Greetings from the land of the Queen and scones and clotted cream. I am in England and will be for another week. I had a busy day yesterday and will be busy for the next week. You can read more about my schedule below, but right now I want to finish up our study of Esther. You can read the previous three Memos on Esther here or you can wait to catch up when I review at the end of this Memo. Either way, let's take one last look at Esther and the purpose lessons we can learn from her life.
FAITH FROM START TO FINISH
Clarifying your purpose isn’t a matter of doing your homework or
figuring out what you do best or most often. You do have to work at finding your purpose, but it isn’t
something you can identify logically.
The last point I want to make this week is that you need faith
both to clarify and fulfill your purpose. You don't find your purpose in faith and then carry it out on your own. Your PurposeQuest requires faith from start to finish.
When Esther received the exhortation from Mordecai that she had
come to the throne for such a time as this, she replied:
Then Esther sent this reply to
Mordecai: “Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me.
Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my maids will fast as
you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the
law. And if I perish, I perish” (Esther 4:15-16).
Esther knew at this point that she could not do what she had to do
in her own strength; she needed supernatural help and strength to fulfill her purpose. You need to come to the same
realization. People ask me how I
write and travel as much as I do.
I respond that I do it in faith.
I determined eight years ago that I would trust God, who showed me my
purpose, also to fulfill my purpose.
And like Esther, I said if I fail, I fail. If I failed, however, I was going to fail magnificently and in
faith!
I get many letters from readers who are uptight and frustrated
with their individual PurposeQuest.
I write back and tell them to relax. God will reveal your purpose when you are ready. Put your trust in Him and in His
ability to speak—not in your ability to hear. God wants you to fulfill your purpose even more than you do,
so, armed with that understanding, trust that He will not only show it to you,
but open doors like He did for Esther that will enable you to fulfill it. People often tell me that it can’t be
that simple, but I maintain that it is.
LET’S
REVIEW.
So
what purpose lessons have we learned from Esther and Mordecai these last three
weeks?
- Your past doesn’t
prevent you from fulfilling your purpose, unless you allow it to do
so.
- You may be taking
for granted or looking past a purpose that is obvious to everyone but you.
- God wants to build
on your strengths and not your weaknesses.
- God hasn’t forgotten
you.
- You don’t have to
go looking for purpose; purpose comes looking for you.
- Purpose puts you in
the right place at the right time.
- It requires faith
both to find and fulfill your purpose.
So there you have it - our purpose profile on Esther. This week, I want you to mediate on the seven points I have listed
above. Pray over them and ask God
to show you what you’re missing.
Don’t just pray, but pray in faith with pen and paper in hand, believing
that the Lord will show you some new perspective that you need to be a person
of purpose. And as usual, if I can
help you in any way, please let me know.
Have a great week!
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1. UK AND KENYA SCHEDULE. You can look at my schedule for the UK (September 20-28) and Kenya (September 28-October 4) on my website under the News section. Everything I am doing is open to the public, so come one and come all to hear the purpose doctor while you have the chance! (The Tuesday event listed on my site for the UK has been postponed.)
Also, I have a special evening presentation in Nairobi on Wednesday, September 30. For more information, you can download the flier: Download IIE Kenya Seminar
2. THE SOPHIA FUND UPDATE: I am so delighted that I am taking about $3200 to Kenya with me to feed our orphans and widows. What a blessing! Thank you so much for your generous support. I will announce a special Christmas promotion toward establishing children's libraries and reading rooms, which unbelievably are nonexistent in Kenya.
You can read my latest report on The Sophia Fund here (written about four weeks ago). You can also read about my rationale for The Fund here (named after my late mother).
Now that the Revelation Project is complete, please consider a contribution of at least $5 toward the fund and hopefully more. You can use the "Chipin" widget on the Monday Memo site to contribute, or go directly to my website to contribute there through PayPal, or send a tax-deductible check to PurposeQuest, PO Box 91099, Pittsburgh, PA 15221. Make sure you let me know it is for The Sophia Fund. Don't delay; give today and make a difference in the world.
3. DAILY PROVERB: I am now posting a short daily devotional focusing on one verse every day on my blog site. If you would like to read it or subscribe to receive it, just go to my site and register there. I promise to have it updated every day.
4. FACEBOOK: My goal is to have 1,000 Facebook friends on FB by 12/31. Right now I have 630. I update my status on Facebook (you can find me by searching my email, johnstanko@att.net) every morning to include a daily verse from Proverbs and an inspirational quote. I do the same on Twitter @johnstanko. Go there to sign up and follow along.
"Put your trust in Him and in His ability to speak—not in your ability to hear."
Dr. S - of all of the things I've heard you say over the past several years, this is perhaps one of the most profound to me. So often, we blame our stagnant state on not hearing from God when that is not always the case. Oftentimes, we have to just trust that He will speak to us-"little old us"-because He has purposed something for our lives. Thank you for a great start to Monday morning!...Peace & Safe travels..
Posted by: Abigail K | September 28, 2009 at 09:35 AM