According to the CDC Foundation, humans are 99.9 percent identical, genetically speaking. It is the minute 0.1 percent remainder that accounts for differences ranging from traits as innocuous as hair color to predispositions for a wide variety of diseases.

As much variance as you see among human beings, it’s hard to think about how similar we truly are. At the core, we are mostly the same. Everyone seeks purpose in this world, myself included. We search and we search. And then we search some more. We think there must be some highly unique path we are supposed to take, which is hidden by overgrowth, buried deep in a jungle or the woods somewhere, likely not found if not by top-secret treasure maps or passwords. But at the end of the day, our purpose looks pretty much the same. Well, 99.9 percent of it. 

So, if you are like me and turning every stone in search of your purpose, let me help you. 1. We are to be in relationship with God. To seek a deep intimacy with Him and to worship in Him and with Him. 2. We are to be obedient stewards of his gifts and to use them for the greater good of His kingdom. As I talked about last time, this means using each and every gift we are given. 

If you do both of these things, the rest will work itself out. The final .1 percent becomes just details. Wildly varying details depending on your specific situation, but details nonetheless.  The reality is that we usually focus on that .1 percent that gives us the brown hair or the predisposition to cancer. The .1 percent that makes us a writer or a photographer or a doctor or a missionary or a teacher or…

We focus on the .1 percent, the unknown, instead of focusing on the 99 percent that is laid out simply for us. Be in relationship. Be a steward.

Yes, of course the .1 percent is important. It makes us the unique creatures God created. But we do need to come to an understanding that even though He granted us unique abilities and to some extent unique genetic makeups, he ultimately created us with a very consistent purpose. It is my humble opinion that if we enter into obedience to fulfill the purpose He has so clearly communicated, we will reap the reward of unlocking that .1 percent that will be our unique manifestation, plan, impact and testimony. And that it will be as clear to us as the 99.9 percent He has already shared.  

If we are unable or unwilling to embark on the path He has set, to do good with the 99.9 percent we already know, why do we think He would be compelled to reveal the .1 percent to us? That’s a tough pill to swallow, but it makes me feel a little better. I know that the ambiguity I feel at the moment will continue to dissipate as I get deeper into relationship with Him and improve upon my stewardship. I know there will be a day when I open my eyes and suddenly the rest of His plan for me will become painfully obvious and delightfully clear. Until then, I need to be worried less about how I’m different and more about how I can conform to the universal purpose God has for his people. Care to join me?