Searching for the Purpose of Life - PLPC Devotional Series (1)

Life planning is an unavoidable pathway to unlock the blueprint that God has for my life, and it is a lesson that I have to learn for the rest of my life.

In the Bible, Samuel was called by God when he was young (1 Samuel 3:1-14); whereas when Abraham was called, he was already 75 years old (Genesis 12:1-4). Throughout their lives, there were times when they sought to follow and live for God; there were also times when they were lost and confused. It appears that while God would give us special callings at different stages in our life, He also wants us to learn to follow him faithfully on a daily basis.

I have been a Christian for a few decades. Sometimes I imagine how nice it would be if I could be guided by the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire like the Israelites in Exodus (Exodus 13:20-22); or it would be pretty good too if I could have a life coach who would always give me guidance. While I am thankful that I have encountered mentors and friends who gave me invaluable advice, a lot of times I still felt alone and lost searching for the purpose of life by myself – I could only rely on Jesus to shepherd me through those times.

There is a Chinese saying that says, “At 30, I can be independent and firmly established; at 40, I have no doubts; at 50, I know the decree from God.” Looking back, I am glad that at 50, I knew myself better inside out. From my strengths and my weaknesses, to the dreams and urgings that were planted deep inside my heart, I have had a better grasp on how to utilize them in response to the calling of God. However, I have to admit that when I was 40, being sure of my own life principles was not something that I achieved at that time.

This is my 15th year serving at Presence. In these past years, I have been heavily involved in ministries that focus on cultivating the lives of Christians. As a parent looking at our next generations, I see that both their daily lives and Christian walk are becoming harder and more challenging compared with ours. Yet, I am thankful that with the leadership of Dr. Agnes Ip, our team integrated the professional knowledge and clinical experience provided by Dr. Ip, as well as the training materials that we created in the past, into the Presence Life Planning Curriculum (PLPC) in 2017. Since then, we have helped Christians live a life driven by purpose and spend their limited time on earth more wisely. If I could relive my life again, I hope that I could have come across this type of systematic material at a younger age to help me move forward.

I invite you to participate in the devotional campaign of PLPC in the next few months. We will pray and meditate on different important aspects of our lives and explore where we need to grow in each aspect. I also invite you to pray for the life planning of the next generations around you.

Meditation/Prayer: I pray that while I am living in a hectic world that is full of noise, I will be able to acknowledge that my life belongs to Christ. Also, I pray that I will not conform to the world (Romans 12:1-2), whether in the areas of making decisions, pursuing goals, managing my time, or handling my relationships.

Written by: Lily Ma

Presence Hong Kong Limited is a non-profit organization that has supported Christian and family values since 2012. We aim to raise up a new generation for the cultural mission — equip individuals and families to bridge the cultural and generational gaps and to live a unique life with wisdom. 

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PLPC is a life planning curriculum for believers; it is also a very important personal growth education designed for everyone to learn to set life priorities, to deal with stress, to maintain mental wellness, and to build a healthy emotional and relational life.

This curriculum uses interactive games and activities, explores real-life cases, and offers biblical principles to help individuals discover their personal and social identities, and to encourage them to live a purposeful and vibrant life.

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PLPC (A): Connecting with God, Self and Others

Setting life priorities, building a healthy emotional and relational life