I have a deep love of walking outside especially in the area parks and gardens. Taking the time to walk the different paths never fails to feed my soul. But each time I venture out, I choose the familiar paths and rarely veer off into an unknown direction. I am definitely a creature of habit.
Staying on a known path has been my heart’s desire for as long as I can remember, but God has creatively taught me that new and amazing things happen when I let myself follow Him, wherever that may be. Our journey through life follows a path that is filled with known, unknown and everything in between. We make choices along the way that lead us forward, keep us standing still or even take us backward. The beauty is when we allow God to be the compass that leads us along the path we find that the unknown becomes known.
[Tweet “Allow God to be the compass that leads you on the path from unknown to known. “]
The last three weeks I have looked at our potential, purpose and passion and discovered that the three belong together. There are times we believe they function separately, but as a believer the three are tied up in the life we handed over to God in baptism. He guides us to Him by using all three in harmony to lead us on the path which ultimately steers us to Him.
As I have learned more about potential, purpose and passion, God has opened my heart to seeing how all three merge together to guide us in our life’s journey. I am learning….
The compass of our hearts align with God when our potential – God’s gift to us when we were born – is given back to Him to use as He chooses.
Be generous with the different things God gave you, passing them around so all get in on it: if words, let it be God’s words; if help, let it be God’s hearty help. That way, God’s bright presence will be evident in everything through Jesus, and he’ll get all the credit as the One mighty in everything—encores to the end of time. Oh, yes! 1 Peter 4:10-11 (MSG)
Our purpose naturally falls in line with our potential as we release all our questions as to “what’s next” to God.
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28
Our passion is realized when we say “yes” to the whispers God shares when we least expect it. It wraps potential and purpose together and shows off as the deepest dreams of our heart.
For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!” And through Christ, our “Amen” (which means “Yes”) ascends to God for his glory. 2 Corinthians 1:20 (NLT)
Finally, we will find our path when the compass of our heart is pointed to God. Potential, purpose and passion come together as we walk the path that God has chosen for us.
Letting go of ourselves and our agendas makes space for God to use our potential, reveal our purpose, define our passion and guide us in our life’s journey. Trusting in God allows all of this to happen.
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Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6
Today and everyday my prayer is to understand more fully God’s purpose for me. What I forget is that my prayer needs to add a component of letting go so God can provide the answers. My prayer for all of you is for God to reveal your purpose as you release the outcome to God.
Blessings of grace along the way!
Mary
Linking up with these beautiful ladies!
and Dawn for Grace Moments
This has been such an inspiring series, friend! Letting go, releasing to God, that which He will return to us with purpose and blessing – such a beautiful Truth! God will give us our heart’s desire. And I pray, always, that the desires of my heart will match His plan and purpose for my life. A special thank you, dear one, for the devotional. I’m looking forward to spending some time between those pages this weekend ! Blessings, my friend!
I find it amazing that God gave me four words – potential, purpose, passion and plan and said “Write”. I had no idea what the result would be but I appreciate your kind words as I wrap up the mini series. It has been a process of trusting God to provide the words and a lesson in how does this apply to my own life. God always knows what I need to hear and when I need to hear it. I love how you encourage me and it was my pleasure to provide the devotional for my faithful community. Glad to have you here!
Mary, I love the season of life we are in. It does have its challenges but we are wide-open to what God may have for us. Great post as always.
It is a beautiful season of life to be in and I am grateful for so many things. God has a way of showing us the path in His own timing which can cause impatience. We do have the gift of being able to embrace God’s plans more freely than when we were younger. I always love seeing you here, Susan!
Amen, friend. I so hear you about being a creature of habit with well-worn paths providing comfort with their familiarity.
And yet, when I do venture to a new something or other, I feel my soul lift and rejoice, even if just a bit.
I guess it goes back to what you wrote about some time ago … being brave.
Thanks for continuing to take us there!
It all goes back to being brave doesn’t it? My first choice will always be the familiar path but God is teaching me to let Him lead me off the path if He chooses. Here’s to venturing to new things and enjoying every minute of it. Love you friend!
I also tend to take the known path and be wary when I don’t know where the path is leading but I like the picture of God as our compass. i’m gradually learning to take it one step at a time rather than trying to see too far ahead down the path. I like how you identify that our potential, purpose and passion come together to lead us on the right path.
