Why are we here? Who am I? Why did God create a people (you, me)? How does that understanding impact our life? What is the meaning of life?

Before the foundations of this world were even formed, there existed a book about you, in heaven. Inside of it: your destiny and purpose!

Life becomes amazingly exciting when we grasp how highly favored we are to even be alive. God designed each one of us specifically; and He takes incredible delight in us. We have a specific, individual calling. Granted, the thought of that can cause anxiety in some as we scramble to figure out who we are supposed to be and if we are fulfilling what God designed for us. Yet, God tells us not to worry (how?!) Meditate on the Key To Everything verses and you'll see that by simply seeking God we'll automatically fulfill our destiny. It's when we try to figure it out that we get off track. As an alternative to working hard on "figuring it out", picture yourself floating in the river of God's presence. When all our effort goes into seeking God and getting to know Him, in the process, He tells us who we are.

All scripture is amazing, but in terms of transformative, Matthew 6:33 (the key to everything) and chapter 1 of Ephesians are what turned my life around. I still meditate on these verses nearly everyday. They are like foundation stones. I've turned Ephesians 1 into a daily prayer, saying it in first person. You can download a copy of that prayer here.

EPHESIANS 1:11 [ESV] In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will

ACTS 17:26-28 [NKJV] And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us;  for in Him we live and move and have our being;

ISAIAH 43:1 [ CJB] Don’t be afraid, for I have redeemed you; I am calling you by your name; you are mine.

PHILLIPPIANS 2:12-13 [ESV] Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

JEREMIAH 29:4 [ESV] Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease.  But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare. [emphasis mine]

JEREMIAH 29:11 [ESV] For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.  Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you.  You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.  I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.

2 CORINTHIANS 4:5-6 We don’t preach ourselves but Jesus Christ as Lord, for we are your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, ‘Let brilliant light shine out of darkness,’ is the one who cascaded his light into us – the brilliant dawning light of the glorious knowledge of God as we gaze into the face of Jesus Christ.
vs. 7 We are like common clay jars that carry this glorious treasure within so that the extraordinary overflow of power will be seen as God’s, not ours.

1 PETER 2:16 [MEV] As free people, do not use your liberty as a covering for evil, but live as servants of God.

1 PETER 2:15 For it is God’s will for you to silence the ignorance of foolish people by doing what’s right as God’s loving servants, you should live in complete freedom, but never use your freedom as a cover-up for evil.

PSALM 37:4 [ TPT] Make God the utmost delight and pleasure of your life, and he will provide for you what you desire the most. Give God the right to direct your life, and as you trust him along the way you’ll find he pulled it off perfectly!

This verse nails it! It took me until I was in my 50s to understand that when I give up my dreams and stop chasing them is when God plants them in my lap (yet there is always preparation time...I needed to learn some lessons first!).

LUKE 17:33 [ESV] Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it. 

PSALM 23:6 [TPT] So why would I fear the future? For your goodness and love pursue me all the days of my life. Then, afterward, when my life is through, I’ll return to your glorious presence, to be forever with you!

PSALM 23:6 [CJB] Goodness and grace will pursue me every day of my life; and I will live in the house of Adonai for years and years to come.

2 PETER 1:3 [NASB]  His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.

PSALM 32: 8 [NASB] I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will advise you with My eye upon you.

Isaiah 30:21 [ NASB] Your ears will hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” whenever you turn to the right or to the left. 

I know it may seem silly that one can hear God direct our steps to show us how to live our life, but He does. We all know what an "inner voice" is. That is the spirit part of who we are and the Bible says we are to live by the Spirit (the Holy Spirit). What we forget is that there are other spirits as well: there is a natural world and a spiritual world. We live in the shadow realm (natural world) but our home is in the spiritual realm, with God. Yet we have an enemy who desires we listen to the wrong voice. That's why seeking God is critical; it trains our inner ear to hear the voice of the Holy One. Will we get it wrong sometimes? Yes. Of course; but God is faithful and promises to never abandon. So start where you are and seek Him (ask Him to help), tuning your ear to the frequency of Adonai. Personally, I do this by praying in the spirit (tongues) and making time alone with God a priority every single day. My tendency is to jump ahead of God in my eagerness to get things done and I often make a mess of things. But when I feel agitated or start getting anxious, I take it as a sign that I'm not hearing God's whisper in my ear anymore. And so I stop...and wait until I hear "this way...walk in it". 

PHILLIPPIANS 3:8 [ NAS] Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith –