• Originally published July 11, 2008 at 5:38 p.m., updated July 11, 2008 at 5:38 p.m.

I’ve met few people who are satisfied believing that his or her life was simply the product of blind circumstance, or nothing more than the formation of molecules. We were created for something better – but to discover that better something requires the ability to see beyond the obvious.

The reason is that only God can reveal our life’s purpose to us, because He alone has the wisdom to see the entire picture of what He wants to accomplish with us. And God usually – in fact, almost always – works behind the scenes. So even when you are in a situation that doesn’t seem like it could ever be a part of God’s or anybody else’s good purpose for you, there is often more happening than you can see.

Let me give an example from the Bible. The New Testament book of Acts is the record of the earliest years of the Christian church following the death and resurrection of Jesus. The foremost leader in those days was the apostle Paul, who established churches throughout the ancient world.

Paul suffered incredible hardships – stoning, multiple severe beatings, prison, and shipwrecks, just to name a few. Yet, in Acts 20:17–38, we read that when Paul met with the leaders of one of churches he had founded, he was able to say that the only thing that mattered to him was finishing the work God had given him to do. In another place he even said that he didn’t mind being falsely imprisoned if his chains would help the gospel, the message about Jesus, to reach more people.

Paul was a guy who could see beyond the obvious. What was his secret to living out God’s purpose? I see three principles from Paul’s life that we can apply to our lives as we seek that same purpose.

First, we need to understand that no matter what happens, God is always up to something. This sounds elementary, but once you grasp it you come to understand that nothing in your life is just random chance, bad luck, or cruel fate. God is at work in our circumstances shaping and directing them for our good.

Second, we need to realize that we have an important part to play in God’s plan. Some people think Christians are these kind of smilin’-all-the-time people who sit around waiting for a harp and a cloud to sit on. Not at all! God wants you to partner with Him, to invest our life with Him, in achieving His good purpose for your life.

Here’s a third principle. We have to believe that the inheritance we are going to receive is worth the investment God asks us to make. Here’s where the real payoff comes, if I can use that term. God has promised in His word that nothing we give to Him or do for His honor will ever be lost or wasted. The inheritance that God is storing up for His people is eternal, and priceless.

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