By Dr. Dee Hester

Knowing your purpose provides a strong foundation for healing the soul amidst trials, positioning you to live a life of faith and power. When you are clear on your purpose—whether it be to spread love, serve others, or fulfill a specific calling—you are better equipped to be secure and strong in the Lord. A sense of purpose gives you a reason to keep pushing forward, even when circumstances seem hopeless to the natural eye. It allows you to find meaning in the middle of suffering and persevere with confidence through the darkest of times.

Knowing your purpose enables you to find peace in the truth that God is using even the most painful experiences for your good. Romans 8:28 reminds us that God works all things for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. This promise offers hope and reassurance that there is a greater plan at work, even when we can’t see it in the moment. The power of your faith and belief in your purpose will strengthen your spirit while leading you to receive the manifestation of an abundance of blessings beyond your imagination.

Take some time to meditate on the word of God and find biblical figures like Job, who faced unimaginable loss and suffering, yet triumphed over every tragic hardship. He is a testament to the power of knowing one’s purpose in the face of adversity. Despite his trials, Job remained faithful to God and trusted in His plan, ultimately finding healing and restoration in the end. Like Job, when rooted in our purpose and trust in the sovereignty of God, we can find peace and healing in the midst of our own struggles.

As believers, understanding purpose also helps you to see the bigger picture beyond current circumstances. It allows you to shift your perspective from the immediate pain and suffering to the eternal hope and promise that lies ahead. When you know your purpose, you can see that your trials are not without meaning or purpose—they are part of a larger story that is guiding you towards growth, transformation, and ultimately, healing.

Always remember, knowing your purpose provides a firm foundation for healing the soul when faced with unthinkable challenges. It gives you a reason to keep moving forward; a sense of meaning in the midst of suffering, and an assurance that God is working all things for your good (Romans 8:28). By understanding your purpose, identifying your triggers, and anchoring yourself in the promises of God, you can navigate through the storms of life with resilience, faith, and hope.

Because of the Holy Spirit living within you, there is an unlimited supply of healing power inside. Through it all, remember your purpose is not just a destination—it is a guiding light that will lead you towards healing, restoration, and transformation. As you navigate through the trials, triggers and triumphs of life, don’t ever forget that there is so much more in you!

Dr. Dee Hester is certified Life Coach and Christian Counselor at Newburgh Theological Seminary. She is a Mentor, Educator and Author, and the founder/director of Kingdom Business Bible College and More in You Coaching.

Overcoming Life’s Giants: A Journey of Resilience and Growth

By Dr. Daniel Haupt

Life is filled with problems that can appear as giants blocking our path to success and fulfillment. Rather than mere obstacles, these giants are opportunities for growth and self-discovery. The journey to overcome them is ongoing—a process, not a singular event. Here, we outline a comprehensive, multi-step strategy that combines personal development, resilience, and proactive action to transform life’s crises into pivotal growth opportunities.

Step 1: Engage in Prayer

Prayer is a devotional dialogue that allows God to intervene in one’s affairs. It is an intimate process that extends beyond mere requests, involving a deep communion that aligns one’s thoughts with divine insights and guidance.

Step 2: Cultivate Faith

Faith is the bedrock for overcoming difficulties, involving a profound belief in one’s abilities and the attainability of one’s goals. It is a God-induced state of being, a result of engaging with God, leaving you with a substance and model of things hoped for.

Step 3: Harness Courage

Courage is essential when facing life’s giants. It means acting despite fear, stepping out of comfort zones, and confronting challenges head-on. Courage is not just a feeling but a prophetic (foreseeing) imperative that pushes back against fear—“false evidence appearing real.”

Step 4: Serve Others to Create Value

Service is a pathway to enhancing the well-being of others and developing personal skills. Building a supportive community through service can be crucial in overcoming personal problems and trials.

Step 5: Fight with Your Vision, Not Your Past

A forward-looking vision directs efforts toward future aspirations, maintaining focus on what is achievable, rather than being hindered by past failures.

Step 6: Engage in Prophetic Self-Talk

Speaking about future successes as if they are already secured can boost confidence and solidify commitment to achieving set goals.

Step 7: Develop Resilience

Resilience is the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties, enhanced by adopting a balanced perspective on life’s challenges, practicing mindfulness, and seeking support from others.

Step 8: Set Habits, Not Just Goals

Consistent progress is achieved through habits that support long-term goals, fostering automatic behaviors that align with one’s objectives.

Step 9: Cultivate Self-Awareness of Your Strengths

Utilizing personal strengths effectively can enhance one’s ability to overcome challenges, allowing for the strategic deployment of one’s best attributes.

Step 10: Maintain a Positive Mindset and Practice Meditation

A positive mindset transforms challenges into opportunities, while meditation reduces stress and enhances focus, contributing to an overall sense of well-being.

