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My Entry into
"The Power of Purpose"
Essay Competition
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There is a power that an individual has when they have purpose.
You can see this power in their eyes, watch it in their step and
witness it in their actions. This purpose has led men and women
throughout history to amazing and legendary deeds.
Men like Moses, Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. have delivered
peoples from enslavement. Others like Winston Churchill, Abraham
Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt have led through wars that threatened
to destroy their countries. Still others like Jesus Christ, Mother
Theresa and the Dalai Llama have transcended their own race and
culture to bring a message of peace, forgiveness and healing to
all of humanity. Indeed, every man and woman owes their life to
a mother who labored and bled so that they could have life.
History is resplendent with inspiring stories of men and women
who have changed the course of nations and the lives of billions
by their purposeful actions. Unfortunately this power found in purpose
has not always been positive. In fact, just as often, history records
how this power has been used to intimidate, subjugate, alienate
and eliminate.
From notorious antagonists like Xerxes, Attila, and Genghis Khan,
to their modern equivalents Hitler, Stalin and Idi Amin, sadistic
men and their minions have ravaged the earth. More still are the
murderers, rapists and thieves that have stolen the life, health
and property of countless billions. All of which has been on purpose.
So purpose in and of itself is a two edged sword.
The power in purpose must be kept in check. Purpose must have
parameters that constrain, control and channel it, lest it run amok.
Humanity has developed ways of checking this power through laws,
taboos, societal norms and the like. Our own body checks it as well
with our conscience and instinct. The greatest check, and indeed
the source of many of the preceding checks, has been the knowledge
and fear that a Creator is watching us, His creation, and will judge
our actions.
Anna, my 15-month-old daughter, loves to walk. As late as a month
ago Anna seemed to be forever destined to traverse the earth on
all fours. Then something changed. Something compelled and propelled
Anna upwards. The change was gradual. A few weeks ago Anna began
to lift herself off of the ground to a standing position without
using any furniture.
One day in the park while I was busy contemplating this essay
life distracted me as Anna began to pull herself upright in the
middle of the playground. After successfully getting herself upright
she'd try to take a step and would end up falling. When she fell,
she didn't start to cry or look to see if anyone noticed her plight.
No, she got right back up and tried again.
As I set watching I was wishing for her success. I wanted her
to walk, maybe more than she did. And then the question came to
me: Why?
Why did I want her to walk? Why did she want to walk? Why did
she take these awkward and, for the moment, futile attempts at walking?
Was there a reward waiting for her? Was there a great need for
her to walk? Was there a snake or spider about to attack her? Was
I encouraging her to walk?
No, none of these were factors. So why did Anna want to walk?
The answer to this question is unknowable since Anna cannot talk
in a manner that I understand (in time she will learn to talk using
the same perseverance, dedication and energy that she put into walking).
So the answer I propose is merely a guess. This guess, if true,
has some pretty universally permeating ramifications for humanity.
To translate that last sentence into popular vernacular; "The
answer will rock your world."
My guess? Anna was designed to walk. And talk. And run. And play.
And hug. And grow. And flash her mischievous smile that is my undoing
when she wants something. Anna is growing and maturing into the
girl and women that she was designed to be. She is reaching for
her purpose.
And no matter how many times she falls, or is pushed over by her
brother, she will continue to reach for this purpose ... and she
will achieve it. She, in the same way, will achieve any purpose
she reaches for with that same dedication and perseverance.
Some call Anna's desire to fulfill her purpose, or design, an instinct.
Instincts in humans and animals have been attributed to evolution,
creation or a mix thereof. Nevertheless, the fact that we have them
has never been debated nor that they are there for a reason. Instincts
have a reason, a purpose, and a design. That reason doesn't end
when we learn to walk, talk, play, smile, procreate and eventually
abdicate our life surrounded by family and friends. If it does end
at death than humans are no better off then the average bug who
goes through this same life cycle with an efficiency that would
make Henry Ford jealous.
