Our Purpose

[pottergirl09]

Do you believe that everyone has a sole purpose in life? Do you think it's really possible to find out what it is? If you completed it? Sometimes I can lie awake for hours with questions like these, and I can sometimes come up with theories that make sense, but how do you ever really find out?

[totalmuggle]

my purpose was to have faith to help other with what im going throug. to extend someones life though mine.

[Epiphanatic]

I believe that the purpose of of one's life is to serve society in the best way he/she can. Obviously, we all live together in societies, interact with each other, and depend on each other through specialization of jobs. And I think the purpose of our lives is thus to contribute the most to society a person can, and if he/she wishes, to find some way to be remembered into the future.

[hesdead-dealwithit]

I totally disagree. The purpose of one's life should only be to serve himself, not anyone else.

[swishandflick]

I think my purpose in life is just to try and be the best person I can be and take care of my friends and family. Unless you have accomplished an incredible amount in your life, for someone like Mother Teresa, I don't think that you ever really know what your purpose is/was untill you die. Its not a right or wrong answer, it depends on the person and what they bring.

[Tane]

My purpose in life is to take each day as it comes and try to do my best just to get through to tomorrow. I don't really feel I have a purpose in life as such other than to offer what ever I can to the world and if it is rejected then so what, I just wait for the next day to come along now.

[Forever Rain]

I think to each of us we must define our own purpose in life....


I believe it is our choices that define us, and what we believe, and we shouldn't blindly accept a faith or a destiny...

[Wab]

Live life, don't wonder.

[LewsTherin]

My purpose, first and foremost, is to glorify God. Unfortunately, I don't always manage that, but I'm human and I make mistakes. Still, I am aiming towards that. Everything else stems from that. If what I do brings glory to God, then I'm fulfilling my purpose.

[Nys]

I'm really not sure about my purpose in life. I feel sure that I was meant to be. There were many instances throughout my parents lives where either one of them could have been killed or simply not born. Example:- My Grandmother had a misscarriage and then straight away got pregnant with my mother, if she had have gone full term with the first baby my mother and ultimately I, would never had been born. And extremer example is my father had a man aim a gun at him and the gun misfired, my Dad ran and the gunman shot someone else instead who had been a completely innocent bystander. Dad also survived being conscripted and being sent to Vietnam!

I would like to think that my purpose is either to have an effect on someone who will eventually do something great, or their children! Or even maybe my own children may do something great. I think at the end of the day, thinking about why we are here can spoil the life that we are here to lead. There's not much use thinking about why we are living so much that we forget to actually live! As all the sayings go there's no dress rehersal in life so we've got to try out best to get it right the first time!

[fawkes5]

Live life and be true to yourself. Hopefully, those poeple whose lives intersect with your own, will be better able to live their own lives and remain true to themselves, too.

It is not destiny or fate but our choices that determine our purpose and our life. And if you do not find your purpose in this life, maybe in the next?

[FirefightingMuggle]

My purpose in life is to protect life and property. As a firefighter I am sworn to do it. As an Human I feel it is my responsibility to do it. Helping someone, even if they are someone you don't know, when they really need it and not asking anything in return other than a thank you is what life is really about.

[Morgoth]

My purpose is to live well and die young

[thinkpink38]

Live life, don't wonder.

Easily said, and nicely put... :tu: I geuss I just want to be the person that I know I can be, no matter how hard that may be.

[firebolt2000]

To me, it's to fulfill my goals and dreams.

[Benzo]

I totally disagree. The purpose of one's life should only be to serve himself, not anyone else.
I hope that person will never have children!
I try to get a bit of good moments everyday, at work and at home and if possible everywhere I go usually with the people I love.

[Midnightsfire]

I would love to simply live life but I have always had questions about identity. What makes me...me. I look at the environment that I was raised in (A ghetto plain and simple), I look at my parents who if one were to get to know, you'd wonder at where the children came from. (Not the mailman, I'm sure) Yes, the ole genetics versus environment questions and yet I wonder if there aren't other influences that make a person what he/she is. (Exposure to teachers and the like, are excellent examples of differing "environment" I believe.)

Until I can come to grips with such questions I think I will always question my purpose in life.

*grins* Not the most positive response I suppose.

[GryffindorGr]

The more I live, the more I'm confused about life.
I'd like to be happy all the days of my life, enjoy the things that I like to do, contribute, feel glad about the little things we take for granted.

