What’s the point of my life? I once had a guest ask me that during Dinner for 8 Gracers. I’ve talked about it here and there with many small groupies/mates, and various other people as well. Unbelievers have looked at me kinda funny too (that could be a good sign).
Answer: to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.
Well, of course. But exactly how? Let’s develop that a little.
First off, I know from the Scriptures that I’m commanded to delight myself in Him (Ps 37:4) and lay up my treasures in Heaven, and not on this earth (Matt 6:19-21). And even the laying up treasures in Heaven dealio is related to delighting myself in Him, as J.Edwards so eloquently puts it: “Resolved, to endeavor to obtain for myself as much happiness, in the other world, as I possibly can, with all the power, might, vigor, and vehemence, yea violence, I am capable of, or can bring myself to exert, in any way that can be thought of” (#22, emphasis added). I also know that everything here is gonna burn (2Pet 3:10-13), so I’d better be investing in eternal things.
Now, where and how does a guy invest? I find the answer to that to be in the example of the Apostle Paul, the example of the army of faithful servants and disciples around him, and the example of influential godly men in my life (here’s lookin’ at you, Jim Ayres, Tim Lee, Tim Ma, Justin McKitterick, Paul Ushijima, and Richard Ho!). Though the answers to that question defy exact categorization, I arrange it into three categories for myself to easily remember and for others to easily understand: Wartime Lifestyle for Missions, Discipleship, and Godly Family.
I want to be supporting the global purposes of God to save people from every nation, tongue, and tribe. Put more simply: missions! Planting churches in the midst of unreached people groups, and ministering in a way that allows the locals to spread the Gospel to their own culture. But that doesn’t just require sacrifice from the going missionaries, it also requires sacrifice from the passionate senders. If Jesus was right when He called us to lay our treasures up in Heaven (Mt 6:19-21), then I don’t need to invest much at all into worldly comfort, but rather invest my resources and time into things that pay off eternally. For me, given my current convictions, I feel much more like a sender than goer (though God sure tugs at my heart sometimes).
I want to be actively involved in discipleship within the local church. I think of how Paul tells Timothy in regards to “the things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also” in 2Timothy 2:2. I think of how the Biblical model for the advancement of the Kingdom of God and fulfillment of the Great Commission, as Jesus demonstrated it, is found not in casting the net wide and hoping people grow on their own without any help, but in in-depth, constant, sacrificial discipling of those under your watch, leading to an exponential increase of dedicated followers of Christ as the generations go on. It’s my prayer that they who are under my care will understand to live their life with eternity, the magnitude of our great salvation in Jesus, and worship of our great God, the King Eternal, constantly in view.
I want to raise a godly family. I’d love for a son of mine to be a godly man who lives for eternity and considers his life of no worth unless it’s lived for Christ’s sake. A daughter of mine to be a mother and wife who supports her man to be a great mover and shaker in the world for Jesus, and raises children who care deeply for eternity and are willing to die for Jesus. And I’d love to hear my children say what a close friend of mine says about his dad: “My dad is the godliest man I know.”
Father, let me remember this constantly. To lose sight of this will mean succumbing to the downstream current and cause me to settle into the American Dream, living for myself and wasting my life. Let me not be content to live that kind of life. You are too glorious, Your promises too amazing, and Your Word too clear for me to live in a way that doesn’t maximize my joy in the next world.
