Principle VS Practical Purpose
As a Christian do you know what your principal purpose is?
It's to:
Know God and make God known.
That's it. We totally over complicate our purpose.
The word “know” in Hebrew is “yada.”
It means to experience, to know intimately.
Now I know you're going to want to push back and say “But Dorothy, the Bible says our number one goal is to love God with all our hearts. And love our neighbors as ourselves.”
That's true.
But it's experiencing God that increases our love for Him, increases our reliance on Him. And the more we love and rely on Him, the easier it'll be to love people and show God’s love to them.
The more I've experienced God through the trials of chronic illness, the more I'm able to love people.
If our lives were books, all the titles would be the same, just a different name at the beginning. it would be:
Dorothy… Knowing God and Making God Known
(Yours would be your name because you're the main character learning to know God and make God known)
And the Subtitle would be:
A Story of Trials, Triumphs and True Redemption
The chapter titles would be the seasons in your life.
Some chapters would be really exciting. A real page turner you can’t put down!
Some would be devastating and you’d have to put the book down to wipe your tears.
Some would be plain, boring, and you’d wish you had a different plot altogether.
But your foundation in every chapter is the same:
Learn to know God intimately in EVERY season and circumstance.
That’s your principle purpose.
Your practical purpose is how you bring God into your everyday life to make Him known.
Why?
So others can “yada” (experience) Him too!
It’s using your uniqueness, the gifts, skills and circumstances God gives you to connect with others and then connect THEM with Christ.
In a classroom.
At a board meeting.
While holding a squirmy toddler.
In the middle of a long, hard night at the hospital.
Even in a checkout line.
It’s in how you speak. How you listen. How you respond when life gets messy.
Your practical purpose isn’t about adding more to your plate, it’s about bringing God into what’s already there.
The question is…
Are people getting a glimpse of Him through the way you show up in your everyday life?
Here’s a simple way to start:
This week, pick one setting you’re already in: a place you work, a group you see, or a routine you repeat.
Pray: “God, help me make You known here. Let my words and actions reveal who You are.”
Your principle purpose will always anchor you.
Your practical purpose will always give it expression.
And both together… will make your life the kind of story others can’t help but want to read. 💙
Because when you truly yada God, your life becomes the invitation for others to experience Him too.
How have you been experiencing God lately?
In passionate purpose,
Dorothy