The Goal of Life

If I were to ask the average person on the street what the goal of life was, there would be an incredible variety of answers, I’m sure. It would range from spiritual to very selfish. I would guess that a vast majority of the people would be looking at earthly success, power, and possessions. That is the trade mark of an earthly desire. Some might mention helping others, being kind, and spreading love and encouragement. These are very noble to aspire to, but still don’t match God’s desire for us. I am not saying helping, kindness, and love are bad, but if they are not being done in service to God, they are just actions. I read an interesting quote the other day, “Life is strange. You arrive with nothing, spend your whole life chasing everything, and still leave with nothing. Make sure your soul gains more than your hands.” In the Old Testament, Job already had that figured out. Even after he had lost almost everything, he says, “Naked I came into the world and naked I will return. Praise be to God”. Job was also the one that maybe two thousand years before Jesus came said, “I know that my Redeemer lives and that at the end I will stand upon the earth. I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me.” Job knew the score. Why do we spend all our time trying to accumulate and striving for worldly success when, in reality, the more worldly we become, the further we are from God’s design. If we can’t take it with us, how can we invest it into the Kingdom of God so that more souls surrender and are redeemed? In 1 Peter 1, he speaks of the hope we have through the resurrection and the inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. He ends the paragraph with, “Though you have not seen [Jesus], you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.” If we know we start with nothing and end with nothing, what are we going to do with the time we have been given in between? Will we waste it or invest in it? Is it our time or God’s time? Will we seek our own comfort or seek to plant God’s word? It is time to ask the Holy Spirt to mold us according to His plan. Father, I must admit that too often I have invested in the world and not Your Kingdom. Show me how to use what I have for You. Amen