What on Earth Am I Here For?

Every so often—usually when life slows down for a moment—we feel that quiet tug inside: There has to be more than this.

More than school. More than work. More than a portfolio. More than checking off goals that don’t quite fill the yearning for meaning.

The Purpose Driven Life is one of the most translated books in the world after the Bible.  It addresses a question people have asked throughout history and across cultures: What on earth am I here for?

Rick Warren opens that book with a line that resets the whole conversation: “It’s not about you.”

Not in a harsh way. More like an invitation from God: Your life is part of something bigger—come see it.

The Jigsaw Puzzle 

We ask, What do I want? What should I do with my life?  But that's like staring at a single jigsaw puzzle piece and hoping to see the whole picture. 

The better question is: How does my little story fit into God's big story?

That shift has shaped my own journey, from a medical career in California to founding a nonprofit focused on international education and development in Asia.  It hasn’t been easy, but it has been purposeful. And that makes all the difference.

Two Dreams That Still Matter

It was an early summer evening almost 50 years ago.  Before I left San Francisco for postgraduate training in Los Angeles, I went back to the Berkeley fellowship to say good-bye to my college friends.  

The occasion was graduation night.  I remember sharing: “I have two dreams—a big one and a small one. The big dream is to see many brothers and sisters in my generation find their places in God’s plan. The small dream is that I will also find mine.”

Decades later, those two dreams still guide me.

Vision: See What God Is Doing And Join Him

Proverbs says, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.”  

What is vision?  The leading Chinese theologian of our time Carver Yu once said, “Vision is recognizing God’s hand in the world and seeing how we can join him.”

From Genesis to Revelation, there’s a clear “global thread” running through Scripture that reveals God’s heart and his plan for redemption for all peoples and all nations.  The Great Commission isn’t an optional  assignment for his church.  It’s the storyline in history—His story.

And here’s the beautiful part: We all have a place in that story.