Step 11: Seek Support

Building a robust support network is essential for advice, encouragement, and tangible help when facing significant challenges.

Step 12: Continue Learning

Viewing each challenge as a learning opportunity can transform perceptions and responses to crises, fostering adaptability and growth.

Step 13: Recognize Giants as Opportunities

Reframing giants as opportunities rather than antagonizing intimidators can lead to profound personal and professional growth, presenting chances to advance towards one’s destiny.

Conclusion

The process of overcoming life’s giants is a multifaceted journey that requires faith, courage, resilience, and a positive mindset. By adopting these strategies, individuals can transform their challenges into opportunities for significant growth and success. This approach is not just about fighting what’s in front of us but what’s within, building the internal fortitude to face whatever comes our way.

Dr. Daniel Haupt is founder/vision pastor of Voice Of Destiny Ministries and PrayFastDaily.org, a strategic praying, fasting, teaching and training ministry.  VoiceOfDestiny.org

Hill Harper, acclaimed for his portrayal of Dr. Marcus Andrews on the ABC medical drama “The Good Doctor,” is bidding farewell to the series as he pursues another dimension of his purpose – vying for a seat in the United States Senate. The 57-year-old actor, known for his roles in “Married…with Children,” “Get on the Bus,” “Beloved,” and “CSI: NY,” is leaving the show to concentrate on his campaign for the Democratic nomination in Michigan’s upcoming Senate race. Departing from the screen, Harper, a lawyer, union organizer, and single father hailing from Detroit, is driven by a fervent dedication to ensuring economic security and authentic representation for all Michiganders.

Harper’s decision to transition from acting to politics underscores his deeply-rooted commitment to public service, cultivated since his upbringing in the Midwest by two medical professionals. From his tenure at Harvard Law School to his advocacy for President Obama and service on the Cancer Panel, Harper’s trajectory reflects a steadfast pursuit of societal betterment. His Senate bid, propelled by a conviction in the necessity of independence and a focus on serving the populace over personal ambition, marks a pivotal juncture in his illustrious career.

Purpose Magazine featured Actor Hill Harper in its 2006 Special Men’s Edition. We congratulate Harper on pursuing another dimension of his purpose. More Updates to come!

By Pamela J. Sams

Understanding Generational Wealth

Generational wealth is often viewed as a distant goal, something that requires vast sums of money or a stroke of luck. However, the reality is that generational wealth starts with you, right here, right now. It is not solely about the money you amass but the habits, values, and decisions you cultivate that pave the way for prosperity to endure across generations.

Generational wealth refers to assets passed down from one generation to the next. It encompasses financial resources such as savings, investments, and property, but it also extends to intangible assets like education, values, and social capital. While financial inheritance is a part of it, the true essence of generational wealth lies in the ability to sustain and grow prosperity over time.

Shifting the Mindset

One of the first steps in building generational wealth is to shift our mindset from short-term gains to long-term sustainability. It is about prioritizing delayed gratification over instant gratification, making choices that may not yield immediate benefits but will have a compounding effect over time. This could mean investing in education, starting a business, or building a solid financial foundation through saving and prudent spending.

Investing in Yourself

Investing in yourself is perhaps the most crucial aspect of building generational wealth. This includes acquiring knowledge and skills that increase your earning potential, fostering a mindset of continuous learning and growth while prioritizing your physical and mental well-being. By investing in yourself, you not only improve your own prospects but also set an example for future generations to follow.

Financial Literacy

Financial literacy is another cornerstone of generational wealth. Understanding concepts like budgeting, saving, investing, and managing debt empowers individuals to make informed financial decisions that lay the groundwork for long-term prosperity. Teaching children about money management from a young age instills healthy financial habits that can last a lifetime and be passed down to subsequent generations.

Entrepreneurship and Wealth Creation

Entrepreneurship is a powerful vehicle for creating generational wealth. By starting a business, individuals can generate income, build assets, and create a legacy that can be passed on to their descendants. Entrepreneurship also fosters innovation and resilience, qualities that are essential for navigating the ever-changing economic landscape.

Social Capital and Community Engagement

Building generational wealth is not just about individual success but also about contributing to the prosperity of your community. Engaging with your community, whether through volunteering, mentoring, or supporting local businesses, not only strengthens social bonds but also creates opportunities for collaboration and collective advancement. By investing in the well-being of your community, you create a legacy of shared prosperity that can benefit future generations.

Conclusion

Generational wealth is not a distant dream reserved for the privileged few; it is a journey that begins with you. By cultivating healthy financial habits, investing in yourself, fostering financial literacy, embracing entrepreneurship, and engaging with your community, you lay the foundation for prosperity to endure across generations. Remember, the actions you take today have the power to shape the wealth and well-being of future generations. Start building your legacy today.

