With the honking, the clutter, the constant requests to pick up this, pick up that, organize this, and the dirt that just gets everywhere and in everything . . . how does one even focus? Can you even hear your own voice anymore? Mine sputters out softly, mixed in languages of home and now. Or it screams inside me. There is no in-between.
But what about the voice of God: the prompting of which way to go, what I should give my time and energy to, what the good choice is or—even worse—the wrong choice that can’t be undone? (Enneagram 1, type A personality here!) This is one thing I’m learning and relearning. You can’t just wake up one day and expect to shake your hands and have God answer you, Magic-8-ball style, and all your life choices will be solved. Just to be clear—God totally has the ability to do this, but we won’t listen, either because we don’t like the answer or because our choices are usually a series of events and steps that aren’t a one-and-done. So, we will encounter this frustration again and again.
We can’t just be primed and ready to hear God’s answer and guidance in our life. We must be ready to receive his answer in every sense, or we won’t believe it. And this is a repeated process, a cycle. Living in São Paulo, Brazil, with twenty-two million people comes with a lot of noise, a lot of distraction, and a lot of worldly influence. Most days we are “professional volunteers” at a Christian social assistance project working with kids from the slums, but last year we got the unique opportunity to be a part of the international church’s youth group. We taught our high school students earlier this year, at a cell-phone-free Carnaval retreat, about identity, purpose, and boldness in Christ—and the importance of that order and of constantly cycling through the process.
We first must know the identity of Christ—who he is and his character—in order to know who we are. If we look to the world for our source of identity and our direction, we are certainly going to be steered wrong and probably be just downright confused. If you are human, you’ve probably asked yourself, “Who am I?” at least once in your life. But how easy is it to get identity input from God versus from worldly things? Have you organized your life in a way that God’s input and his truth is louder than the world? Do you even realize when the world is louder? Social media and the outside influence of the world is constant. The books, the Netflix, the news—all of it. How often do you unplug and shift your focus? Can you unplug? Because after all, you need to stay in touch with supporters, and home, and, and, and . . .
If your identity is skewed or misaligned or mirroring the world, your purpose will be too. The two are directly linked. If you mirror the world, you mirror what is against God. If we tie our purpose to one career, to one role in our family, to one ability we have, we will certainly be lost when that one thing is suddenly gone. We may feel like one of those compasses in the movies that just spins and spin and spins and can’t find which way is north. You can’t ultimately be rooted in your purpose. You need to be first rooted in Christ.
Finally, there is the importance of our boldness. And I don’t mean loud, daring recklessness and doing what you want or feel, regardless of the consequences. That’s foolishness. I’m talking about the gentle humbleness to do what is right and stepping out in faith—a bold faith that is rooted in truth, the truth about who God is and who you are in him. This can be downright uncomfortable. But it can also be so incredibly peaceful and, dare I say, exciting! This is probably where you found the guts to live abroad and serve in your current role. This is where you say yes to God in the big things and the tiny things.
Then life happens. You get sick one too many times. You miss the passing of a loved one back home. You feel worthless in your current role. The cost may become too high to think this could possibly be the right thing. And you may find yourself questioning all the choices that led you here. Maybe you think you misheard God. You aren’t alone in those thoughts.
This is when you need to clear the noise, clear the clutter, and unplug. Go back to those places along your journey where you know you can hear God and remind yourself of his identity. This will bring clarity to who you are in the process and to what your purpose is, whether in this stage of life or in life in general. Then you’ll be released into a Christ-centered boldness to live out your identity and purpose with an eternal perspective.
You may recall the encouragement to “stand firm and do not be shaken” (1 Cor 15:58 CEV). Satan doesn’t want us in this unshakable place. After all, this is what people see and what makes them believe. If we shake, if we doubt that God is going to come through or that we are good enough (news flash: we aren’t, but God is), if we freeze, then we are ineffective.
What habits or reminders can you use to find your way back to Christ, to the true north, when things get loud and you get turned around?
