## TOTAL REVOLUTION OF PURPOSE

Why are we here? This is likely one of the largest questions that any one can answer for themselves or for others. In youth ministry, a recurring theme in the mind of the Christian young person is “How do I determine the will of God for my life?” Students are constantly seeking an answer to that question. Within this discussion there are many different sides, with two most common juxtaposing ideas. There is the opinion that God will lead and guide each and every minute decision in our lives, and therefore we should learn to seek him in all of our decisions, or there is the other side that argues that God’s will was never meant to be that restrictive, and is larger in scope – God’s will for our lives is clearly delineated in scripture, and through his character. Therefore, if we are following the ways of the Lord, seeking his guidance throughout the day, and walking according to his character, the actual time in which we brush our teeth today is not so significant. This next series is based on the second opinion. If we can help young people to understand that God has given them strong and clear guidance, through scripture, through the Holy Spirit, through wise counsel, and through our own brains, we will be giving our students a huge gift. Notice that I still argue that all of us throughout our days should be seeking God’s guidance. I don’t believe it is in error for us to ask, “which way do you want me to walk to school today?” Divine appointments will happen when we seek God’s guidance, but we do not need to be paralyzed as we wait for an answer. God has given us the tools to chart our course as he guides us.

The question of purpose is also a huge one across the human spectrum. We also discover that the answers given differ according to culture and geography too. Tony Campolo shares, “A study done on mothers around the world asked the question, “What do you want your children to be when they grow up?” Mothers in Japan almost always answered, “We want our children to be successful.” The result is that the people of Japan have raised up a generation of the most success-driven children in the history of the world. They work harder and longer than any other people at any task assigned to them. …When American mothers were asked exactly the same question, you can imagine what the answer was: “We want our children to be happy!” It should come as no surprise that whatever tops our wish list, also tops our directions and purposes. Who would argue that in North America we have come to believe that the purpose of life is “happiness”? Parents tell their children, “whatever makes you happy”, or we brush aside poor decisions under the mantra “at least he is happy”. Sheryl Crow wrote the popular song a number of years ago, “If it makes you happy, it can’t be so bad”. Clearly there is a huge chasm between the values of a Jesus follower and the values of their peers. As we read scripture we discover a far greater, a far nobler and a far richer answer to the question, “What is my purpose?” Over the next few weeks we will begin to reflect on the Revolutionary truths of scripture in response to that question.

For further preparation, we suggest that you read The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren. We have used the “captions” from that book to set the stage for each of these sessions.

Contact: Please feel free to email the author to clarify, brainstorm ideas or provide feedback: Darren DeGraaf.

### SERIES TOPICS

- Created for God’s Pleasure handout
- Created to be Part of God’s Community handout
- Becoming More Like Christ handout
- Strength for the Journey handout
- Revolution of Identity … I am Forgiven handout