Created in Christ To Do Good Works

We are God’s handiwork created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God created in advance for us to do.
Ephesians Ch 2:10

   This is definitely in my top ten Bible verses. It sums up the simple fact that God created us with a purpose. Each and every one of us. ‘We are God’s handiwork -some say masterpiece or even poem,  because  in Greek the word  is poiema, from which we got the words poem, and poetic – So,  we are God’s poetic statement, his masterpiece, created in Christ Jesus to do good work, which God created in advance for us to do.’  

So, you were not an accident. The day you were conceived, God already had a plan for your life.  He had a purpose for you to fulfill. A reason for you to exist. So don’t ever think you are not important.  You  may be struggling, in the midst of an impossible situation,  you may have alienated your family and  your friends, you might be going through hard times; grief, divorce, physical difficulties, financial hardship, relationship problems, mental health issues,…. You can be going through trials of any sort and it can feel like there is no end in sight, no way out of your situation. Things may look bleak and your life may seem meaningless. You may be asking God Why?  Why am I here, what is the point? 

God’s Gift To You

 But God knows. And God Cares. 

God made you with a purpose.  There is a reason  you are here.  As Fr. Cedric Pisegna says …’Life is God’s gift to us, what we do with our life is our gift to God.’ It’s like a way to say thank you.  An expression of our gratitude to God.  

Kind of like if someone gave you an unexpected, random, generous gift and you wanted to show them how grateful you are.  Maybe it’s a gift card to a nursery and plant shop. So you buy seeds, plants and supplies and you plant a garden. And then show them pictures of the beauty you created with their generous gift.  

Or you go one step further and  invite them over to see the garden, smell the fragrance, experience it.  Or maybe you bring them a bouquet of flowers from the garden that the two of you created together; with their resources and your time and effort. That’s a beautiful thing to do to show them how much you appreciate their gift.

Maybe that’s how we should approach our gratitude to God. It’s one thing to say thank you over and over to him. I mean, that’s good. We should always remember to thank God for all our blessings through prayer. But we can go one step further.

Almost like, it’s one thing if your friend says thank you for the beautiful sweater, it’s another thing if you see them wearing it in a random picture. Wow, they must really like it…They are actually using it!

Same with God. He gave us each gifts.  Are we actually using them?  Or are we hesitating, out of doubt or fear. Joyce Meyer says  to ‘step out and find out’, when we are trying to identify, and to figure out how to use, the gifts God has given us.

Discovering Your Purpose

Some thoughts on how to figure out what God has gifted you with:

• Are you good at something?  That is a gift from God. How  can you use that talent to help someone, or to make the world a better, kinder  place?
   
• Do you enjoy, or have you always been  interested in  some hobby, skill or activity? That is a gift from God. How can you learn more about it, teach it to someone else, or get involved in that activity to spread joy and to make the world a better place? 

• Are you drawn to some issue or cause? What is happening in the world that breaks your heart…?  Homelessness, poverty, abortion,  addiction, child abuse, sex trafficking, war, hunger,  famine…there is no limit to the problems that our world faces. If you find yourself drawn with compassion to one of the world’s problems, that is God nudging you to get involved.

Every good and perfect gift is from God. (James 1:17)  If you have a gift, trust me, it’s not something You put inside of you.  God did that. 

Sure, maybe You realized it, recognized it, nurtured it, practiced it and went for it.  Yay! Bravo to you….Seriously! Many of us don’t make that effort, or take the time to discover and develop our gifts. But it’s worth remembering that it’s a partnership between you and God; The Giver of the gifts.

So how do we show our gratitude to God for the gift of life?  It’s worth trying to discover what God has planned for you.  Because he put you right here, right now, right where you’re at…
For. A. Reason.  

Your life is not pointless, unimportant , superfluous or meaningless.

It is a KEY piece of the puzzle of humanity.  YOU are a key piece of the puzzle. If we all play our part, that puzzle gets closer and closer to completion.  Perfection.
Back to the Garden we came from.  

The ideal setting God intended for us.

For more on this topic go to http://www.christiannotchristian.com/whats-in-your-hands/ and http://www.christiannotchristian.com/why-are-you-here/