You may question my conclusion that humans have a purpose and
your questioning it only serves to support it. If instincts are
only here to guide us through a life without purpose then why do
we bother to learn, question and contemplate the meaning of life
and existence? We should instead, "eat, drink and be merry
for tomorrow we die." But such a reaction would be foolish
because deep down we know that there is something more, something
higher.
Now I am going to make a major assumption that some may not agree
with, but will, I hope, allow me the chance to present and defend
this assumption before totally dismissing my case.
I've thought about devoting a significant portion of this essay
to a discussion of Evolution and Creation but don't feel that this
is the correct forum. Nevertheless, a consideration of purpose hinges
upon which of these theories (or its variation) that one embraces.
If one embraces evolution, then the purpose for humanity would
be, I assume, the propagation and survival of humanity so that in
5 billion years and a day humans will still know that they exist.
Otherwise; if humanity is wiped out, when, say, the sun implodes
in 5 billion years, no one will weep for the fact that they're extinct.
I'm not trying to be flippant with evolution, but I can't fathom
purpose for humanity without a design for that humanity. And I can't
fathom a design without a designer. So my assumption is that humanity
is a creation, created by a Creator. And upon this assumption the
rest of my article hinges.
Now if you disagree with this assumption and the conclusions that
I reach from it, then you are more than welcome to make your own
assumption and conclusions. This is your right, a right given to
you by your... Evolver?
Now how does the acknowledgment of a Creator serve to check purpose?
The best example may be the game Mouse Trap. In this game, gears,
ladders, and levers are added one by one until the final element
(a net) is hoisted to the top of a pole. Once the system is complete
and a player trips the trap, a series of events is set in motion
that will eventually catch the player's mouse in the net.
That is, if the contraption is properly set up and each part fulfills
its purpose.
So it is with creation. If we were designed, created and put on
this earth it would make sense that we have a purpose for which
we were designed and created. Knowing that purpose, therefore, is
of utmost importance if we want to properly fit in and be fulfilled.
How we come to know that purpose is a task each individual must
reach between himself and his Creator. For the moment let's pretend
that there is no Creator. If there were no Creator than my nation,
race, people or clan would become the largest group to which a person
is accountable. So long as a man fulfills his function within this
group he will have reached he purpose. The problem is that plenty
of people had purpose aplenty and fulfilled it with earnestness
in Nazi Germany; however, their society's purpose did not vindicate
this earnestness.
If there is no creator how could I make that last statement? Without
an external Being that passes judgment then there could have been
no Nuremberg trials. There could be no crimes against humanity.
No genocides or holocausts. Without a creator, the highest purpose
and judge would be the individual society - and we have seen how
errant these can be.
My second assumption draws from my own Judeo-Christian background.
Similar conclusions; however, could be reached by Muslims, Hindus,
Buddhists and other religious persons. And that conclusion is that
the purpose of man is to know, fear and love his Creator.
I've been hesitant to write this last paragraph. It reads as much
too pious, simplistic, unattainable and even needlessly controversial.
But if it is true, which I believe it is, then it needs to be written
and striven toward. Even if it is only possibly true, which every
wise person should at least consider, then it needs to be contemplated
and reacted to accordingly.
Why? Well, for starters, if humanity were created to know and
worship God then this knowing and worshiping God would allow man
to fulfill his purpose.
Anna lights up whenever I go to pick her up from a nap. As soon
as I walk into the room she stands and lifts her arms up to me.
Though I think it an impossibility, when I pick her up, hug her
and kiss her, she radiates even more.
I don't know why she does it. I suspect its because I'm her dad,
and she loves it when I'm holding, feeding and playing with her.
At this stage in her life her purpose and myself are inseparable.
To borrow from popular culture, "I complete her." At
this point I do, at least. Her world revolves around her mother
and myself. In time it will expand to include her siblings, friends
and eventually her husband and children of her own. But for now
it revolves around me and that's the way I want it. Don't remind
me about all the eventualities.
