What drives your life?

Recently I've been reading a book called 'The Purpose Driven Life' by Rick Warren. I have to say that this book really taught me a lot on living a life thats driven by not only a normal 'purpose' or goal we set for ourselves, but God's purpose. Thomas Carlyle said that "The man without a purpose is like a ship without a rudder - a waif, a nothing, a no man." In Ecclesiastes 4:4 :"I observed that the basic motive for success is the driving force of envy and jealousy!"

Everyone's life is driven by something, and most dictionaries define the verb drive as "to guide, to control, or to direct." Wether you are driving a car, a nail, or a golf ball, you are guiding, controlling and directing it at that moment. At some point of our lives we may be driven by a problem, a pressure, or a deadline, a painful memory, a haunting fear, or an unconscious disbelief. There are hundreds of circumstances, values, and emotions that can drive your life, and five of the most common ones are:

Many people are driven by guilt. They spend their entire lives running from regrets and hiding their shame.
Many people are driven by resentment and anger. They hold on to hurts and never got over them.
Many people are driven by fear. Their fears may be a result of traumatic experience, unrealistic expectations or even genetic predisposition.
Many people are driven by materialism. Their desire to acquire becomes the whole goal of their lives.
Many people are driven by the need for approval. They allow the expectations or others to control their lives.

The list could go on and on, there will always be other forces that can drive your life but all lead to the same dead end: unused potential, unnecessary stress, and an unfulfilled life.

So after reading the first part of this chapter from the book, the question form the topic hits me again, what exactly drives my life? If I were to name it all, there would be a list of circumstances that my life is currently driven by. But deep down I do know that there are parts of my life that are driven by negative forces, forces that can lead my life to a dead end. Most people including me are not aware of what our lives are driven by, which is kinda dangerous for us to be unaware of the negative forces that are driving our lives silently. After reading the first part of this book, I learnt that its normal that our lives are driven by these negative forces, but we can always still choose to live a purpose driven life, a life guided, controlled, and directed by God's purpose. Nothing matters more than knowing God's purpose for our lives, and nothing can compensate for not knowing them, not success, wealth, fame, or pleasure. Without a purpose, life is a motion without meaning, activity without direction, and events without reason.

The book of course did mentioned the five great benefits of living a purpose-driven life:

Knowing your purpose gives meaning to your life. We were made to have meaning.
Knowing your purpose simplifies your life. It defines what you do and what you don't do.
Knowing your purpose focuses your life. It concentrates your effort and energy on what's important
Knowing your purpose motivates your life. Purpose always produces passion.
Knowing your purpose prepares you for eternity. Many people spend their lives trying to create a lasting legacy on earth. Yet, what ultimately matters most will not be what others say about your life but what God says.

At the last part of the chapter, it said that in the bible we can surmise that God will ask us two crucial questions:
First, "What did you do with my son, Jesus Christ?"
Second, "What did you do with what I gave you?"

While these two questions left me to ponder on, I'm really grateful for the person who gave me this book, I'm not the type of person that likes to read, but I thank God as well for convicting me to pick up this book and start reading it. It has really added value to my life and changed my perspective on how I see my life right now. To be honest, I was so blinded by the negative forces that drives my life until I start reading this book and it made me aware, and from here I can start changing the way I live my life, throwing away all the negative forces that drove me to live a meaningless life. I also started to like reading books now after reading this book. At the end of the day, I believe that we are all meant for something greater, something bigger, and at any point of our lives, we may always be blinded or distracted by a lot of things, but we have to constantly remind ourselves to run back to God, for in the bible it clearly said to "Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all will be given to you." Good reminder for me to always seek God in everything I do, to always follow God's purpose and plans for me, " For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

If you haven't already read the book, may I urge you to get this book, "The Purpose Driven Life" by Rick Warren and I assure you that you will be as blessed as I am by this book. (The author did not pay me nor anyone did for me to do any means of advertising for this book.)

Thank you for reading! Cheers :)