Do You Know Your Kingdom Calling?
Many Christians want their lives to make a Kingdom difference. But they don’t know if what they do is of value, or how to do something that advances God’s Kingdom beyond evangelism. Surveys indicate that most Christians feel disempowered in church. Most Christians don’t have any sense of ‘calling’ and would not be able to articulate their ‘life purpose’.
Never Been Taught
To be fair, very little if anything is taught on this vital subject. How many churches do you know that actually find out and consider the callings of individual members? How many churches help people discover and identify their unique design and Kingdom calling, and then equip and commission them into their spheres of influence?
I have been in the church world all of my life, in numerous countries, and I haven’t come across any that truly empower people to discover their life purpose. I mean actually facilitating and empowering people to manifest the Kingdom of God with their ‘time, talent, and treasure’ in an intentional, sustained, practical and strategic way. In a way that pays attention to their design and calling.
A few churches may help people discover their ‘spiritual gifts’ but that is all. And if they learn what spiritual gifts they have, it is in order to serve in some way within the church context. This ends up reinforcing the idea that what really matters, from a spiritual or Christian point of view, is what is done on Sundays or in a church context (the so-called ‘spiritual-secular divide’). It also reinforces the perception that only church workers, pastors and missionaries have a ‘calling’ from God.
Your Purpose Connected to God's Purpose
At the same time there are a growing number of Christians who are asking, should not the gospel influence all of life and even shape my nation? Shouldn’t the gospel impact my workplace and society at large? Do I have to quit my job and become a church pastor or missionary in order for my life to count for something in the Kingdom of God? Can what I do most days of the week have value beyond providing money to pay my mortgage/rent and bills?
A growing number of pastors are asking, isn’t there supposed to be something more to church than buildings, meetings, and programmes? Why are our families, communities, societies, and even the environment falling apart? Shouldn’t the presence of Christians make a tangible difference? Is the good news that we proclaim only good for a person’s soul and to give them an entrance permit into heaven? Isn’t there something more? The truth is, yes! There’s much more and the gospel of the Kingdom is good news to every area of life. God has always wanted all of His children to engage in His mission and the ‘family business’.
If every believer is going to engage in God’s Kingdom mission, it is imperative that they understand the nature of His Kingdom and the scope of God’s work in the world. This goes well beyond the reaching and discipling of individuals, but also encompasses the teaching and discipling of our communities, towns, cities, and nations. Once we understand that our purpose and destiny is connected to God’s big story and restoration plan, we can discover what our unique part is within that Kingdom mission.
The Voice of Design
Everyone wants to live a life of purpose. God has made each one of us for a purpose. While some people hope for a supernatural sign to point the way, our life purpose is revealed in our design and how God has made us. Discovering our design, therefore, will aid us in recognising our life purpose.
To provide practical help with this, in my book, 7 Keys to Unlocking Your Life Purpose: Discovering Your Destiny by Understanding Your Design, I take the reader through seven key areas that will help them discover their God-given design, which in turn will unlock their calling and life purpose. Your calling and life purpose will no longer be a mystery to you. With these tools you will be able to gain clarity on who God has made you to be and as a result, start to be deliberate in advancing the Kingdom of God through your spheres of influence. You will know your life has meaning and value, and that each day your life can make a difference that truly matters!
A few endorsements:
“Just like your computer has an IP (Identity-Purpose), every Christian has an IP address. Identity is who you are. Purpose is what you do and why you do it. In other words, you are the way you are because of why you are. Simply said, the discovery of your purpose is the discovery of your life. Purpose is what was in God's mind when He created you. Ignorance of purpose does not cancel purpose. The purposes of God stand. Most live for presentation. God designed us to live for purpose.
7 Keys to Unlocking Your Life P.U.R.P.O.S.E. brings illumination giving revelation, thus transformation on the crucial subject of purpose. It is strong where most books on purpose aren't. It gives the 'how to' of purpose. It's strong on implementation and execution. It moves you from the prophetic revelation of purpose to the apostolic reality of purpose. It moves you from dream to done.
In today's world, clarity is a rarity. Thank you, Stuart, for bringing clarity…on purpose.”
Dr. Ed Delph, Nationstrategy, Phoenix, Arizona
“From beginning to end I couldn’t put this book by Stuart Simpson down. It is packed full of very insightful, theologically sound and practical truth, designed to clear out uncertainty and pin down who you really are and why you have been put on this earth for such a time as this. This work book will open your eyes and help you see the bigger picture that is uniquely you. So many people - Christians too, seem to drift through life, never realising who they are and what God has uniquely wired them to be and do. Without such a compass, their destinies are blurred; their purpose goes on hold and their full potential never gets released. Sadly they ‘die full’! Our graveyards are full of such people.
Whether you are just starting out in life or have been cutting your groove for many years; whether you feel called to be involved in church work or want to know if God wishes you to be a strong witness in your place of work, Stuart’s book will help you sharpen that focus. Using a refreshing acronym of the word, ‘purpose’, he has produced a unique and very comprehensive tool that both Christians and non-Christians will find useful – even transformational. I feel that this work will become required reading for anyone studying to become a more purpose-filled leader or to find out what constitutes their best career-fit, or a more informed parent, or simply to become a better person. Stuart’s book will not disappoint. You will love it!”
Martin Allen, Founding Director of Caleb Ministries (www.caleb.org.uk)
“A vital topic, explored with clarity and insight. An invaluable read.”
Paul McGee, Sunday Times best-selling author and international speaker
“Stuart’s new book is a welcome and refreshing new entry into the subject of discovering purpose in the world which is becoming more listless and restless, with many just going through the motions. This book combines a healthy balance between theory and practical exercises to help the readers discover their design in order to discover their life purpose. Thought-provoking and life-giving!”
Deepak Mahtani ACMI, FRSA, Keynote Speaker & Social Philanthropist
“I’ve only recently got to know Stuart Simpson but it was obvious from our first meeting that we are ‘kindred spirits’.
Stuart believes that discovering our God-given purpose is the key to a fulfilled life and so do I. As a trained life coach Stuart says in Chapter 1, “for humans the greatest tragedy in life is not death but life without purpose” and in this easy-to-read book, he shows us how we can align ourselves with the unique purpose God has in mind for each one of us.
I enjoyed Stuart’s use of the word PURPOSE and I found his exercises both helpful and insightful. I was particularly delighted to see that he is keen to help us discover what God wants us to do in the wider world and not simply in what can sometimes prove to be a stifling church context. Like Stuart, I am totally committed to the challenge of “empowering people to manifest the kingdom of God with their time, talent and treasure in an intentional, sustained, practical and strategic way.”
For these reasons I am very happy to endorse this book in the hope it will encourage many to be both signs and instruments of God’s kingdom here on Earth.
Rev Rob James BA BD, Church and Media Consultant, Evangelical Alliance, Wales
“This book is concise and clear, packed with practical wisdom and tools to help you find your P.U.R.P.O.S.E.”
Roger Allen, Enabler, Together4Bristol & Finding Purpose
“I think it’s great! It’s a good overview/introduction to the basics of discovering your purpose, with some great exercises and further links so readers can go as deep as they like, when they want to unpack a little more.
Good to have someone with a heart for mission providing a resource about life purpose. So much of today’s Christian material on this topic focuses on personal fulfilment that it’s good to have something that focuses on kingdom fulfilment and global-minded servanthood.”
Mike Frith, Founding Director, OSCAR
