Thoughts on the Lord’s Day – 03/17/19

Someone conducted a survey among people who lived to be over 100. Most people would expect the cause was eating healthy food, miracle drugs and strenuous exercise. Some of those reasons contributed to their longevity, but the one thing these centenarians had in common was, they had a purpose beyond themselves.

Do you have a cause that compels you to get out of bed every morning, or do you awake every day without a passion for something outside your own interest? Living for a cause greater than yourself means refusing to live trapped in fear or the very limited dimensions of a self-centered world.

Too many people are like the man who said, “No matter what I’m working on, I’d rather be doing something else.” Regardless of age or circumstances, everyone needs a cause great enough to focus their energies and strong enough to energize them on their worst day.

Just as God made Goliath for David’s benefit and development, God has a cause made especially for you, a challenge that needs to be confronted or a situation that needs to be changed.

The giant that caused the officers of Israel’s army to tremble in fear, and King Saul to cower in the palace, was the challenge that launched David’s rise to be the greatest King of his day. At age twelve, Jesus said, “I must be about my Father’s business.” Twenty-one years later while dying for the sins of all mankind on the cross, He cried out, “It is finished.”

These two statements framed His life on earth. The greatest leader who ever lived, lived for a cause greater than Himself. Until you find the cause for which you were born, you are not ready for life. Until you live it every day, you fail those who daily touch your life. Until you fulfill it, you’re not ready for eternal life.

“Believe, when you are most unhappy, that there is something you can do in the world. So long as you can sweeten another’s pain, life is not in vain.”
Helen Keller

Every day you should ask yourself why you do what you do. If what you do on a daily basis isn’t tied to a biblical purpose greater than yourself, it may be time to do something else with your life. You will never fulfill God’ destiny, the reason you were born, until you are part of something bigger than you are and will outlast your lifetime.

You don’t get to choose the dates of your arrival or departure from this earth. However, you do get to choose the cause for which you live. For what cause, outside of your own interests, are giving your life? Whose life is more abundant because of knowing you? Will you be missed when you are gone?