God makes a beautiful compass because He will never lead us astray and will point us in the direction that He has planned for us. I need to trust the compass and not try to trick it into taking me a different direction. It makes me think of using SIRI to guide me to new places. I seriously have not trusted her at times and made wrong turns because I think I am right. Crazy right? I am praying we learn to trust the compass even when we think we know better. Blessings!
Beautiful, Mary. “[Passion] wraps potential and purpose together and shows off as the deepest dreams of our heart.” I love that! And what a beautiful place to live … Content and satisfied because we are walking the path God planned for us!!
Thank you for your insight and beautiful encouragement. I love living content and satisfied but I am still learning. God has a beautiful plan for each of us and I need to get out of the way and let Him lead the way. Blessings for a great weekend!
That letting go of ourselves and our agendas can be so difficult, but it certainly is necessary to make way for God and His. We so need that daily surrender. Thank you for this encouraging reminder of allowing God to be our compass, Mary. Blessings and hugs to you!
Daily surrender. Wise words my friend! Praying we learn how to surrender daily and let God lead us on our life’s path. Blessings!
Mary,
I had to smile, because like you, I love walking outdoors but I do find myself taking the “tried and true” paths because I know the outcome. I don’t easily embrace the unknown. I think that’s why God has taken me on this adventure with RCF, Inc. because it is so far beyond me that I can’t possibly conceive what God has in store. And THAT is just where He wants me to be…in a complete state of faith and trust because I don’t know which way the road is going to curve up ahead. Learning, like you, to trust HIM with the outcome…less of me…more of Him. Thanks for this encouraging post to trust!
Blessings sweet friend,
Bev xx
Thank you for understanding. It seems we have walked some of the same paths in our lives. I love how God is stretching you into some new areas. As scary as it might be, I see a beautiful trust developing in your heart. It shines in the words you write when you you talk about RCF. Thank you for your encouragement and I am praying we both continue to learn how to trust God with all the outcomes.
THIS: ” The beauty is when we allow God to be the compass that leads us along the path we find that the unknown becomes known.” God is the master navigator. But I so often forget that.
God is the master navigator. He will never lead us astray. We just need to let go and let Him lead. Praying we are able to let God do what He does best- lead us along the paths of our lives. Blessings friend!
Hi Mary, thought provoking post! I tend to go the unchartered route more than the safe route, which is not easy! It’s easy to loose sight of purpose when the road is wide and unchartered..but when I return to solitude and seek God’s wisdom, then I k now if he’s gone before me to pave the way on unclear roadways, and then ask for baby steps ahead according to His will. The key is listening, obeying God’s will and praying without ceasing! Visiting from #raralinkup today! Great to be visit again!
Amen! You have discovered the secret and it is a good one. I sometimes miss the listening piece and as hard as I think I am praying, I am lacking an important component. There are times that my quiet time is not always focused and not always quiet even though I think it is. God knows and when I am in sync with Him, the future looks bright. Thank you for your insight! Blessings!
I always struggle with this, Mary. Thank you for your thoughtful look at the three paths that must merge to form my direction. Sometimes I even question God with, “Why did you make me love THIS?” But the idea of continually bringing my gifts to Him and asking (and listening) how I can use them to serve him–that’s where I’ll find direction.
You brought up a great point Anita. We need to bring our gifts to God and let Him show us how He wants us to best use them. Thank you for your insight and for being here today.
When we release the outcome, it so takes the pressure off of us and our step lighter, I find! I know God has whispered me the words, “let it go” recently which is quite the opposite of my ‘to do’ nature. I trust He knows my ‘potential and purpose’ more than I do. So I love your line about making the space for God to reveal our purpose. Thank you!
God does know our potential and purpose more than we do but you are right in saying we need to let it go to Him. For me, it is letting go of myself and what I perceive is next rather than trusting that God has all the answers. Praying you are able to make space for God to reveal your purpose and you have the courage to say “yes” to follow His path.
You’ve teased out a strand of meaning here, Mary, that I really needed to think through this morning, and that’s the idea of making space for God to be my compass. There are days when my planner is so full of MY plans that He would have to use a bull horn to penetrate the sound of my own thoughts in the ears of my heart.
Also — I had the fun of listening to your pod cast with Holly. So good to get better acquainted in that way. You both were having so much fun that it made my laundry folding just fly by! Thanks!
It is easy to let our voice become louder than God’s voice. It is a choice we make. I would love to hear any other insights you might have as you think this through some more.
Thank you of listening to the podcast. I had so much fun talking to Holly. Glad you liked it. Blessings on the rest of your week.