“a work done with extraordinary skill”
…
masterpiece
As human beings, we are more alike than we realize. No matter the political issue or persuasion, racial difference, or religious beliefs, the truth remains the same — most, if not all, people have more in common than not.
The human condition is universal.
Everyone reading this has experienced pain, joy, success, and failure. All parents want to see their child succeed and not harmed. It can also be said; many people live a ‘rough draft’ of what their lives could be. I believe this to be true, not only because of the unlimited examples one has at their disposal, but because so few people can honestly answer three basic, yet essential questions:
Who are you? What do you believe? What is your purpose?
What is more alarming — and disappointing — is the limited number of people who seek answers to those three introspective inquiries. The sad reality is that far too many souls spend an entire lifetime experiencing personal defeat after personal defeat because of their unwillingness to commit valuable time in the pursuit of honest self-reflection. By adequately or inadequately answering those questions, we will create a considerable difference in the decisions we entertain and our lives’ ultimate direction and destiny.
There are numerous threads of commonality that weave themselves through our lives. We all have dreams and aspirations, flaws and shortcomings. Some are more noticeable than others. But the threads that so tightly knit us together as one fabric are the ones stitched around pain and crisis. It’s undeniable that every individual on earth falls into one of three categories: currently in a crisis, just coming out of a crisis, or a crisis is on the horizon.
The trauma can be in the form of a health, family, or professional emergency. Disaster and dilemma can also be success-related. Successful young athletes and entertainers are blessed with prosperity yet often face devastating consequences. Many of their problems have been built on the foundation of not answering three fundamental and universal questions: Who are you? What do you believe? What is your purpose?
I say this with humble confidence, not arrogance. For the better part of my adult life, I didn’t know who I was, what I believed, or my purpose in life. A heavy price was paid with multiple marriages, multiple children born out of wedlock, and financial turmoil and chaos. If I did, for a short time, have truthful responses to those three inquiries, I didn’t have the courage or consistent behavior to abide by them.
The purpose of this book is to start an internal dialogue with the reader surrounding the three most important questions they can ask themselves during their lifetime. Acknowledging and answering these three questions dramatically changed my life —it has the potential to change yours too.
The good news is that I now know the answer to those questions pertaining to me, its Jesus Christ. Just as importantly, I understand why it’s vital to have this information to live out my truth successfully.
In the end, this book is not about conversion of thought — but about conversation. The conversation we have with ourselves.
“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”
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– Ephesians 2:20 (NLT)