So it is, I feel, that when humans connect with their Creator He
"completes them." Like licking a finger and sticking it
into a light socket, the circuit is completed and the juices start
to flow.
In my own Christian faith, many new converts describe how they
feel upon first accepting Christ. They often describe it as "the
lights turning on," "something changed inside of me"
or "it all finally made sense."
Besides the warm fuzzies, why is a knowledge, fear and love of
God important?
While the love acts as a carrot, the fear of the judgment of God
acts as the stick. The idea, which is found in cultures the world
over, that after this life there is a judgment is a powerful deterrent
to bad behavior. These two notions of God's love and justice can
be seen as close as one's own family.
Since I love Anna I must correct and punish her (and more frequently
her brother) when she disobeys. Far from being a negative thing
that will scar my children for life, my rules and the punishment
for breaking them, serve to protect my children from far greater
and more permanent danger and damage.
If worshiping the Creator is indeed the purpose of humanity and
the societies that they inhabit, then the fulfillment of this will
bring humanity into perfect peace and harmony.
The best example I can give is of sex. It is more than just a meshing
of parts. More than just orgasmic pleasure. More than intimacy between
two lovers. More than just love and respect expressed physically.
When the purpose of sex isn't all of these it is incomplete, frustrating
and painful. When all of these come together in a nurturing and
covenanted relationship then the sum is much more than all of the
parts and new life is often created. So it is with society. The
more we line up with our original design the closer we are to heaven
on earth.
Ironically, the most utopian that the U.S.A. has been in recent
decades is after a national tragedy. Why is it that only after such
a disaster as 9/11 did the USA come together and experience a harmony,
patriotism and unity as we haven't experienced since World War II?
My own guess it that the event awoke us to our need of God.
My son, Nathaniel, loves to climb, scale and jump from whatever
object he can surmount. On occasion these acrobatics will go awry
and he'll come crying to us. Sadly, some of the tenderest times
of nurturing that we have are when our kids are sick, hurt or tired.
But that is what being a parent is all about. And, again, so I believe
it is with God. He isn't proud. He'll take us at our worse and still
console us.
The other reason that I believe a national tragedy does so much
to unify a people behind a common purpose is that it reminds us
of each other. In America we pride ourselves on our individualism
and self-determination. But after a tragedy our need for one another
cannot be ignored and we step up to the task of helping our neighbors
in need.
Not only has our Creator designed us to know Him, but also to
know and love one another. Jesus stated that the second greatest
commandment was to "love your neighbor as yourself."
The greatest joy that I have experienced as a parent has been
watching how Nathaniel has treated Anna since we brought her home
from the hospital. Aside from the time when Nathaniel used her as
cargo for his Tonka dump truck when she was 4 days old, Nathaniel
has generally treated her with kindness and compassion. Now that
we are expecting our third child, I can only hope that our children
will grow up loving, serving and being there for each other. With
five siblings of my own I know that the best and worst times have
been at the hands of my own family, and even then they have remained
my best friends.
The connection wasn't hard for Jesus to make when he said to love
our neighbors (for in God's view we are all brothers and sisters).
For loving each other not only pleases our Creator but it serves
our best interest as well.
In our community and educational system we encourage character
traits in our young people such as courage, virtue, love, sacrifice,
compassion and the like. Without the love for others our purpose
would atrophy into serving our own needs and desires. Courage would
counsel cowardice. Virtue, vice. Love, lust. Sacrifice, selfishness.
Compassion, coldness. In fact most of what counts as character depends
upon there being someone else that benefits by the action.
One of the first areas where love is abandoned is when it comes
to Truth. It seems that in our post-modern world truth is negotiable
and up for interpretation. This "if it feels good do it"
attitude is great if it's true. But what if truth isn't up for interpretation?
