“What’s my purpose?”
We’ve all asked the question. Struggling with purpose has kept us up at night, caused us to miss a red light turning green and made us feel restless at work and home.
When we know our purpose and are living out of it, it can be easy to get out of bed in the morning and natural to push beyond our comfort zones. However, when we don’t know our purpose or are not living out of it, getting up can feel like a CrossFit workout, and we want to flee even the most cushiest of environments.
While our particular expression of God-given purpose is unique, God made every person with a shared purpose. In the opening lines of Gateway Worship’s song, “Who Else?,” we hear that purpose.
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“I am an instrument of exaltation
And I was born to lift Your name above all names
You hear the melody of all creation
But there's a song of praise that only I can bring.”
Zac Rowe reflected on the power and weight of the words in this song. “We were created to give God praise…I love that when we worship God, we can think about how great He is, and it makes our problems and the things we go through feel like they get put in their correct perspective.”
In the busyness of life, it’s easy to convince ourselves that our purpose is to check items off the to-do list, drive kids from place to place, or make enough money to pay the bills. But we were created for much more than this! According to the Scriptures, God created us to praise and give Him glory.
At the end of Ecclesiastes, the writer sums up what he’s learned. “That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty.”
The English word “fear” is a translation of the Hebrew word “ yir'ah.” This word means reverence, respect, and awe. We are to worship God with those emotions and that attitude. Ecclesiastes 12 tells us that this is our duty, while the final book of the Bible tells us to do so because of God’s worthiness.
At the end of Revelation 4, the twenty-four elders lay their crowns at the throne and declare, “You are worthy, O Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power.
For you created all things, and they exist because you created what you pleased.”
The Bible reminds us that God is worthy of this praise and purpose. In Psalm 89, the writer asks, “For who in all of heaven can compare with the Lord? What mightiest angel is anything like the Lord? The highest angelic powers stand in awe of God. He is far more awesome than all who surround his throne. O Lord God of Heaven’s Armies!”
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The writer asks a similar question that God posed to Job. “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me, if you know so much. Who determined its dimensions and stretched out the surveying line?”
Even as I write this article today, I remember that God is more awesome than the uncertainty I feel as I look ahead. God is bigger than the depression Paul shared with me. God is more powerful than the financial stress Rachel feels. God is stronger than the cancer diagnosis Valerie received. Sometimes, we need a reminder like that!
In an interview, Josiah Funderburk from Gateway Worship reflected on this song's power when sung in a group of believers. “When you say a line like that at the beginning - I'm an instrument of exaltation and I was born to lift your name above all names - to hear the person next to you singing that to is like - ‘Oh yeah, there's actually more going on than just whatever I brought into the room.’”
If life has been busy, overwhelming, or full of distractions lately, then I’d encourage you to take a few minutes and listen to “Who Else?” from Gateway Worship. This song will not solve all your problems, and it might not clarify every question you have about your purpose in this season of life. However, reflecting on the glory and power of God will certainly reset your perspective about those problems and that purpose. It certainly did for me!
Scott Savage is a pastor, author, and speaker with the best last name in the world. Scott’s writing helps people transform difficult circumstances into places where they can thrive. He leads Cornerstone Church in Prescott, Arizona, and loves watching movies with his wife and three kids. Today, you can begin Scott’s life-changing project, The 21-Day Gratitude Challenge, for free!
