Today, we continue our series entitled “Laser Focus,” emphasizing living with a Laser Focus on the Fixed Purpose God established for us before the world began.
Scriptures we have been looking at all year:
(Proverbs 4:25 TPT)
Set your gaze on the path before you. With fixed purpose, looking straight ahead, ignore life’s distractions.
(James 1:2-4 TPT)
2 My fellow believers, when it seems as though you are facing nothing but difficulties, see it as an invaluable opportunity to experience the greatest joy that you can!
3 For you know that when your faith is tested, it stirs up power within you to endure all things.
4 And then as your endurance grows even stronger it will release perfection into every part of your being until there is nothing missing and nothing lacking.
(Ecc 3:1 ERV)
There is a right time for everything, and everything on earth will happen at the right time.
Focus for today:
Setting the Stage. (From 2 Samuel 2:1-4)
After covering 1 Samuel 16-31, today, we cross over into 2nd Samuel. In the first chapter, David learned of Saul’s death and mourned the loss of Israel’s king and his former father-in-law. Even though Saul had been terrible towards David, David still respected Saul and grieved his death.
After accepting the reality of Saul’s death, David did what he was accustomed to doing. He prayed. David inquired of the LORD concerning his future. Once again, David had a priest with him, but he chose to inquire of the LORD directly, asking the Lord, “Should I move back to one of the towns of Judah?”
Israel had 12 tribes. Saul was from the tribe of Benjamin and David was from Judah. David knew he was destined to reign as the king over the entire nation (all 12 tribes), so he could have prayed about going to any of the regions, but he limited his request to the tribe of Judah (his home). I believe David was led to pray this prayer because the Lord said, “Yes,” the Lord told him which town to go to within Judah (Hebron), and as soon as David settled in Hebron with his family, the Bible says, “The men of Judah came to David and anointed him king over the people of Judah.” While this was not yet the ultimate position, and David was king of only one of the 12 tribes, David was certainly incrementally closer to God’s overall destiny for his life.
So, what does this mean to you today? A few things:
1. There is a PATH to your purpose.
The writer of Hebrews told us to run with patience (and endurance) the race that God has “set” before us (Heb 12:1). Not only do I believe we have a God-ordained purpose, but I also believe there is a God-ordained path to that purpose. David went from obscurity to a national hero overnight. He married the king’s daughter, moved into the royal palace, and had people singing his name. But just when you think David has it all, he wound up on the run and living in a cave. This path was not always easy, and David made his fair share of mistakes, but whenever he got in position, like he did when he moved to Hebron, there was a blessing waiting for him in that place. It is the same with you. You have a God-ordained path to your purpose, and you will stray from time to time, but when you get back in position, the blessing will be waiting for you.
How this applies to you:
— Powerful things happen when you make a human alignment with your divine assignment.
— There is a specific path that is laid out before you. This path was ordained and orchestrated by God. Your goal is to discover it and walk down it into your destiny.
— Trust that God knows all the detours you will take and the delays you will cause, so don’t fret. God is still God, and His plans for you are still good.
— Understand that your positioning today prepares you for your promotion tomorrow.
— Be willing to follow God’s path, even when it doesn’t make sense.
— Remember that the path to purpose often looks different than you imagined.
— Don’t compare yourself to others because they have their own path leading to their destiny.
— One of the major keys to living a fulfilling life is learning to be comfortable and content with the path God laid out before you (your lot in life).
2. There is a PACE to your purpose.
By 2nd Samuel 2, it had been over 10 years since Samuel anointed David to be the next king of Israel, and it still had not come to pass. Humanly speaking, you would think that it was taking too long, but God’s timing is not our timing. God anointed David King when he was a teenager (most scholars believe he was 17). When he became the King of Judah, he was 30. He would then have to wait seven more years to become the King of Israel. So, the promise took 20 years to come to pass. 20 years is nothing to God, but it seems like a lifetime to us. The point is that God will give you promises, but He also knows the PACE at which those promises will come to pass. Sometimes, we get too impatient, shortsighted, restless, and anxious. Slow down, run your race at your pace, and know that God has a blessing for you in each season. But you can’t get to the next season until you finish this one.
How this applies to you:
— Learn to WALK in God’s timing, not RUN in yours (meditate on that).
— Learn to rest in God’s finished work for your life.