Pamela J. Sams is a Financial Advisor with Jackson Sams Wealth Strategies. www.JacksonSams.com

By Dr. Daniel Haupt

In the grand prophetic tapestry of life, there are two pivotal times that define our existence: the day we are born and the day we discover why. This sentiment underscores the profound truth that each of us is uniquely fashioned for a purpose and destiny beyond the confines of happenstance or coincidence. To elaborate on this theme, I urge you to delve into the depths of your being to uncover the divine blueprint that shapes your journey.
In a world fraught with distractions and uncertainties, the quest for purpose can seem like an elusive endeavor. Yet, destinies are not coincidental, but meticulously crafted plans ordained by the hand of God. Before inception, your purpose was etched into the annals of time and eternity, awaiting manifestation in the earthly realm. Embracing this truth frees us to transcend the transient, and align with the eternal, stepping boldly into our divine calling.
We are all intricately SHAPED by our Creator for a destiny infused with significance and intentionality, signaling us to accept our unique design. Accepting this original and personal blueprint, empowers us to stride
confidently into the fulfillment of our purpose. To unlock destiny, examine how you are SHAPED for purposeful living.

What Does it Mean to be SHAPED?
Few people discover their purpose to live destiny, but there are usable tools to unveil personal qualities and characteristics that aid in identifying purpose. How one is wired; personal traits, experiences, desires, and more, reveal how he or she is SHAPED. Destiny is a destination predetermined by God that unfolds through us. The SHAPED acronym serves as a guiding light, illuminating attributes that shape individual purpose and destiny. Each meaningful letter is explained below.

S stands for an array of Special Endowments or innate gifts God has invested in us, even before birth. These inbuilt abilities and talents can be performed perfectly to solve problems and add value to the lives of those we are called to impact. God has deposited in us His Spirit, which inspires us to greatness. If you are unaware of your gifts, abuse of them is almost unavoidable. The first step in living a purposeful life is to discover your natural endowments, which include anointings, gifts, callings, and talents. There is a divine reason and purpose for your existence. It could be music, singing, public speaking, inventing, writing, teaching, business, technical expertise, athletics, medical and healing, caring for others, etc. Special endowments are not earned but God-given. Yet, these need to be studied, practiced, and refined. What are your special endowments? Think about it and write it down.

H stands for Heartbeat because the heart is our divine instinct and the seat of intuition, visionary intelligence, passion, inspiration, and drive that impulsively direct our steps. Also, the heart fuels the operation of gifts by heart-felt instinct. It is that part of us that carries and sustains our yearning and energy on the route toward destiny. A healthy heart is the spring of a meaningful life; but a with daily defeated impulses can never win. Proverbs 17:22 (NIV) says, “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.” Just as the ear serves as an organ to hear audible sounds and help maintain balance in vertebrates, the heart is the inner ear through which we can connect with God and maintain balance while going through life. Dreams and purpose get nourished or famished in the heart. Everything we do flows from it (Proverbs 4:23). The heart operates the inward voice which provides direction and clarity on a path toward destiny that is a direct route but not a straight line.

A represents Ability, which is an essential aspect of our purpose and destiny equation.  Ability is what one is capable of through education, training, and experiences. So, abilities are developed into skills. Unlike Special Endowments, which flow naturally from within and from God, abilities and skills do not come naturally, but must be developed through education, training, practice, and experiences. Abilities and skills enable excellent performance in purpose that complements special endowments. For example, a talented vocalist may learn to read music and teach voice lessons for a living. The voice is the special endowment while reading music and teaching voice is an ability and skill. This could be working with children, electrical or plumbing work, nails and hair care, graphic designing, and other professional fields or hobbies. What abilities and skills have you learned and used for profitability, earnings, or to help others?

P is for Personality. Each personality opens a unique lens through which the world is viewed and responded to. It serves as a pattern, predicator or model for life and greatly influences what we are and become. Personality expert and author, David Funder, defines personality as “a collection of relatively discrete, independent and narrow social capacities.” It involves character, temperament, disposition, worldview, etc. The way God made your personality was determined by what He wants you to become and do. Introvert and extrovert personality types are distinctively designed by God for relating uniquely to others. However, God wired you to relate to your world with either left-brain or right-brain dominance; not both. For example, a person who is left-brained is more logical, analytical, and practical. The right-brained individual is more holistic, artistic, innovative, and emotional. According to the theory of left-brain or right-brain dominance, each side of the brain controls different types of thinking. These two types of thinking are expressed in the way individuals apply their purpose and destiny to life.

