Do you ever wonder who you are and what your purpose in life is?  I hope so.  It would be a tragedy if you didn’t.  As far as we can tell, to wonder about who you are and your purpose in life is a distinctly human ability.  Unlike all other creatures human beings are exocentric – we find our center, our purpose, our identity outside of ourselves.  The opposite, endocentric, is what we see in other creatures – they find their center, purpose and identity inside themselves through instinct, impulse, and learned behavior.  This doesn’t mean that other creatures don’t have thoughts or feelings; they do, according to their kind.  It does mean that there is something very special about you.  And it is worth knowing why. 

To know what you – and me – were made for, what we were made to do, let us look at the story of our making.

In Genesis – literally “the beginning” – we find two stories about when God began creating all that is – including us.  The first story found in Genesis 1 says this:

Then God said, “Let us make mankind (or humanity) in our own image, in our likeness, so that they may rule (or govern) over the fish in the sea and the birds of the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.  So God created mankind (or humanity) in His own image, in the image of God He created them; male and female he created them.  God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it (or bring under rule or governorship).  Rule (or govern) over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”

There are four insights to our question here of what we are made for and what are made to do.

1. You were made to be a living expression of the presence of God.  There are three primary ways in the ancient world that something could bear the image of something else.  An impression could be made from a harder material impressed onto a softer material (as in a handprint into clay), or through a mirror reflecting what it is facing, or by someone looking at something and drawing what they see.  Regardless of the method, being made in the image of something only comes from close contact to the original thing.  You were made for connection and reflection.
2. You were made to rule, govern, and set in order the natural world around you in a way that reflects the ONE whose image you are called to bear.  This is a call to work.  It is a position of standing between God and the rest of the created world and bringing about the flourishing of all things.
3. There is something uniquely special about both masculinity and femininity.  God made women to express something about the nature and existence of God that is unique and special that no man ever could.  Also, God made men to express something about the nature and existence of God that is unique and special that no woman ever could.  This is cause for both great respect for who you are and who the other is.
4. God wants us to make babies.  There are lots of reasons why everyone can’t do this, but this tells us that babies are incredibly important to God and that parenting is one of the highest callings God has placed on our lives.  One of the largest studies ever conducted on the subject also suggests it increases happiness and satisfaction in life (see HERE).  Interestingly the cultures and societies where parents spend more time with their children (e.g. Norway) have far happier parents than in cultures and societies where parents try to squeeze and juggle time with their children in among other (sometimes necessary) pursuits (e.g. United States). 

The second story of our making is handily found in the second chapter of Genesis.  And it says this:

“Then the Lord God (the Gods Yahweh) formed a man (adam) from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath (the spirit) of life, and the man became a living being….The Lord God took the man and put him in the (enclosed/walled) Garden of Eden to work (“shamar” or guard) it and take care of (“abad” or cultivate or build up) it…The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper (“ezer” or sustainer or rescuer or ally).  All but four times in the Old Testament this word is used to refer to God) suitable for him.”….Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man….The man (adam) said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman (isha), for she was taken out of man (ish).”

 There are three more wonderful insights to our question here of what we are made for and what are made to do.

1. You are formed by the hand of God and brought to life by the Spirit or Breath of God.  The biblical formula for humanity is body+breath=soul.   You are an embodied beings brought to life by the Spirit of God.  That should fill you with an incredible sense of worth and value and help you to see other people for the miraculous treasures that they are.
2. You were made to live in, guard, cultivate and build up a walled garden.  You were made to live in, create, build up, care for, and guard areas of life-giving beauty.  This could be physical areas like your bedroom, your house, your yard, your office space, your town, a park, or even a forest or a beach.  These walled gardens are also social spheres like a marriage, a friendship, your family, your church, or your community.  You were made to care for, cultivate, and protect all of these things.
3. You were made to live in community.  In particular this origin story tells us that men and women need each other.  We are different and we need each other.  Notice that it was only in meeting woman (“isha”) that the man first finds his name (“ish”) – and so finds who he is.  This is pointing to something specifically special between men and women, but it is also saying something special about human relationships in general.  Relationships and living in community always have their challenges, but it is through those relationships that we find out who we are and become who God made us to be.

I hope you will find the joy of living as you remember and live into who you were created to be and the important work you were made to do.

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• Men VS Women
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