As a teacher I may not like the law of gravity, but if I encourage
my students to break it because I don't like it, or think it fair,
am I doing them a service? The truth must be something I share even
if I don't like it. Lying to my students may make them feel better
("pre-marital sex is okay as long as you use a condom")
about their actions ... that is until the ground catches up with
them and communicates that reality bites.
How do these two considerations (worship of Creator, love of others)
keep the power of purpose in check?
In geometry it is theorized that all of existence can be plotted
using three points in a grid with a point of origin (0). The subsequent
x, y and z points on a grid enable any object or point to be plotted.
In geography this has found practical application in G.P.S., smart
bombs and satellite TV.
With purpose, the need for a proper plotting is no less important.
Except purpose doesn't have longitude or latitude. I propose, instead,
that these two parameters that I've mentioned form the X and Y axis.
A connection to our fellow man would keep purpose horizontally aligned,
while a connection to our Creator would keep it vertically aligned.
If either of these two guidelines is broken, skewed or forgotten
then things can go haywire.
If too much emphasis is put on the first parameter, while forgetting
the second, you are liable to get religious fanatics that feel like
they are worshiping God while destroying their fellow man. Examples
can be found from the Crusades and Inquisitions all the way to modern
day suicide bombers.
If too much emphasis is put on the second, while forgetting the
Creator, than the nationalist and atheistic philosophies that have
plunged the world into two great wars, and landed us on the brink
of a third, will eventually propel us into this final abyss.
Both of these parameters must be used to keep purpose in check.
These two boundaries also serve to reinforce one another. John,
the disciple of Jesus, said that a person couldn't love God (whom
they hadn't seen) if they didn't love their fellow man who they
had seen. In the same passage (1 John, the 4th chapter) John says
that it would be impossible for us to know how to give life and
love to others unless we had first received life and love from our
Creator.
Once a solid foundation has been plotted with the first two positions,
then the individual's purpose (Z axis) can be properly understood,
developed and launched.
What direction that final point will take the individual I can only
guess. I do believe that if the first two are followed, the third
will produce a positive, amazing and maybe even legendary result.
It did in the lives of the first nine people mentioned by name at
the beginning of this essay. Each of these individuals had his or
her own purpose guided by a worship of their Creator(s) (regardless
the specific religion) and a love for their fellow man.
The ideas expressed in this essay are only my way of a trying
to express an old truth in a new way. In a world where the individual
is worshiped, finding self-satisfaction is the ultimate goal and
the truth is different for every person, total anarchy and chaos
cannot be far away. "There is a way that seems right to a man,
but in the end leads only to death."
Reconnecting with our Creator and fellow man may sound trite or
outdated, but if its true, then it should be old and obvious. Nearly
two millennium ago Jesus spoke of these parameters when he was asked
what where the greatest commandments.
" ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your soul, and with all your mind.' … ‘You shall
love your neighbor as yourself.' " (Holy Bible, 856).
When these words of his have guided the purpose of individuals and
societies, great strides have been made in all human endeavors (science,
liberty, literature, etc…). And when these words have been
neglected humans have inflicted so much pain and suffering on each
other to cause many to wonder whether God even exists.
The fact that Nathaniel is in pain when he disobeys me only serves
to prove the truth of my words. And the fact that whenever he comes
back to me, I reach down to pick him up and embrace him only serves
to prove the truth of my love. I never ceased to exist; he just
chose to ignore me. The sun will always shine, even when our sins
against our Creator and fellow man obscures it.
Finally, the fact that when Nathaniel, Anna, my wife and I love
each other and others and worship our Creator we experience a mini-heaven-on-earth
only goes to show that that has been His purpose all along.
And when humanity checks its own purposes and attempts to live
according to these two great commands, the more power there will
be to have peace on earth and goodwill toward man.
Now that is something worth doing on purpose.
Works Cited
The Holy Bible: New King James Bible Version. Nashville: Thomas
Nelson Publishers, 1984.
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