09 February, 2017

Purpose and the Pink Salt Lake



So much has happened since I appeared here last. It’s been two months, but it feels like another life. And to be honest, I like it that way. It’s been good to come back with fresh eyes, new purpose, and greater motivation.

While I was away (traveling to the other side of the country, and taking part in a canvassing program) we had some adventures, we saw some sights – such as the incredible pink salt lake in the middle of farmland next to the highway, – but we had a purpose. We had a mission, and that made all the difference. It wasn’t a holiday to relax and catch up on sleep. It wasn’t a lark to live it up while the teenage years last. We had an eternal goal, mission, purpose, aim, intention. Extra sleep lasts days; memories last years, maybe a lifetime; but reaching out to others, sharing hope, and pointing to Christ, lasts for eternity. That’s forever.

I’ve been reading a book called The Great Controversy, and talks about the lives of some of the reformers of the middle ages. It’s been inspiring reading of their dedication, and absolute adherence to what they believed was right. They wouldn’t even let death stop them. But here’s the thing: they had purpose. No sane man would be burned alive for the fun of it. They had their focus on something more lasting – eternal truth and salvation.

Purpose is something I’ve been thinking a lot about since returning home and falling into my previous way of living. Things that I used to spend a lot of time doing seem meaningless. What am I really gaining from reading that novel? What is the purpose of the hours I spend online? How does doing what I feel like benefit anything or anyone? What am I doing for God? When I was part of a group of young people who had a definite purpose, those questions were easily answered. I didn’t have time for reading anything less than the Bible. I was only online for necessary communication. Even domestic activities like cooking furthered the goal of spending time encouraging others. And while of myself I was inadequate, I felt like I was doing something for God. 

Having purpose changes things. Life is so much more fulfilling living with eternity in mind, seeing everyday tasks from the perspective of furthering God’s work, and basing decisions on the impact of forever. I want to live like that all the time.
 
~

So there’s some of my perspective on purpose and life, and an insight into one of the ways being part of the canvassing program has shaped my thinking. What's your take on purpose? What do you think should be our purpose and motivation? What have you been pondering lately?

And I just have to say: I’m glad to be back! I’ve missed reading everyone’s blogs regularly, and seeing your view of things through your comments. So tell me what I’ve missed! What’s been happening in your lives? How was your end of year/new year break? And have you ever seen a pink lake?

35 comments:

  1. THAT LOOKS SO PRETTY. I just want to be there and THE PINK AGAINST THE SKY JUST AWK. Sorry. I'm flailing. XP

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    1. Flail on! It was even better than it looks - if you're ever traveling across South Australia, keep your eye out for pink lakes! ;)

      Thanks for reading and commenting! :)

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  2. Awesome blog Jess! Amen! I resonate with this blog so much! Coming back from canvassing and being involved in such a way I have never in the past, definitely had me thinking of my old self and the changes I wanted to make when I returned home. Praise God for changing my purpose and focus. Thanks for sharing! :)

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    1. Grace! I'm glad you could relate - it's nice to know the canvassing program and trip away rocked someone else's world a little too. :) And yes, praise God! I know He had a purpose in each of us being a part of it. Thank you for sharing your thoughts! We'll have to talk about it more sometime. :)

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  3. Hello Jessica. I am a Pastor from Mumbai, india. I am blessed and feel privileged and honored to get connected with you as well as know you and about your hunger for God and the post which speaks a lot about your perspective on purpose. One has to live a life that is purpose driven. I enjoyed your sharing. I love getting connected with the people of God around the globe to be encouraged, strengthened and praying for one another. I have have been in the Pastoral minsitry for last 37 yrs in this great city of Mumbai a city with a great city of Mumbai a city where rihest of rich and the pooest of poor live. We reachout to the poorest of poor with the love of Christ to bringhealing to the brokenhearted. We also encourage young and the audlts from the west to come to Mumbai to work with us during their vacation time. We would love to have you come to Mumbai with your friends to work with us during your vacation time. I am sure you will have alife changing experience. Looking forward to hear from you very soon. God's richest blessings on you, your family and friends. My email id is: dhwankhede(at)gmail(dot)com and my name is Diwakar Wankhede. Wishing you a bessed and a Chrit centered rest of the year 2017

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    1. Hi Diwaker! Thanks for your comment. It sounds like you have a wonderful ministry - it's always encouraging to hear of people sharing Christ! Blessings on your year too!

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  4. That's so stunningly gorgeous beautiful! *really really really wants to go there now, like WOW* where is that located?

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    1. Yes, the colours were amazing! And you could walk right out into it, because it's actually really shallow. We tried eating the salt as well. :) It's in South Australia.