— Stop stressing to try to MAKE everything happen.
— Remember that God is never late, even when it feels like He’s taking too long.
— Use every season to develop the character needed for your next level.
— Resist comparing your chapter 1 to someone else’s chapter 20 or vice versa.
— Trust that God’s pace is perfect for your purpose.
3. There is a PROCESS involved in your purpose.
When God gives you a vision of your purpose, He rarely shows you all the steps between where you are and where you’re going. Like David, you must learn to take incremental steps toward your destiny. Each step requires patience and submission to the process. David could have tried to seize control of all of Israel immediately after Saul’s death, but he understood that God’s purposes unfold through God’s processes. Your destiny may be great, but greatness requires growth, and growth requires process.
How this applies to you:
— I have told you many times that the greater the assignment from God, the greater the attack from satan, and the longer the processing you must endure.
— Embrace the process as much as you embrace the promise.
— Allow God to develop your character as He develops your calling.
— Understand that every challenge is shaping you for your destiny.
— Remember that God is more interested in who you become than what you achieve.
— Stay committed to growth, knowing that your purpose requires your development.
4. There is a GRACE for your purpose.
If someone were to meet David when he was reigning as the king over the entire nation of Israel and say, “Wow, I would sure love to be that guy, he has it all,” they would be making the statement without understanding all David went through to get what he got. People envy the glory without knowing the story. What David went through to fulfill his purpose would have broken most people, but David had grace for it because it was his purpose. Likewise, whatever God has called you to do, He has also graced you to do. You have grace (divine empowerment) to run your race. So no matter how hard your journey gets from time to time, just keep reminding yourself that you have grace for your assignment. You don’t have other people’s grace, and they don’t have yours. You must focus on running your race and letting others run theirs. Whatever God expects you to do, He has already equipped you to do!
How this applies to you:
— Walk confidently, knowing God’s grace is sufficient for every assignment.
— Remember that where God leads, He feeds; where He guides, He provides.
— Trust that His strength is made perfect in your weakness.
— Recognize that you are anointed for your assignment, not someone else’s.
— Rest in knowing that God’s grace goes before you and makes room for you.
5. There will be moments on the path to your purpose when you know what you are experiencing is not the THING but the THING that is taking you closer to the THING.
Like David becoming king over Judah before becoming king over all Israel, God often gives us “stepping stone” moments. These are divine appointments that may not be our ultimate destination but are crucial steps toward it. David could have rejected being king over one tribe because he knew he was destined for all twelve. However, he understood that sometimes God gives us a portion of the promise as preparation for the whole promise. When you understand this principle, you won’t despise small beginnings or intermediate steps because you’ll recognize them as necessary parts of your journey to your ultimate purpose.
How this applies to you:
— Appreciate the smaller victories as they prepare you for bigger ones.
— Recognize that what looks like a partial fulfillment might be preparation for the complete manifestation.
— Understand that God often uses interim positions to prepare you for your ultimate position.
— Learn to be faithful with the “one tribe” before God gives you all twelve.
— Stay grateful for progressive steps, knowing each one brings you closer to your ultimate destiny.
— We are getting close to the end of 2024. As you look back over this year and attempt to close out the year strong, I hope you can say, “I may not have arrived at my ultimate destination yet, but I am a lot closer to my destiny than I was in January. Every year, I am getting closer to God’s overall expected end for my life!” If you live with this mentality every day, week, month, and year, you will develop into the man/woman God called you to be!
Declaration of Faith:
Father, I thank You for making plans for me before the foundations of the world. Before my mother met my father, You established my purpose and the PATH to it!
I declare that I shall run the race You have set before me with patience and endurance.
My life is not a sprint, but rather a marathon.
Not only do I have an ordained PATH, but I also have an ordained PACE at which I am to run my race.
I don’t concern myself with other people because they have their own race and are supposed to run at their own pace.
I thank You, Father, for giving me the GRACE to do what You called and purposed me to do. I have a PATH, I have a PACE, and I have the GRACE.
You have supernaturally empowered me, by Your grace, and Your strength is made perfect in my weakness.
So I face each day with the confidence of knowing that I am graced to overcome every obstacle, to accept every success, and to maximize every season.
GREATER IS COMING FOR ME as I align with Your perfect timing and positioning!
I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen!
This is Today’s Word. Apply it, and prosper!