[thinkpink38]

I would love to simply live life but I have always had questions about identity. What makes me...me. I look at the environment that I was raised in (A ghetto plain and simple), I look at my parents who if one were to get to know, you'd wonder at where the children came from. (Not the mailman, I'm sure) Yes, the ole genetics versus environment questions and yet I wonder if there aren't other influences that make a person what he/she is. (Exposure to teachers and the like, are excellent examples of differing "environment" I believe.)

Until I can come to grips with such questions I think I will always question my purpose in life.

*grins* Not the most positive response I suppose.


I agree with you Midnightsfire, I think the enviroment a person lives in definetly has a huge influence on the persons out look on life, and at him/her self. I mean, in your case, you say you live in the ghetto, but from the way you post your thoughts and admirations, I can say that your teachers have influenced you in positive ways, because your posts are always so great, and organized (not to mention funny) which is always a good thing. So, perhaps things like this help build our identity. I think that my religion plays a role in my identity as well.

[FlyingPhoenix]

In fact I never had an easy answer to this question but now I have one. If I think back all my life and I'm quite young but still what was my purpose? Just to learn and to teach. I think that is what we all do, learn. If this are feelings, if this means to learn to survive or to write or just everything you just learn and maybe just maybe you get the opportunity to teach others your knowledge, your experince. Some are able to write books and get published just to teach other people with what they learned. Others again are able and allowed to teach what they did learn and still learn to teach they own childrens.

Yes, thats my purpose and its amazingly how much I learn everyday new about life.

[Midnightsfire]

I agree with you Midnightsfire, I think the enviroment a person lives in definetly has a huge influence on the persons out look on life, and at him/her self. I mean, in your case, you say you live in the ghetto, but from the way you post your thoughts and admirations, I can say that your teachers have influenced you in positive ways, because your posts are always so great, and organized (not to mention funny) which is always a good thing. So, perhaps things like this help build our identity. I think that my religion plays a role in my identity as well.
Thank you for the kind words thinkpink38.

I did have a couple of really good teachers (They believed learning should be fun). One of my teachers (Mathematics) once stated in his introduction on the first day: I am not a teacher, I am a learner. You the students are the learnees. Teaching will show you how to acquire the correct answer. Learning will show you not only how to acquire the correct answer but why your answers are correct. If you don't kow how you arrived at the correct answer then you haven't learned the lesson provided. Again, I am a learner. And you will be learned. I was pointed out in his class on that first day: You had an easy first two years. For these next two years you are mine. Your twin brother is already starting calc. You will catch up to him by the end of these two years. He was a heckuva teacher. (Yes I did learn and I did catch up...most of the way.)
Books also were my teachers as well.

Piers Anthony has a book he wrote a long time ago called a Spell for Chameleon. In the storyline there is a wizard who will answer any single question for a year's service. Our hero asks a manticore what his question was and he replied, whether he had a soul.I paid a year for everything. Having a soul means I can never truly die... Such things, (even in low fantasy) exposed differing ideas and help to open the eyes, so to speak. (Or to see from a different pair of eyes.)

Hehehe...

Perhaps my purpose in life will be to open up the first Jedi Academy. That'd be really cool.

[Prometheus]

I dont think we really have a purpose, ultimately... thats kinda morbid, but I mean in the end whats it all for? People create purpose for themselves through careers, religion etc... but in the end we die dont we? And then you have to look back on your life and wonder if you did the right thing. I mean what if you spent your whole life looking towards the future? I have been, with school and uni, I have looked to the future basically my whole life... always preparing for the next few years, then the next etc. So if I was to die tomorrow, wouldnt it have been better if I had just lived for the moment and enjoyed myself?

So maybe it's best just to enjoy your life in whatever way seems best to you? It think its really up to the individual create there own purpose.

Anyways I couldnt resist quoting Agent Smith in relation to this subject:

"Why, Mr. Anderson? Why do you do it? Why get up? Why keep fighting? Do you believe you're fighting for something? For more that your survival? Can you tell me what it is? Do you even know? Is it freedom? Or truth? Perhaps peace? Yes? No? Could it be for love? Illusions, Mr. Anderson. Vagaries of perception. The temporary constructs of a feeble human intellect trying desperately to justify an existence that is without meaning or purpose."

Quite a depressing take on things maybe... but I think he has a point. I think humanity has created things like religion to give our lives purpose.

Thats not to say there is no point in living tho... no way!! Life's great!!