      Thanks for reading and commenting, Paige! I always appreciate your comments. :)

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  5. Wow, beautiful pictures!! I also love the thoughts you shared. Glad you're back! <3

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    1. Thanks, Emily! Praise God. :) I'm glad to be back too! xx

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  6. Wow, welcome home! Is this Australia? (are you Australian? idk) That lake is so pretty!

    Hanne
    rockandminerals4him.wordpress.com

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    1. Thanks! :D Yes, this is Australia, and yes, I'm Australian. :)

      Thank you heaps for reading and commenting, Hanne!

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  7. Glad to see you back! I've been thinking a lot about purpose lately, so this was especially timely :)
    And that lake is gorgeous! Thanks for sharing the pictures -- I've never seen that before.
    -Mary

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    1. Thank you! :) And really?! It'd be great to hear your thoughts on it sometime. :)

      You're welcome; I only wish you could all come and see it in real life! And as always, thanks so much for commenting, Mary!

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  8. Welcome back! Such a pretty lake!
    I've been feeling pretty purposeless of late. I've finished high school but haven't started college and am finding myself with more free time than I know what to do with. Thanks for the reminder to live with eternity in mind!

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    1. Thanks! I know that feeling. Between school and the next step seems to be one of the hardest times when it comes to making decisions regarding the future.. But I know God has great plans for you, Gloria! And thanks a lot for commenting. :)

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  9. Nice photos :)
    And I'm glad to see you back in blogging. I kept looking at blogger every few days to check if you had posted anything... and now you have!

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    1. Hey! Thank you - they don't do justice to the place, though.

      What?! You are so loyal. But thanks, that means a lot. :) Hopefully I will keep you supplied with regular reading material. ;)

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  10. I'm so glad you're back, Jessica!! That Pink Salt Lake looks really interesting. Was it a bright pink? xD
    This post is so thoughtful. I feel like so many of my friends in real life and people that I see--they don't have that eternal mindset. What are they living for? They love living life and being with their friends and that's not a bad thing, but God is eternal. Not fun. Honestly for me one of my biggest struggles would just have to be the internet haha. It's so addictive, and so not good for the soul. I've been praying a lot that God would help me to just...say NO. xD Also, for some strange reason, I feel like this topic/idea would be a really good idea for a book. Like...a novel about this? I don't know, haha

    YOUR WORDS ARE SO GOOD <3

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    1. Autumn! It's nice to hear from you. :) The lake was kind of bright - the photos actually show the colour pretty correctly..

      Yes, I like how you said that - but God is eternal. That should change the way we look at life.. Oh my, I get you on struggling with the internet. It's the same for me. And I noticed I often cover my sense of purposelessness by getting on there, just mindlessly browsing blogs and things. But, I don't know, maybe we have to remind ourselves that God has even better things in store for us? And then pray, like you said. I'll be praying for you too!

      And yes again - that is a brilliant suggestion. I would read that book. :)

      Thanks again for commenting, Autumn. xx

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  11. Having purpose is something that has been on my heart as well, Jessica. Thank you so much for the encouragement! I am reading a book (it's actually about materialism), but it has made me think deeper. If I died today, would the things I'm doing even matter? Would the things I own, the words I speak, the books I read even matter? If they wouldn't, then why do I even have/do those things? I need wisdom to know which things are purposeful and gifts from God and which ones are just using up my time in worthless pursuits. Without purpose, life can become meaningless. To abide in Christ, I need to be focused on Him.

    I have never seen a pink lake, nor did I know that such beauty existed! Those are lovely photos...God must have laughed when He turned the water pink. =) (do you know how they are pink?!) Thank you for sharing!

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    1. Wow! It's always amazing to hear that others have been thinking along the same lines. Yes, that's the question! Sometimes it's hard to know what to do that is actually purposeful though.. I guess it comes back to asking for that wisdom from God you mentioned - He's the only one who can give us purpose. :) I'm glad we can be in this journey together - it's always encouraging to receive a comment from you, or read your posts. :)

      Yes, it does look like God had fun with that pink lake! I don't know what makes them pink, no - I would guess it to be a concentration of some mineral, as they're very salty, but I could be wrong. Thank you for reading and commenting! :)

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  12. I just have to say real quick that I greatly enjoy the occasional reminder that we share a country in common. That's not to say that ours is better than other countries, it's just another way we can relate.

    What things to think upon (and hopefully act upon)! I want to be consistently abandoning the fleeting and temporal in favour of those things that produce fruit that last long into eternity. In your first steps of exploring this, have you come up with any thoughts regarding how we can do this in a world that emphasizes living for self and the moment?