E is for Experiences and Environments, which are involvements and places to build personal strengths and overcoming traits wherever we are born, grow up, attend school or church, live, work, or retire. Experiences and environments can be desirable or undesirable, challenging or easy, safe, or dangerous, but there is a reason for being there, whether we like it or not. There is a learning opportunity in every experience. God, being the Potter and Maker, places us in environments that are perfect for His plans for our lives. He allows certain experiences to shape us for our destiny. The experiences and environments in your life are fundamental to how you are “SHAPED” and prepared for the future. The wilderness sometimes is the route to the Promised Land and the dark valley can also lead to the sunlit hill and horizon. Allow experiences teach life lessons, enhance maturity, and make you stronger while going through enjoyable and painful times. Experience can bring out the excellence of God in you, especially if you learn to handle situations with prayer and God’s word. World renowned author and purpose expert, Myles Munroe, says, “Purpose transforms mistakes into miracles and turns disappointments into testimonies.” God does not see your past mistakes the way you see them. You might see a mess, but God sees a message and platform for miracles. “Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails” (Proverbs 19:21 NIV).

D is for Destiny—everything that will happen during our lifetime and in eternity, planned or unplanned. Yet, we are empowered to impact our destiny through decisions and actions. Everything about the way we are SHAPED leads us to purpose and destiny. One thing we all have in common is being born into the world with a purpose and destiny, which is a direct route not never a straight line. Purpose is the overall reason why we are here and there is no one born without a purpose. God says in Isaiah 46:10, “I have known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.’”

In conclusion, explore how you have been SHAPED for an uncommon destiny. Through introspection and exploration, we uncover the Special Endowments, Heartbeat, Ability, Personality, Experiences and Environments, and Destiny that define our trajectory. Destiny is a destination with a purpose for which we were made, not a purpose we made for ourselves. So never try to become someone else. You are uniquely designed for your destiny. For in the crucible of purpose, we discover the essence of our being and the fullness of our potential. Let us heed the words of 1 Peter 2:9, recognizing our inherent nobility as a chosen generation, destined to illuminate the world with the radiance of our purpose. May we rise to the occasion, embracing our destiny with courage and conviction, knowing that we are SHAPED for such a time as this.

What God has made crooked, let no man make straight. -Ecclesiastes 7:13    

What in the world are you doing?” is not only the title of a challenging poem by author Claressa Beckhon but an inquiry of accountability.  No question, the motives for what we do and why deserve serious examination. Caught up in the rush of the day and era, time can easily slip away, leaving behind only a reality of how we spent it. Whether we use it wisely or foolishly, we reflect the sum total of every second, minute, hour, week, month, year, and decade of our lives.

In this vast garden called life, that which is planted and nurtured sprouts and grows — good, bad, or indifferent — bearing the fruits of our labor. Ultimately, we cannot camouflage the life we are living or the seeds we are planting.

Many of us are so busy but is all of the busyness linked to our true purpose? Consider that a tremendous amount of energy and synergy is exerted daily into jobs, projects, programs, popular events, and lofty endeavors. But is fulfillment a fruit we enjoy as a result of our labor? Let’s give ourselves what I call the “fulfillment of purpose test” as we personally answer the following ten questions.

1)   Am I being myself?

2)   Am I doing what is truly in my heart to do?

3)   What are the motives of my current actions?

4)   Are my thoughts, actions and work strictly for self or for the good of others as well?

5)   Am I spending quality time with God, the children, family members, and friends He placed in my life?

6)   Am I committed to a worthwhile cause?

7)   Do I have short- and long-term goals for my life?

8)   Am I working on a God-inspired vision, either my own or a corporate vision involving others?

9)   Do I help someone other than myself each day?

10)  Does my life set a good example for children and others to follow?

When these questions are honestly addressed and adhered to, then other questions that arise from numbing tragedies will not haunt us. Like international minister and author Dr. Myles Munroe, I believe we were born to lead at some capacity but must be taught how. Good leadership starts with a healthy relationship with God and spreads to others.

As success advocate Peter Lowe states, “Americans aren’t sure you can be successful and love God. The Bible says you can’t be successful without loving God.” I must boldly declare, leadership that is not based in a love for God is dangerous. Why? Because God gives us life, breath, and all things (Genesis 2:7 and Acts 17:25); to have no love or reverence for God means spiritual blindness is present. If the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch.

Love, responsibility and accountability are the checks and balances of good leadership. Oh, anyone can evade or try to escape these three mandatory requirements, but it takes honesty, courage, commitment, and patience to embrace and live them. And when one is empowered with integrity–the sum-total of the aforementioned characteristics—his/her motive is purified.

 

“Live in peace with each other. And we urge you brothers, warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone.”

– 1 Thessalonians 5:13-14 NIV

 

Ultimately, we cannot camouflage the life we are living or the seeds we are planting.