A Repurposed Life for a Greater Purpose
A repurposed life is my current reality. For many years, I thought I had my life all figured out. I would always be a wife and mother of two daughters and work on staff at my church. Until Jesus came back, that was my plan. It was a good plan, but it was my plan, not God’s. He inserted His own plan when on November 17, 2012, He took our oldest daughter to heaven to be with Him. I eventually (notice I didn’t say suddenly) discovered that my life was in need of repurposing.
God is the one who gives our life purpose, and then He repurposes when necessary. He always has a purpose for us no matter the season of life.
Inanimate objects can be repurposed: a family heirloom, fine jewelry, driftwood, broken pottery, wood from an old home place, fabric from clothes belonging to a deceased loved one made into a beautiful quilt, old pictures made into a collage work of art, etc. Jesus repurposed a boy’s lunch into something bigger and better (John 6:9).
Something recycled reminds me of reincarnation, which is a totally false concept. Something repurposed conveys resurrection power.
We find repurposed lives in the Bible. Job was one. Can we say with Job, “But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold” (Job 23:10)? Joseph was another who went from rich kid to slave to inmate to ruler of Egypt. Esther was a poor orphan girl who never dreamed she would one day be Queen of Persia. Naomi experienced the loss of husband and children, a path she would not have chosen. Then God chose her to cradle baby Obed who became the grandfather of King David in the lineage of Jesus Christ. Peter, Andrew, James and John were fishermen, a noble profession; but then Jesus came along and changed everything. He repurposed their lives.
We all know of people alive today like Joni Eareckson Tada, Melissa Stockwell, and countless others who refused to allow an accident or war injury prevent them from working hard and achieving success.
So, where are you today? Has a major life-changing event totally obliterated your plan? Is a significant shift in the trajectory of your life staring you in the face, possibly retirement? God already has it figured out! He has a plan to repurpose your life for a greater purpose, and He will share it with you when you seek Him. But let’s be honest. Do we spend as much time in prayer, fasting, and reading the Bible to find our answers, direction, and encouragement as we do in worry, reliving the pain, and not moving?
“My heart says of you, ‘Seek his face!’ Your face, Lord, I will seek” (Ps. 27:8).
“See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland” (Is. 43:19). This path is new to us but not to Him.
Is there something you’ve always wanted to do—one day? Go back to school, learn something new, launch a new career, pursue a hobby, volunteer? Does your once-upon-a-time dream, neatly buried in storage so long ago, seek to breathe again and take that first step into today’s reality? What is it that God desires to birth or rebirth in you?
“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” (Rom. 8:28).
“Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails” (Pro. 19:21).
“Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is” (Eph. 5:15-17).
“For it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose” (Phil. 2:13).
It’s a new season! How exciting! Today I’m writing books and loving life. Only God knew that would happen. He repurposed me for a greater purpose, and I am thankful.