Getting Clear on Your Mission | Life Designer University

“There is a purpose to life, and you can know it and center your life around it.”

— Matt Perman

I’ll never forget the summer of 2015 when God revealed to me my purpose. It was right after I graduated from Howard University. I moved to North Carolina to begin my Master’s program at UNC at Greensboro, and although my background was in Psychology and Business Administration, I decided to enroll in a program that was completely opposite, completely left-field — Consumer, Apparel, Retail Sciences. And trust me, I already know what you’re thinking: “Well, where did that come from?” The answer is no, I was not schizophrenic but I was multi-passionate and still am to this day.

Fashion was always one of my first loves. Ever since I was young, I was always drawn to three things: fashion, women’s empowerment, and personal growth. I remember being in middle school, flipping through magazines and I would get so disappointed when I saw no one who resembled me. African American girls and other minorities were so underrepresented, soo I entered into this program to return to my first love to solve this problem. And although I loved what I was studying and was doing super well in my classes, I still couldn’t shake this feeling that I was made for something more. So I started praying and fasting, asking God to reveal to me my purpose.

I chose to pray and fast for revelation because I saw so many people wasting their life and time doing things that God didn’t call them to do, to only find themselves unfulfilled, lost, confused, or further off the path thand when they first began. And although I was young, I knew one thing for sure: I didn’t want to waste my time or life pursuing society’s standards, other people’s expectations of me, or my own selfish ambitions. I knew in order to maximize my time here on this earth and live a life in alignment with God’s plan, I had to get clear on my mission: the unique reason why I was put here on this earth and the unique God-given assignment that God has called me to, to carry out His Great Commission.

But here’s the problem: most people don’t know what theirs is. As I’ve coached my clients through the purpose discovery process, I’ve found that most people believe that their purpose is to be found later versus now. Therefore, they waste their time and youth chasing careers, money, success, relationships, and things that God never called them to, only to wake up later in life wondering why their life feels so off track and devoid from the meaning and fulfillment they were always seeking. It’s because they’ve never got clear on their life’s mission.

As believers, we’re called to make the most of every opportunity that God has given us. Every day that God has given us breath is an opportunity to make the most of the time He has given us. That is why Paul urges us in Ephesians 5:15-17 to use our time here on the earth wisely: “So be careful how you live. Don’t live like fools, but like those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days. Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do.”

You can’t make the most of your time if you don’t even know what the Lord wants you to do. So how can you understand what He wants? By getting clear on your God-given mission. After coaching my clients through the purpose discovery process and getting a greater understanding of my own life purpose and calling journey, I’ve found that there are four overall components to God-given Mission:

1) Purpose

Your purpose is the unique reason God has created you. And let me just break it down for you. It’s not just your job, passions, or roles. Those avenues are just vehicles for your purpose, but not your purpose in itself. Your purpose is a three-part integration of being, doing, and living, and it’s the foundation that will ground you in everything you do. Uncovering and understanding yours will not only produce significance and meaning but clarity on the unique way you were designed and called to play a role in the Great Commission. Yes, your greater purpose is to love the Lord, serve His people, and build His Kingdom, but there’s a unique way that He has designed you to carry it out. Your purpose will provide you with the foundation for doing so.

2) Vision

While your purpose gives you foundation, vision gives you direction. Direction so you can make decisions and chart courses of action that align with your purpose and carry out your vision. Instead of a GPS that provides step by step instructions, vision serves more like a compass: you know that if you’re headed in the right direction, you will make it to your destination, despite the rocky terrain and storms that may threaten to get you off track. God gives us vision to guide our actions (See Habakkuk 2:2-3). When you’re clear on what yours is, you know which actions to take to manifest it.

3) Calling

Your calling is the unique way that God has called you to carry your purpose out. According to Tony Stolzfus, calling is “an external commission from God for others.” It’s a unique message you embody or a problem that you are burned to solve for a specific audience that will have an ultimate impact in their lives for God’s glory and Kingdom. For some people, calling is carried out through a specific task or a series of tasks and is birthed and revealed from a place of holy discontent. But here’s the thing: Calling is always given by God. It’s not about your passions, desires, or success but how He has called you to serve His Kingdom, not yourself.

4) Current Assignment(s)

Your assignment is the various roles and responsibilities that has God has appointed you to complete right now. This is why it’s so important to understand what season of your calling journey you’re in. Oftentimes we don’t feel like we’re operating in purpose because we’re not operating in the fulfillment of our calling right now because we’re so focused on our current assignment. Maybe you’re in a difficult season right now where you don’t like your job, or you’re struggling in your role as wife or mom or making a very difficult life transition. This doesn’t mean that you’re out of alignment with your purpose or calling, it just means that you’re completing a mission-focused assignment. Often in military missions, there are many assignments given that serve an important role in completing the overall plan at hand, but they don’t abort the overall mission. Don’t be so focused on your current assignment that you miss the point of your overall mission. You’re still operating in purpose regardless of what stage of the calling journey you are in.

Is not knowing your mission affecting the way you spend your time? This is why it’s so important that you get clear on your God-given mission. It informs every single thing that you do and the way that you live our life. Knowing it not only helps you to center your life but make the most of every opportunity that God has given you.

Don’t waste a single day, not knowing God’s will and plan for your life. Learn more about how you can define your mission and being your purpose discovery journey in the On-Purpose Life Course. The On-Purpose Life Course is a four-week online course designed to help you understand God’s purposes for you and the essentials of God-given purpose. In this four-week course, we’re going to look at purpose & mission from a biblical perspective and why it's so fundamental in designing a life that we and God love. Click the button below to enroll now.

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