Day 2: Accidents happen; or do they?

You are not an accident.

Today is the second day of my (our) spiritual journey and we are covering the concept of accident vs. purpose. To summarize, Warren lists the many reasons why and how the individual, any individual is not an accident; that from the beginning, before conception, before our parents ever thought of anything, that we were in His mind and that He wanted to create us to express His love. He (Warren) goes on to say that He thought of the us, human race before He thought of creating earth, the solar system etc. which to me makes more sense. You have something, say a bunch of books, therefore you would need something to house them in, hence the bookcase. In any case, as stupid as that analogy was, Warren continues with sappy statements like "You are alive because God wanted to create you," (Warren, 22) or "God made you so that he could love you," (Warren, 24). But even with these somewhat pathetic (although I know I am being harsh) statements, I found comfort in them. Warren states that He knows when you were to be born and when you are to die; He knows who your parents are to be and why they were the perfect two people to make you, the perfect you that He wanted; He sculpted you, your race, nationality, gender, hair color, eye color facial features, body type, all were created for a purpose, for God's ultimate purpose for you. I, somehow find comfort in that; that He knows everything, that He took care of everything, that He realizes every detail is important and doesn't let anything slip Him by. It is really remarkable if one tries to fathom the amount of work and brain power it would take to take care of EVERY living creature on earth. And we even haven't gotten to prayers, problems, life yet.

But what I think was the heart of this chapter as pertaining to my spiritual journey to finding purpose in my life is this: "We discover that meaning and purpose only when we make God the reference point of our lives." (Warren, 25) It means, that God's purpose for each of us is different, individual and only can be found or figured out by ourselves through God, through our walk, our relationship with him.

"Love is the essence of God's character." (Warren, 24)
The Bible says that "God is love", not God has love or that God finds love etc, etc, etc. He is love. I guess that's why many people claim that Christianity isn't a religion, that it is more a relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

Warren's main purpose is to prove to his reader(s), through the Bible, that God values us, that He loves us and therefore has a purpose in our lives. Because He created us, he loves us and therefore has a purpose for us. This isn't like a parent helping their child find what they're good at or a major that can make them successful financially, maybe even emotionally. This is your purpose. It has nothing to do with your career, your family, your friends, your hobbies and activities. It has nothing to do with work environments, money or breaking that glass barrier. It has EVERYTHING to do with why we are here. and that translates differently for everyone. All the things that I listed are tools that God may choose to use for His purpose in you life. I guess ';m getting a little confused so one question:

Is it my purpose in life or His purpose through my life?

Anyways, despite the tangent, I think I'm lightly tapping on the iceberg that this issue is. So the question to consider today is the areas of my personality, background and physical appearance that I am struggling to accept.

Here's what I wrote in my little journal:
I never really believed that every thing on earth was a result of astronomical chance. the chances are WAY too slim, to the point of being nonexistent. I've also thought that I do have a purpose, a big one at that too. I've always thought that I am to change the way people think about music and about Armenian. (ever since I was little, mind you) So, for the question: I feel like I have a great personality but that I could never fit in to the social structures, the mindset that everybody else seemed to be link into. My background, well being Armenian has been troublesome and I know that it will only continue as I face bigger challenges in my life. My appearance, well, I'm a girl, so that means I will nitpick to no end about that. There are many things that I'm not happy about and that I have struggled with since I was 10. It has been an uphill battle with no summit. That's a self-realization I've never had before: It's an uphill battle with no summit. That is exactly what its been. Everyday it bothers me. Everyday I feel like I could have done better, that I've been lazy and guilt, embarrassment and constant brain power focused on such negativity has blocked my way of ever finding a way out. I know this to be true but I also know that even with an optimistic view I will nitpick silently and numb myself into thinking that I'm being positive.

So. We have established that we are not accidents. We have established that this journey and the rest of our lives must start with God, and not ourselves. Day 2 complete. All though I truly dislike "looking into myself", "tyring to love myself" crap, I like the twist and ultimate truth that Warren is framing with. Start with God. In fact, it's a much easier place to start off with.

"God doesn't play dice." - Albert Einstein