What is my Purpose in Life?
Seeking Purpose in Life Through Extraordinary Encounters

Article by Sharon Hooper

Yield right of way, bump, right turn, left turn, no turns, park here, no parking, stop, resume speed, go, open trench, slow down, turn right, turn left, be prepared to stop, eat here, shop here, galleries, one way, keep left, keep right—directions—more than 67 signs total, all in the short space of a quarter mile!

Perhaps, on the way back home from town, I was just now noticing these signposts because they were a reflection of my own chattering mind for the past several weeks, i.e. the question:

What the heck am I supposed to be doing with my life anyway? Where am I going?

Groan! How is it that I ask myself this question every year? Maybe it’s a seasonal cyclic thing where our mind rotates through a crop of ideas and actions, and then needs to reset and begin the seeding process again…until we “get it”!

One of my favorite cards in The Wisdom of Mary Magdalene card deck, “The Seeker”, contemplates a theme of searching and finding “the way.” The opening quote comes from The Sophia of Jesus Christ and asks, "Where have we come from, where are we going? What is the meaning of life, and what should we do here? If we’re disciples of God, what’s our purpose? “

Mary said to him: ‘Holy Lord, where did your disciples come from and where are they going and what should they do here?” Mary is asking that if we are true seekers, and our purpose is more than material existence and achieving things, then why are we here? And how will we even know when we’ve found what we’re searching for? Yes, there is a lot to read and interpret in this quote, and I wish there were an easy answer! I, for one, am still on the journey; however, I do receive glimpses of enlightenment now and then. And, on a practical level, I could really use some illumination right now—about writing this column!

For instance, I started this article four times, and each time I thought, this is really bogus writing, Sharon! You’re stuck! Admit it! You’re looking for several nimble fingers to type something brilliant that readers will respond to with oooh’s and ahhh’s. Oh ego, get thou away! So I sit here thinking about all the amazing men and women who come into my life to take part in a vision mapping process that I’ve created through the years. Their visions inspire me continually. I have promised them that their work with me will create clarity and focus—not that they will suddenly discover all their deepest passions and rush off to make fame and fortune. But, I have to admit, there is an incredible synergy that is generated and clients always leave rejuvenated, with motivation, clearness, hope and a renewed “plan of action”!

As a personal motivation coach, it seems so easy to ask clients all the right probing questions to help them move forward. But when I feel stuck, I revisit the same tired request that I’ve been deliberating for decades—what is my purpose in life?

One of the most significant teachers in my life recently showed up as a client. Vernon, a sweet man of service in his early 40’s, literally cried through the pain of his emptiness recently, as we sat before large sheets of blank paper, looking for a beginning to a vision map—hunting for some elusive passion that always felt just slightly out of his grasp. I asked him to have faith in the process that we were about to embark on, that I didn’t know exactly what would emerge, but did guarantee that there was some magic at work and extraordinary revelations would emerge. I explained that, in our seeking, there is often indefinable anguish. Maybe there’s only one true yearning for all of us—the longing to connect with God, or our higher source. This craving seems to drive us in the direction that we’re searching, even though we might not know it...

...However, there is always a guiding light that will show glimpses of what is yet to come. Even in the darkest side of our soul, there’s still light.

By the time we were through talking for a while, I suggested to Vernon that he spend time rambling on some canyon trails before we actually began the vision mapping process. I asked him to bring a journal and answer some questions, like:

• What has led you to this place in time?
• If you gave it a name, what would you call this passage through life?
• Who has been with you?
• What has been the most challenging leg of your journey, and why?
• What are you doing when your heart is dancing with happiness?
• When you’re occupied with something and the hours blissfully slip by, what are you engaged in?

I didn’t expect Vernon to write responses to all these inquiries. I simply wanted him to gain some renewed perspective about his life’s passage before we delved into the “process.” But a funny thing happened. I never heard from him again. I received a check in the mail with a heartfelt thank you. And I knew that he had discovered exactly what he was seeking, in the shadows of these mysterious red rocks in Sedona.

Maybe, I’ve queried, our entire meeting really didn’t happen on a physical plane. Maybe I dreamed the whole encounter. Perhaps his lesson was to remind me that we are not alone on our quest. Possibly he was repeating that the answers are within me and that listening mindfully, more often, will provide me with the illumination I seek—one step at a time.

I do have faith that, eventually, my treks will lead me to my own celestial reason for being. And I will also be on the lookout for more “Vernons”, extraordinary people who act as my personal spiritual life coaches, and who remind me that the journey itself is the perfect answer to the question I seek.

YES - You Can Create The Life You Want!

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