[English Girlie]

I recently wrote an essay answering the question 'does life have a meaning' and in the end came to the conclusion that if you think your life has a meaning then it does. Also I think that our main purpose in life is to be as happy as we possibly can, whether we do this by indulging ourselves or making others happy to make ourselves feel good does not matter...

[Queen of Wise]

Ah, a question we may never know the true answer to:) Personally, I used to believe that everyone had a purpose in life, but then what about the criminals? Surely their purpose wasn't to kill people? Now that I have given this issue some thought, I can't really see a reason why we are put here, except for maybe a few choice people who actaully make a difference in the world. In my case, I think my purpose in life is live beyond our so called standards, popularity, insults, fighting, hate, and make a new path for myself:)

[Spirit]

Do you believe that everyone has a sole purpose in life? Do you think it's really possible to find out what it is? If you completed it? Sometimes I can lie awake for hours with questions like these, and I can sometimes come up with theories that make sense, but how do you ever really find out?

I think that everyone has a purpose in life. Everyone is supposed to do at lest one thing to improve the world. And I know that there are people that start wars and everything, but I consider that to be a purpose, even if it is horrible and we would probably be better without it.

I think that it is possible to find out what your purpose is, and how to do that is to first know and understand yourself. I'm pretty sure I found my purpose out last December, but I don't want to say what it is because I know that people won't believe me, so I'd rather keep it to myself. :blush:

[SiriusRuleZ]

I think my purpose in life is to make the people I love happy.. and if it's possible, other people too. And also to carry out the ideas I have about making the world better.. I believe that life itself is the best thing we have and we should do anything to prevent unnecessary loss of life.. Maybe later I'll find new purposes, but right now this is my opinion.

[missypotter]

The purpose of life is to come to earth, gain a body and show our Father in Heaven that we are willing to do what he asks so we can return to live with Him.

He asks that we love him and each other.

[MarcKal]

We will all be with him, whethere we believe in him or not because during the final days of Earth, it will become paradise and people in Hell and Heaven will return to Earth (which is now Paradise) and be universally redeemed. It's called Universal Redemption...the Holy Father will not leave anyone in Hell for eternity and you should know that.

[missypotter]

Not everyone gets the blessing of living with our Father in Heaven. We will all receive our own glory and live as we have determined by our own choices. No one will "burn" in hell, but not everyone will live together.

Without repentance there will be a price paid. With repentance the price was paid by Christ.

[MarcKal]

So, God isn't all forgiving?

Well, HE IS. You gotta think...if you've ever read St. Peter's Apocalypse, you would have known that it was the ORIGINAL book of Revalations. It talks about UNIVERSAL redemption.

[redphoenix]

gee...the purpose of life...that's a loaded question. i don't know exactly what the purpose of the whole human race is, or what my individual purpose is to be here, but i know that i'm going to try to do everything for the glory of God.

[Adelaide]

I know that some people believe that everyone is born to a purpose, and was born to be who they are, but I have problems accepting that God (who so welcomed the little children) would want a child starving in a 3rd world country to be born to that life.

However, I do believe that we all have a purpose, if only to spread God's love, or to glorify God. Sometimes it is as relativly simple as that, and other times it gets way more complicated.

I haven't found any purpose for my life yet, but my purpose for living is that I believe God has something more for me than sitting in Hickville, USA.

But hey, maybe he does. I don't know. If I had all the answers, I'd run for God.

Adelaide

[eMMy_026]

Yes...my purpose is to give praise and glory to Jesus Christ, my king.

if i give my life over to him..he has a purpose for me and he wants me to fulfill it..so if i trust in him he will show me the right way and path that my life should go.

Jeremiah 29:11- "For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. "Plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope!"

[busy91]

Does life have to have a purpose or is it just something we dream up to give us reason to go on in a world so full of injustice?

And if there is such a thing as a life’s purpose, I don’t think we have a sole purpose. We could have many purposes in life, we may be able to fulfill many of them or we may not fulfill any of them.

What was Charlie Manson’s purpose in life?

The purpose doesn’t have to be noble does it?

Do I ask more questions than I answer?

[CicadaInvasion]

We create our own purpose, as we create our own destiny, as we shape our own future.

[Goddess_84]

After my philosophy lessons the other semester, I began to question everything which is neither bad nor good in my perspective. I used to believe that there is a purpose in everything and everyone as long as they are put here on earth but the question is, is there really such purpose? I would like to believe there is a purpose of my existence but with all the supporting arguments given to me, the question has become more taxing. Whatever the purpose of life is, I hope that one day I will find out but I highly doubt it and for those who have a strong belief as to their purposes, keep on it because it is what gives us reason to live another day. What keeps me from losing home regardless of my vague views of life's purpose is the hope that one day I will find out.

