The Manual

I would like to start this with a story…

On his birthday, being awarded as “best in reading” on his class, a boy was so glad to get his favorite remote controlled toy from his father, but there’s this one thing included in the box that he was not sure about. It was properly boxed, but upon its looks, he can never figure out what is that thing he’s holding. So confused, he just kept it on his drawer, thinking it was something of no use at all. One day, his favorite toy has broken and he was so eager to fix it but, he can never find a way to make it work again. As he is about to keep it on his drawer, he came to see the mysteriously looking object on his drawer. It was the thing included on his gift that he got from his father. So, he held it up, tried to look at it from all its side, but still can’t figure out what it’s all about.
“Hmm… I guess I can use you with something else,” he thought with a grin.
So he put it on his pocket, and ran to his sandbox and played making a sand castle using the mysterious looking object as fancies. Suddenly, the rain pours. So he quickly ran toward their home to avoid getting wet. As he was watching the rain, his father came on his side, kissed him and asks: “How’s your day son? Have you enjoyed the toy that I gave you?” “Yes Dad, but it’s broken now, no matter how I tried, it couldn’t work anymore.”
“Oh, maybe it ran out of battery.” said his Dad. “Battery?! What’s that Dad?” asks the boy. “It was the thing that makes the toy work, I believe there was a spare included in the box.” explained his Dad.
“So it was a battery, I thought it was just something of no use, so I played it along with my sandcastle.” told the boy. “What do you mean? You mean you left it there under the rain?”, “Now it’s done! It’s totally broken”…
“I’m sorry Dad; I never knew its use.” The boy pardoned.
“You should’ve asks me first, or at least read the manual. I thought you’re good in reading? Why haven’t you used those skills? It’s useless, so as your toy.”


Now, try reading it again changing the italicized words as:

Best in reading, reading (your talents)
Favorite remote controlled toy, the box, gift, toy, (Life)
His Father, Dad (God)
Battery (purpose)

What about the Manual? ... Go, figure it out.



Why have I written such story? I actually made it to emphasize, or maybe to site a perspective view of what I want to discuss—The Purpose.

At this point in time, it is an amicable advice to seek one’s purpose. I once heard someone sez; “The most tragic moment to a man’s life, is not knowing his purpose.” Furthermore, another says; “If you’re trying to hit at nothing, you would definitely hit it.”

I do not want this to sound like any Christian preaches, so I would constructively make it like a plain advise, lest, I may sound pre-eminent.
Going back to the story, the child who has no clue of the “thing” has mistakenly used it from what its real purpose. The Dad advices that, if he had only read the manual, using his profound skills (reading), he might have known its usage and not waste its purpose. Finding one’s purpose is like a Treasure Hunter looking for his treasure. He must have a map to find it, or in the case of the child, a manual to know the purpose. The question is, Where can we get the map or how can we get a manual? The answer, it’s included in the “box”. The most precious gift we had is our Life. Its manual comes from the “Creator of Life;” there we will find the purpose of Life.

To conclude this, I would like to use the words of Rick Warren from his popular book (I’ll not say the title, you’ll surely find it. It’s popular like I said)…

Contrary to what many popular books, movies, and seminars tell you, you won’t discover your life’s meaning by looking within yourself. You’ve probably tried that already. You didn’t create yourself, so there is no way you can tell yourself what you were created for! If I handed you an invention you had never seen before, you wouldn’t know its purpose, and the invention itself wouldn’t be able to tell you either. Only the creator or the owner’s manual could reveal its purpose.

I hope I have given the point. I hope you find the purpose of this article.

- Carpe Diem