Created Me – The Purpose Driven Life – Day 2

Hawk — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 12:19:39 +0000

You Are Not an Accident

God is the Creator

Day 2 of the Purpose Driven Life drives home that God planned ME, and created Me. I think that anyone who went to Sunday school as a kid heard this message, but I have to admit that I have not thought about that in a long time.

As a kid I accepted this as being true. I thought "wow that is cool," and then continued playing. But, as I became an adult, and the complexities of life became a burden, I think I forgot about this. Warren quotes the Bible saying,

You know me inside and out,You know every bone in my body; You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from nothing into something. Psalm 139:15

The implications of this are HUGE!!

The Bible is not saying that God made mankind generally. It is saying that he made ME and YOU specifically. God knows each of us intimately. And, he did not create us willy-nilly. No, he created each of us for HIS own purpose. And, that purpose is not just a grand purpose. It is an intimate purpose for You.

Illegitimate Parents, No Illegitimate Children

One concept in Chapter 2 that I really liked was Warren's statement that,

While there are illegitimate parents, there are no illegitimate children.

I see many people struggle with their family and their childhood, but the above statement is powerful. God knew who your parents were going to be, and even if they were not the best parents, God knew that they were the two people best to create you. It is not an accident where people are born and where they live. Instead, it is part of God's specific plan for you.

What are the implications of this?

The longer I think about this chapter the more implications I can think of. As I am writing this, here are my thoughts,

God knows me personally
God planned me and has a purpose for me
God is with me day-to-day
I need to treat ALL other people compassionately and kindly because God created each of them specifically too. Everyone is a child of God
No matter what happens in life, God has a purpose for me

God is Love

Another concept raised in Chapter 2 is that God is love - love in its purist form. God created you and me because He loved you and me specifically. Warren quotes Isaiah 46:3-4 where God says,

I have carried you since you were born; I have taken care of you from your birth. Even when you are old, I will be the same. Even when your hair has turned gray, I will take care of you. I made you and will take care of you.

This is a harder concept for me to wrap my mind around. While I believe that God is pure goodness and Holy, the pain and suffering that people experience in his created world bothers me greatly. I don't really understand why humans suffer so much. I hope that Warren addresses this issue further in The Purpose Driven Life.

As Day Two ends, Warren gives three things to ponder memorize and consider. I would love to hear your thoughts about this post and these three points.

Point to Ponder: I am not an accident.

Verse to Remember:

I am your Creator. You were in my care even before you were born. Isaiah 44:2

Question to Consider: I know that God uniquely created me. What areas of my personality, background, and physical appearance am I struggling to accept?

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The Purpose Driven Life – My Journey Begins

Hawk — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 10:58:55 +0000

The Purpose Drive Life

Today, my wife and I are starting our 40 day Purpose Driven Life journey. I hope you don't mind that I thought that I would use The Debt Hawk as my Purpose Driven Life Journal.

Hopefully you won't mind considering the focus of this site is to help people reach their life goals by implementing a disciplined personal finance plan. Rick Warren's Purpose Driven Life fits very well into my goal for this site.

The central purpose of The Purpose Driven Life is to help its readers answer one question, "What on earth am I here for?"

I think that every person thinks about this question at least once in their lives, and most ask themselves this question all the time. I know I do.

At times the answer to this question can seem so obvious, but other times life's purpose can seem so uncertain.

One of the first Biblical quotes that Warren cites is a common refrain among personal finance bloggers,

A life devoted to things is a dead life, a stump; a God-shaped life is a flowering tree. Proverbs 11:28

The promise of The Purpose Driven Life is that in 40 days my life will be transformed. Wow, that is exciting. I pray for such a transformation. It is exciting to think that over the next 40 days, I am in for a spiritual journey like no other.