[missypotter]

Some of you are misunderstanding forgiveness. There is mercy and justice and no one gets a free ride. Christ paid for our sins, but we must repent or you don't get to live with God. God will forgive those who repent. Those who don't repent have their say here in this life, but not the next.

[Azimuth]

I don't believe that we have a purpose, per se. However, we exist, and I think that as everyone gets one life, on our one (relatively) little planet, I think that we should do everything we can to make sure that life isn't a misery for anyone. That means eradicating war, poverty, and crime. It isn't fair that some people's only one chances at life are ruined by these terrible things.

[Fairyliquid]

I believe we will all fullfill a purpose of some kind but our choices and actions determine what that is. Generally i think our purpose on earth is to live.

[Virtuousdream]

I do not believe we have a higher being, aka God. It's just not possible. I'm into my A2 year of A Level Philosophy; and after choosing to study the subject due to try and 'sort out' my belief's, I've just been left even more confused. God cannot be "all forgiving" if is to condemn people to hell for eternity, where there appears to be no levels if you take a literal view of hell. The three beliefs on the soul; duelism, materialism and the phycho-unity view have so many illogicalities to it that all of them make each other view a contradiction, if you take a logical positivist and a cynical persons view.

Anyway the reason I mention that in a purpose thread is because it is all based on that. A traditional simplistic cristian view implies our purpose is to live, be moral to try and get into heaven. This supports PhoenixUK's thread on "Is religion immoral?" This purpose is selfish, it is immoral in itself. This cannot be the correct purpose.

Also, to define what out 'purpose is,' we need to take "freewill" into account. If we are free, as God stated, then surely our purpose is to live our lives to be happy and to bring peace. Yet, if that is so, then why are we not happy, and why is there war if we are left to our own devices? Surely that must either mean; God has not let us be free - completely contradicting christian teachings, or we are not free.

So If we are not free, what view do we take that affects our purpose? Lets say for argument's case, the predeterimination people are correct, cause leads to effect. We still may have a purpose here, but surely we are bound to the rules of the word, so our purpose is restricted if what the causes, as they can be traced to the beginning of time, which God created, linking back to God controlling us, meaning we have no purpose. So now, lets look at pre-determination. If this is true we need to review our views on God to determine our purpose. Say God is timeless....then he is outside time, therefore he will be in control of time, and determine our whole life, to the stage HE decides whether a person will go to heaven or hell. This concludes there is no purpose, because surely to be destined to either heaven or hell, and we can do nothing to change that, so what is our purpose if we are being controlled? Are we a Sim, is that our purpose, to provide God entertainment? Lets say God is everlasting. This implies he is inside time, and cannot see future consequences. This leads to more freedom for a purpose that is not for God's entertainment. However, it means we are still governed by laws of cause and effect. As God designed the laws of causality, he can predict the outcomes of our every action. See purpose for determinism; we have no purpose as God is again controlling us.

So, this means that our idea of a purpose rests on the idea we are free. Now, if we are free, why do people pray for God to change their lives? Why does any sort of logical evidence within sociaty suggest we are not free...eg. 9/11 - leads to war in Afganistan - leads to increased rifts between religions - leads to smaller bouts of terrorism - leads to Bush's "war on terrorism" - leads to Iraq incident - leads to inner argument on whether it was correct - leads to current situation.

What purpose does this leave us with?
It ends up the two logical arguments being

a)We have no purpose
b) God knows our purpose and all will be revealed when we die and go to heaven"

To me, the second seems either...

a) an easy answer to a complex situation....aka. an easy way out that still holds an argument
b complete rubbish and wish fulfilment

Therefore, to me, we have to purpose apart from the laws of nature in animals...be born, reproduce, die. Humans, thinking they are complex and deserve a 'higher purpose,' add all these deep complexities and possible purposes when they are just false and contradictory.

But then, who says that nature isn't an illusion, and is nature free, because according to religion, that was governed by God, so again leads to no purpose, just entertainment...
Providing God exists.

Of course I really wont go into whether the whole laws are human created and that purpose is a human conception because part of our brains say we are some special creatures and can't be here by chance when there is no evidence that we aren't just accidents created with self glory of a higer existance when purpose is just human crafted and merely an illusion.

Therefore, we have no purpose.