The Maxwell Leadership Reading PlanSample

Purpose: Paul Stayed on Mission, Even in Prison

Paul might have been forgiven had he chosen to take a little sabbatical as he sat in prison, awaiting his trial. Yet he used even this opportunity to advance the gospel (Phil. 1:12).

Paul was a leader who never drifted from his mission. He determined to leave his mark wherever he went. George Washington Carver wrote, “No individual has any right to come into the world and go out of it without leaving behind him distinct and legitimate reasons for having passed through it.”

How did Paul’s sense of purpose keep him in the battle as he sat in prison? What did he learn behind bars? Consider the following:

• A purpose will motivate you.


• A purpose will keep your priorities straight.


• A purpose will develop your potential.


• A purpose will give you power to live in the present.


• A purpose will help you evaluate your progress.