PURSUE - Chase Your Dreams 2

Audio on demand from Vision Christian Media. Seeking God's plan for your future is more than just a spiritual exercise. There are practical ways to fulfill your purpose in your everyday life. Today on Turning Point, Dr David Jeremiah offers some proven guidance from God's Word to help you with that, so that you can experience a life filled with real passion and purpose.

To introduce the conclusion of his message, Pursue, Chase Your Dream, is David. So we've been studying what it means to go forward, and we've learned so far that we start with the dream and we pray and we choose and we focus, and then we risk and then we pursue. Today we're learning what it means to accept the dream God gives us and then pursue that dream with all of our hearts.

Because you see friends, our best days are not behind us. Now more than ever, God is ready to use you and me, and our greatest moments can only be a step away. It doesn't matter who you are, what your age is, or your current situation, God will strengthen you, fulfill you, and partner with you to see great things accomplished in your lifetime. So whatever you do, pursue your dream.

Well let's get started. This is part two of Pursue, Chase Your Dream. If you look at somebody else for the pattern of who you should be, you'll miss it. Because God made you special, and then he threw away the plans. Thank him for your strengths, thank him for your weaknesses, make your strengths stronger and work on your weaknesses, your blessings and your burdens, your gifts and your talents, your experiences and your adventures.

All of them are for your use, for his glory, and they will make you better. Once you understand the uniqueness of you, you'll be well on your way to pursuing the purpose God created you for. So first of all, present yourself to God, and then realize, I am a unique creation of Almighty God.

He made me alone, threw the plans away, there's nobody like me on planet earth, he has a special thing for me to do. Then thirdly, realize your responsibility. The next step is to realize that your uniqueness implies action. The Bible says it this way, as each one has received his gift, minister it to one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. In other words, God has given you a gift and with that gift comes a responsibility to use that gift to bless others. Many people resent having responsibilities placed on them. Don't let the devil deceive you. Your responsibilities, the ones that come from God, are blessings.

They reassure you of your usefulness. Someone said responsibility is your response to God's ability. You see, the church is this big circle made up of all of God's children, and every one of us has a responsibility.

The Bible says a spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other. And Jesus said, I must work the works of him who sent me while it is day, for the night is coming when no one can work. So let yourself develop a sense of responsibility for reaching others and serving the world, and make that decision before night falls on your life, before it's too late. Present yourself totally to God, understand your uniqueness, realize your responsibility, and then pursue God's plan for your life. If you've presented yourself totally to God, if you've grasped the wonderful fact of your uniqueness, and you've realized that you have a responsibility to serve the Lord and others, then you're ready to pursue God's plan for your life.

And now the task is to chase that plan. You have to run in the direction your purpose leads you. When I sensed in my heart that God was calling me to preach the gospel, I immediately made an appointment with Dr. Robert Gromacki, a teacher in the Bible department of the college that I attended. He had graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary, and he helped me make connections there that I pursued so that I could have the training necessary to obey God's call. When you begin to sense God leading you in a certain direction, don't be apathetic or passive about it. Be active, ask questions, make visits, garner advice, read, study, look for the next steps and take them.

Don't wait for God to interrupt your television program with a special bulletin telling you what to do. David Groves was the chief of police in Hartford, Wisconsin, capping off a career in law enforcement. As he approached retirement, he thought, but now what do I do?

His entire life had been devoted to public safety, and because of the dangerous and rigorous nature of his job, many police officers had retired earlier than other professionals. David felt he still had many productive years ahead of him, but what should he do? He and his wife began to pray. Knowing God had blessed them both throughout their careers, David began to wonder if his experiences might be helpful on a church staff. As chief of police, he'd learned the principles of good management, strategic planning, participatory leadership, wisdom, empathy, and vision to accomplish a mission. He'd learned to manage a budget and get along with competing factions. So David began researching the possibility of becoming an executive pastor in a church. He studied job descriptions to learn more, and the more he pursued God's plan for him, the more he saw opportunities.

Today, this former police chief is the executive pastor of a church in Wisconsin, and you better not speed past his sanctuary. If you're not dead, you're not done when it comes to serving the Lord, David said. As far as God's nudge goes, it'd be hard to share all the times we have seen his hand in this process.

Over and over in my former line of work, we would call these things clues. That's a great way of looking at it. In a sense, God gives us clues about his purpose and plans for our lives. As you consider your next steps forward, remember, if you're not dead, you're not done. Keep pursuing God's good, acceptable, and perfect plan for your life. Look for indications, notice circumstances, follow leads, and take initiative.

Look around you right now. Do you see any clues that God is dropping for you to follow? Once again, present yourself totally to God, understand you are unique, realize you have a responsibility, pursue God's plan for your life, and obey orders from God's word. That brings us to the next critical element of pursuing God's purpose for your life. You have to obey orders from his word. His will for your life never deviates from the word he has given you in Scripture. You'll need instructions for the journey, and God's instruction manual is your Bible. Joshua 1-8 says it this way, the book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it, for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.

Notice the phrase observe to do. It's easy to pass over these words like they were unimportant, but this is one of the great concepts of the Old Testament. We're not to read the Bible just for curiosity or intellectual reasons.

We're to study it in order to do it. We're to read it in order to heed it. David describes this principle in his first Psalm. He says, His delight is in the law of the Lord, and in his law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of waters that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither, and whatever he does shall prosper.

