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Finding your purpose

Engrained in humanity is the desire to be known, to have purpose, and to be loved.
I have spent many hours in conversation with God asking how He might use me to serve Him, what He has planned for me, and how I can best use the talents He has given me to glorify Him. This is a contrast to a time in my life where instead of asking God what He wants, I told Him what I wanted. I no longer desire to peruse Jacqueline Harrill’s plans or goals, but only what the Lord has for me. He is a daddy in heaven who sovereign over all and only wants the best for His children.

The holy spirit is our wise counselor who sharpens and encourages us on our Christian walk. In preparation for the new year, I am reflecting through old journals and praising God for my relationship with Him. This past year, though intimacy with Christ, we have won many sweet victories and fought painful battles. We have increased my Trust in HIS plans and grown me into a daughter of faith. In preparing for another year with the Lord, James 4:13-16 spoke to me.

"Now listen, you who say, today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money. Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that"

A letter from a friend. His words, not mine, but I thought it was worth sharing.

I feel compelled to share some thoughts in light of Steve Jobs passing. Thoughts that may be very hard for us to accept and to proclaim to a lost world. Without question, I can offer up my utmost respect and dignified remorse to Steve’s family, his friends and his fans for their loss. And all of them are fully deserved of their own loss and grief. And while I fully understand the need to reflect on all his accomplishments and his undeniable success, even still I have been utterly blown away by the responses I have seen and read in the media.

But it’s at this very moment in time at this unique juxtaposition of life, death, wealth and success that we can see all that Solomon spoke of in Ecclesiastics, ”….meaningless..meaningless “

Can you believe it has almost been a year since I have competed in my last Triathlon?
That’s right. I have not done a triathlon since Ironman Louisville last August.

Aloha! The Lord has just tickled my heart with all the undeserved travel He's blessed me with this year. The year started with a ski trip in Denver (visiting Lauren), mission trip to Belize, cycling trip in the Mediterranean, and now a work-rewards trip with Abbott to the Hawaiian Island of Kauai! The honor of receiving the The President's Council award marked my one year anniversary with the company! The trip consisted of approx 80 top performers in our company plus their guests! I brought my good friend, and an amazing woman, Ashley Johnson. It was quite a change to be conversing on the beach in a bikiniwith a cocktail versus a meeting room in with a powerpoint! One of the things I appreciate most about Abbott is the transparency of leadership. Of course there are politics, but for the most part, our people are just genuine folks who are passionate about their faith, hobbies, families, and work!

Please forgive me for my tardiness. It’s been almost three months since our cycling trip to Mallorca, Spain and about 2 months since our trip to the island of Kuai. This season in my life has certainly been blessed with travel and opportunity. I am very undeserving of it all, but certainly appreciative. When praying about the new-year, I really felt God say that He wanted me to enjoy 2011 by inscribing His word on my heart, traveling and developing relationships. Through this vision, it is amazing to look back and see how much He has made possible. No dream, vision or ideas is too powerful for our God. In contrast, our dreams and visions often fall short of the plans He has for our lives. I struggle daily to let go of the ideas and visions I have for my life; however, as I practice submission to God, it becomes easier and easier for Him to move in my life.

Psalm 91:11 “For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.” (NASB)

When racing, I can typically be seen smiling, encouraging the athletes around me, and thanking the volunteers for their time. Channeling my energy positively towards others encourages me in return! I am energized and blessed by those around me and use that energy to stay positive, to run faster, and to be stronger. Today began with a bit of a different tune. I woke up this morning un-excited to race and just sad as a result of some recent heart-ache. I tried to talk my way out of this funk, but was only able to build “superficial” confidence in my ability. Praise God, I am not dealing with MY ability alone, but Christ's, who gives me strength.I had specific goals for this race, but I felt I had lost the battle before the race even began. I invited the Lord to race with me and knew He was the only way I would mentally survive this race.

This is a short story, passed onto me by a friend, that forces us to self reflect on if we view life's challenges as opportunities, or as obstacles.

A shoe factory sends two marketing scouts to a region of Africa to study the prospects for expanding business. One sends back a telegram saying,
“Situation hopeless, no one wears shoes”
The other writes back triumphantly,
“Glorious business opportunity, they have no shoes.”

To the marketing expert who sees no shoes, all the evidence points to hopelessness. To his colleague, the same conditions point to abundance and possibility. Each scout comes to the scene with his own perspective; each returns telling a different tale. If we live in the universe of possibility, on the whole, you are more likely to extend your business and have a fulfilled life if you have the attitude that there are always new customers out there waiting to be enrolled rather than that money, customers, and ideas are in short supply.

If we have Christ in our hearts, we should view life as one big mission trip! We don’t need to be over sea’s to perform acts of kindness or to share God’s word. We can share His glory daily by demonstrating patience in the workplace, compassion in our relationships, giving to the poor, sharing encouragement with an acquaintance and inviting others into the family of God. The beauty of a mission trip is that we are removed from distractions of everyday life and able focus solely on Christ. The challenge is to keep Christ in the center in a world full of distractions. I am striving to make my life a mission trip and striving to serve Him with a single mind and heart everyday. Through my sinful nature, I will fail everyday, but I will keep trying to be more like Him in my thoughts, words, and deeds. I went to Belize with the mission of blessing others through Christ’s love. I came back humbled, realizing that the experience had blessed me more.

The growth, revelation and conviction the Lord provided throughout the mission trip was such an intimate experience for me, that honestly, I am struggling to paraphrase it into words. Even my greatest attempts will fall short of glorifying all He did. Over the next month I will post individual revelations and experiences from the trip, and for the purpose of this post, I will give a general overview of our days and describe some special relationships developed throughout the trip.