I remember the dress was faded. Very faded.

Chocolate brown doesn’t fade well.  Not only was the little dress a dull color, but it had  been stripped of whatever adorned the small bodice initially, exposing rows of uneven, darker stitches across the front.

I wonder now where my mother found this dress that had to be redone, remade. I mean how could you possibly find a little brown dress, even a faded one…destined to have leaves added for an intended purpose. There were no Good Will stores, no thrift stores nor consignment shops, just bags of discarded items left for needy families at the college campus where my father attended.

I was eight years old; how do I remember the color so vividly? I can even now feel  the hardness of the fabric from being heavily starched. Was everyone looking at me? Would anyone suspect I was poor?

Along with the other girls in the class, I was to be part of a forest… we were destined to be trees that evening as we swayed and sang in the chorus.  You can imagine my relief when the teacher began pinning paper leaves of yellow, gold and red, covered with glitter, on the front of each dress. To this day, I like glitter!

Isn’t it strange that I can remember something so incidental, so unimportant as my third grade school play?  This may have been my first purpose in life!  I have recently read that seniors should spend some early morning time remembering events in the past.  Reliving this moment as a “tree”, led me to thinking of my purpose in life.

Later that morning, I was reminded… Barb, you were purposed for more, much more.

Comments on Facebook that same morning had literally destroyed my friendship with the world! The unkind words staggered my Pollyanna fantasy. So, when the whisper came of a bigger purpose, I was encouraged to be More. (I have taken a leave from social media; I only read notes if I am tagged and to get birthday notices.)

Apart from being a “tree” as an eight year old, I was designed for much bigger things: Tom’s helpmate, a mother, a friend, an English teacher to internationals, a blogger (albeit sporadic) and more, so much more! We have ambitions to achieve goals and expectations, these “little purposes” throughout life.

There has always been a higher purpose for my life… there is one for you.

“He chose you, (and me!!) actually picked us out for Himself as His own, in Christ, before the foundation of the world, that you—that I…  would be holy and set apart for Him”  (Ephesians 1:4 Amplified). That we would be kind, loving, forgiving, understanding, serving, kind… (my added words here). 

Can you see Tom in the tree…
This was our little purpose two weeks ago…

I will be 80 years old in a few days; I am not doing well with this announcement. I cannot believe I can type that sentence here so casually.  My last blog  https://ajourneytonow.me/2025/08/22/growing-up-growing-old-never/ shared my woes of  knowing what to be when I grow up; then discovering we don’t have to grow up, but we will age. Aging is mandatory; growing up is not!

I have so enjoyed this journey to Now… these moments finding purpose. I believe the little purposes in life are only to enhance and make more beautiful our main purpose: we are to become more like Jesus every day. “The Lord will fulfill His purpose for me; your love, O Lord, endures forever— do not abandon the works of Your hands” (Psalms 138:8).

Hopefully, I fulfilled the purpose of looking and acting like a tree that night years ago in faded fashion, and I am reminded today that He doesn’t look on my dress, but He has created me…

and you… to look like Him, just like Him. More everyday.

We are called to be so much more!  Kinder. Softer. More loving, more forgiving.  I cannot separate who I am to be… my purpose in life… from these words:

“In everything you do, do to others as you want them to do to you” (Matthew 7:12).  “Be kind one to another, loving, forgiving, helpful, understanding (Ephesians 4:32).

You are purposed for much more…

Examples of this MORE…

A friend told me this week that her son discovered he had left his billfold in his car when he was checking out at Walmart. The clerk put the items aside while her son ran to his car.  When he returned, he was handed his items with the message that the person behind him had paid for his things.

Another friend told me that a person had come up to her in the grocery and handed her a $20 bill with the words, “Jesus asked that I give this to you.” 

Someone paid the dinner tab of $130 for a family of five, then found out later that there was a serious health issue with one of the daughters. The gift was an encouragement that the Lord was taking care of their hearts even in their pain. 

You have a great purpose…