Popular author Eddie Jones has a park bench beneath a willow tree at his house, where in his words he goes to get orders every day. Even in the winter when the garden feels more like a popsicle than a paradise, he opens his Bible and he asks God for a ray of light on his day and a beam of guidance for his steps. Here's what he prays. May your kingdom come, may your will be done on earth and in my life. In the same way your will is done in heaven, lead me to where you would have me to serve you today.

And then Eddie opens his Bible and he says, I study every verse of the scripture before me. I search for promises, I look for commands, I watch for warnings and praise and prayers and words of comfort. And when I sense his voice speaking to me, whispering in my spirit, pay attention, this is important, I highlight the verse and I write it in my journal, and I ponder its meaning for me that whole day. Now you don't have to sit in a cold bench, you don't have to do anything unique like that, but you do need to find your own process. As you pursue God's purpose for your life, there are going to be times when you really don't know what to do next, that's happened to me over and over again.

You'll be confused, sometimes even disoriented. And it's in those times especially that you will learn to love the word of God. That's so important to have a daily habit of Bible reading and meditation.

It's not that you'll find a Bible verse that says, today you should volunteer at the homeless shelter. Rather, it's a matter of walking in fellowship with God, and as you read, study, meditate, apply his word each day, you'll find the needed wisdom for every single opportunity he puts in your place. Evangelist Anne Graham Lotz describes her strategy like this, I just try to faithfully follow the Lord step by step, day by day, ten years from now, I just want to look back and know that to the best of my ability, I've been obedient to God's call on my life. We have to get to the place where we understand that God has given us a manual. And when we're trying to pursue our dream and we don't know what's next, we have to realize the answer to what's next is in that book. And if we will absorb ourselves in that book, if we will just allow ourselves to let that book wash over our soul, God will show us what to do.

I've never asked God what to do next, that he hasn't in some meaningful way directed me. And then let me add this other step, serve others selflessly. Earlier I talked to you about uniqueness in the church, which is the body of Christ. But your work for the Lord extends beyond the walls of your church. The purpose of the church is to prepare followers of Christ to take the reality of the gospel to the whole world. And all of us are called to serve and share with our lost and needy world. For me, this was a life changing concept. I grew up in a pastor's home, but only later as a young adult did I really develop a biblical awareness of my responsibility to those who do not know Jesus Christ. And when I figured that out, it changed my life. We can never truly find purpose in life until we realize we're under orders to obey the Great Commission, to go into all the world and preach the gospel.

And the key to the Great Commission is the Great Commandment, which tells us to love our neighbor as ourself. A couple of years ago, Sam Sorenson sold a horse to Jennifer, a woman living in Montana. The two stayed in touch so Jennifer could keep Sam updated on the horse's status. Sam noticed that Jennifer had what so many people want.

She had money and land and freedom. She didn't have anything she wanted to live out her dreams, but she seemed so lonely. Sam sensed that she was using the horse to try to fill a void in her life.

Shortly afterward, Sam moved to Fort Worth to enroll in biblical studies at a seminary there, and the two chatted by phone about his move. She had some questions, but mostly she was just looking for hope. Then Sam said, I was able to ask her about some of the fears and hopes and then share my testimony. I shared about how I came to faith in Jesus and told her what Jesus has done for me.

Jennifer admitted that she felt empty, that her dream of owning a horse hadn't filled that void as she had hoped. Sam asked if he could pray for her, and during that prayer, Jennifer asked Jesus Christ to come into her life as her Lord and Savior. She is the first one I have ever shared the gospel with who has accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, said Sam.

I never thought I could do that. Praise the Lord. Yes, praise the Lord. We serve others, and when we serve others, we find opportunities to share the gospel.

Every time you turn around, here's a new plan, a new place. This is part of his purpose for you. The greatest continuing joy of being a Christian is the joy of sharing Christ with others and serving others in the body of Christ. Finally, experience eternal life. Are you staying focused here? Present yourself to God, realize you're unique, recognize you have a responsibility to others, pursue God's plan for your life, obey orders from God's Word, serve others selflessly, and experience eternal life. Let's sum up. You need a compelling motive if you're going to develop an unfolding plan for moving forward in your life.

You need the why. You discover your why by totally presenting yourself to God and understanding that he made you uniquely for a unique work. You have a God-given responsibility, and you need to pursue it. You need to stay in the scripture daily, serve others selflessly, and look for opportunities to share the gospel. And that brings us to the final step in pursuing your purpose. Experience the eternal life God has given you. Jesus said it this way. I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand.

That's what everyone is looking for, the kind of life that is both abundant and eternal. The Israeli statesman, Abba, even wrote about a conversation he had with Edmund Hillary, first man ever to climb Mount Everest. He even asked the explorer what he felt when he reached the top. Hillary said the first sentiment was ecstatic accomplishment, but then he said there came a sense of desolation. What was there now left for me to do? John Krakauer trekked to the same summit years later, but the trip was tragic.

Twelve of his companions were killed in the descent. Later in his book, Into Thin Air, Krakauer described how it felt at the top of Mount Everest. He said, I had been fantasizing, dreaming about this moment, and the release of emotion that I would feel when I finally stood at the top. But now that I was finally here, actually standing on the summit of Mount Everest, I just couldn't summon the energy to care. I snapped four quick pictures, turned and headed down. My watch read 1.17 pm, all told I spent less than five minutes on the roof of the world.