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    1. Yes, I know what you mean. It is nice to come across others with a connection to Australia. :) Thanks a lot for your comment, Jordy - it's always nice to hear from you. :)

      Hmm, thanks for the thought provoking question. I think it comes back to defining our purpose, and then questioning every decision in light of it - especially just the small everyday decisions. Like you said, it's consistently choosing eternal things over the temporal. I don't know - there's so many aspects. Do you have any further thoughts on living with purpose in today's world?

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    2. Hmm, well, When thinking of purpose and the way I spend my time, I often think about novels. At a glance, they seem to have little if anything to do with the real life. They're fiction - not true. And I don't know how to reconcile that with the fact that I write fiction. Some people see it as a way to escape from the real world. Putting it like that makes me reconsider the worth of writing novels. Do I want to be a part of something that people turn to to escape the situation in which God has placed them? Ecclesiastes talks about how it is better to go to a house of mourning than a house of feasting. Reality causes us to consider eternity; escaping from it is a way to get caught up in the moment and put eternity aside.

      My consolation is that I endeavour to incorporate wholesome truth into my fiction - especially with regards to the character of God. The plot may be foreign to our everyday experiences, but the feelings - fear, pride, rejection - are the same. My writing isn't literary, but I do hope that my readers can relate.

      What do you think; how often is the average genre fiction reader moved by truths incorporated in a novel? What does it take to make a lasting impact on a life through something fictitious?

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    3. This is an excellent application of purpose! You've obviously thought a lot about this. :) To be honest, I've thought about this too, and come to no definite conclusion. I think fiction can definitely be powerful. Reading fiction has helped me to be able to understand others lives, and be more sensitive. But as far as weightier truths about God and life, and actual change? I don't know. And as you said it can be used as an escape, as a distraction from meaningful things. I guess it depends a lot on the background and situation of the reader..

      All I can say is, if God has called you to write, He'll give you the words and themes to portray His purpose. It's so encouraging to know that if we can't figure something out, He's already got it sorted.

      But thanks for bringing this up, Jordy. I'll keep thinking about, and if you have any further thoughts, I'm eager to hear them! :)

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    4. What you said, "if we can't figure something out, He's already got it sorted", is so encouraging to me. How many things are there that I've dedicated much though to and just can't figure out. I guess the best thing to do is continue in obedience based on what God has revealed, though it may feel inadequate in the moment. I want to learn to trust Him better - that He will tell me what I know when I need to know it - not necessarily because I'm great at listening, but because He's great at communicating. Thanks for your thoughts!

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    5. Amen! We're on this journey together, Jordy. Thanks so much for the discussion!

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  13. I really appreciated this post, Jessica!

    Honestly, my ideal life would be to live as a hermit farmer. However, I quickly realized that, though I would enjoy living like that, I would be living for myself, not for other people, and I would eventually become dissatisfied. So honestly, my idea of a purposeful life is waking up in the morning and knowing that, though my life isn't ideal, I'm not just living it for myself.

    By the way, that pink lake is beautiful!

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    1. P.S. What makes the water pink? Is it a certain mineral that leaches out of the salt and dyes the water?

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    2. It's really nice to hear from you Janie! Thanks for your comment. :)

      Oh, I like what you said - your definition of purpose. I think it's so much more fulfilling to be living for something (or Someone) bigger than yourself..

      I'm not sure what makes it pink, actually. I'd guess that it's a mineral, like you said, but I've heard other theories of it being caused by a bacteria or something.. Whatever way, it's still pretty incredible!

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  14. I've really had some eye opening experiences with purpose in the past few months. I think your post here just about summed up what I've discovered! Is what I'm doing every day getting me or others closer to God? Is it brightening their day? Do they see God's light in me? How can I do something with ETERNAL value?

    Thank you for this <3

    audrey caylin

    p.s. I love the title of your blog :)

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    1. Wow! That's so cool God's been teaching us the same things! Yes - those are powerful questions..

      Thank you so much for reading and commenting, Audrey! :)

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  15. WOW that lake is amazing!! I must say I have never seen a pink lake before—let alone heard of one. ;)
    Loved this post so much, Jessica. Your outlook on purpose was really inspiring. <3
    Keep up the good work! Your blog is so unique!

    Sophy
    lavender & blue
    the inkpot girl

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    1. Yes, I hadn't either - it was rather unexpected, especially as it was just beside the highway, not signed as an attraction or anything!

      Thanks Sophy. I really appreciate your comment! And you have a lovely blog yourself - I enjoy reading it. :)

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