Let's ask ourselves these questions: What kind of work environment brings out the best in me? Do I thrive on routine? Am I motivated by people's needs? Do I enjoy tackling challenges that might discourage others? How about my relationships? Do I thrive when working alone with minimal distractions or as part of a team with heaps of interaction? What are my strengths? God said of Bezalel the builder, 'I have filled him with...wisdom...He is a master craftsman, expert in working with gold, silver and bronze...skilled in engraving...mounting gemstones...carving wood' (Exodus 31:3-5 NLT). What makes my eyes light up and my pulse race? Do I enjoy working with computers, cars or animals? Am I a great people manager, or do I like fixing things, or am I good with finances?

The Bible says, 'For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do' (Ephesians 2:10 NIV). We're not just another brick in the wall or another nail in the carpenter's toolbox! God has a purpose for our lives, and we'll experience our highest levels of joy and fulfilment when we discover and fulfil that purpose.

So what now? God says to you: 'Do your own work well, and then you will have something to be proud of. But don't compare yourself with others' (Galatians 6:4-5 CEV). You are God's person: 'I have made [you] for my glory (see Isaiah 43:7). You're the only 'you' he created, and his Kingdom needs your unique contribution. Thrive being you.

Jesus attended church regularly. 'He went as usual to the synagogue on the Sabbath' (Luke 4:16 NLT). The apostles also went to church on a regular basis: 'They worshipped together at the Temple each day' (Acts 2:46 NLT). And David loved God's house. He said, 'A single day in your courts is better than a thousand anywhere else! I would rather be a gatekeeper in the house of my God than live the good life in the homes of the wicked' (Psalm 84:10 NLT).

So, do we love God's house? It's really good to love church, because it's there we'll hear his word explained, find strategies for living, discover our spiritual gifts, form relationships that will sustain us in the hard times, and maybe even have our misconceptions challenged! Where else can we find all that?

Yale University conducted a study confirming that people who go to church regularly are happier, healthier and live longer than those who don't. The survey found that many church attendees had lower blood pressure, less stress and greater immunity to disease. One of the interviewers asked an 80-year-old woman, who happened to be running on a treadmill at the time, what her secret was. She said, 'When you walk with God, you have purpose, so you live longer. And you have peace with God, so you live better.'

So what now? There are many great reasons to go to church! Find one that suits you personally, welcomes you in and, most importantly, brings you closer to Jesus.

Here are three ways we can know God is real and have a relationship with him.

(1) Intellectual knowledge of God. 'They know the truth about God because he has made it obvious to them. For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities - his eternal power and divine nature' (Romans 1:19-20 NLT). (2) Subconscious knowledge of God. 'Even Gentiles, who do not have God's written law, show that they know his law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it. They demonstrate that God's law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right' (Romans 2:14-15 NLT). (3) Personal knowledge of God. 'At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now! This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun' (2 Corinthians 5:16-17 NLT)!

God reveals himself through creation. He speaks through our conscience and reveals his moral requirements and character. But beyond that, we can know God personally and have a relationship with him through his Son, Jesus.

So what now? Wherever you are on your journey with Jesus, ask him to show himself to you more and more, in whichever way he would like. He longs for you to know him intimately.

On any assignment we have for God, we don't need many people with us, we just need the right people. Gideon chose thirty-two thousand soldiers to fight the Midianites. Then he said, 'Whoever is timid or afraid may...go home' (Judges 7:3 NLT), and twenty-two thousand soldiers left. God told him he still had too many, and added, 'I'll show you which ones shall go with you and which ones shall not' (Judges 7:4 TLB). In the end, Gideon only had three hundred soldiers - but they won the day! Today, God still does more with less.

God took the same spirit that rested on Moses and placed it on his leaders so they could help him (see Numbers 11:16-17). That's what we need - people with the same spirit as us. Just because somebody is talented doesn't mean they're meant to journey with us. The question is, 'Does this person have the right spirit?'

When we're journeying with the right people with the right spirit, let's remember the things that will help us succeed... We all like to feel special, so let's be kind. We all want a better tomorrow, so let's grow hope. We all need direction, so let's have a plan. We're all self-concerned, so let's meet the needs. We all get low emotionally, so let's nurture and encourage. We all want success, so let's nurture our vision.

So what now? For your God-assignment, small or big, your success depends on having the right people in your life. So, ask God to show you who belongs in your life for this time.

Paul wrote: 'Some of your own people will tell lies to win over the Lord's followers. Be on your guard! Remember how day and night for three years I kept warning you with tears in my eyes. I now place you in God's care. Remember the message about his gift of undeserved grace! This message can help you and give you what belongs to you as God's people' (Acts 20:30-32 CEV).

When someone claims 'special revelation from God', but it doesn't line up with what Scripture teaches, don't buy it! Do what the Bereans did: 'They received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true' (Acts 17:11 NIV).

Whose teachings did the Bereans put under the searchlight of Scripture? Paul's! No leader, regardless of the size of their following, is beyond such scrutiny. And good leaders welcome it. Even if we're constantly learning and discovering our entire lives, we still won't know everything about God. Does God have new and effective strategies for reaching the world with the Gospel? Yes, and we must embrace and use them. But we must never compromise when it comes to God's word.

So what now? When you're not sure of a teaching or godly claim, always ask, 'What does God say about this in his word?' and make that your benchmark. And ask someone whose journey with Jesus you trust to help you discern what is shared with you.

A pastor wrote: 'According to legend, King Midas loved gold so much that when Dionysus granted him a wish, Midas asked that everything he touched would turn to gold. At first, Midas was delighted with his request, but when he discovered that his touch made food inedible and his embrace made loved ones lifeless, he stumbled upon what sociologist Robert Merton called the law of unintended consequences. Like Midas, getting what we want can result in...undesirable consequences... Sometimes an unanswered prayer is God...sparing us the pain of unintended consequences...Most of the time that causes us a great deal of temporal angst, but someday we will owe God as many thank-you's for the prayers he did not answer as the ones he did.'

He continues: 'Many of our prayers are misguided. We pray for comfort instead of character. We pray for an easy way out instead of the strength to make it through...Many of our prayers would short-circuit God's plans and purposes for our lives if he answered them. Maybe we should stop asking God to get us out of difficult circumstances and start asking him what he wants us to get out of those difficult circumstances.'

So what now? This is God's heart for you: 'I know the plans that I have for you...They are plans for peace and not disaster, plans to give you a future filled with hope' (Jeremiah 29:11 GWT). Thank God for the prayers he answers and those he doesn't!