- To improve the way people live.
- To express themselves through art and other forms of creativity.
- To obtain and or demonstrate power.
- To leave a lasting (if not eternal) impression upon the world.
- To find meaning in life.
- To secure some pleasing existence in the afterlife.
As I studied each culture it seemed as if all of them were saying, “We are here and we matter! Don’t forget us! Learn from us! Consider us! Marvel at what we are doing”. And indeed, in many ways, as thousands of people walk through the Penn Museum each day, we seem to be honoring their wishes. Then the other day I was driving along I95 and observing the people who were driving around me. As I considered each of them, the thought occurred to me, “In forty years, probably half of the people on this road will be gone from this world (myself included)”. I wondered what passions were consuming them in the moment or in their lives in general. I am pretty sure that they don’t often think that their time is short and before they know it they will be gone. It also occurred to me that in many ways, we pursue the same six desires as the ancient peoples mentioned above.
I understand and even appreciate many of the pursuits mentioned and don’t see them as necessarily bad things (except in many instances the one about power). But I will say that all of them are ways in which God can be glorified. For, if God’s wisdom is sought when looking to live well, then He is glorified. If we express ourselves through art or other means in order to capture God’s incredible creation, then He is glorified. If we live powerfully, but acknowledge that all the strength we enjoy is from God, then He is glorified. If, when we are gone, we leave behind a marker of some form that says, “Here is a person that lived for Jesus Christ” then we have truly left a God-glorifying impression on the world. If we find our meaning and the meaning of life in glorifying God, then we have honored our Lord. Lastly, if we acknowledge in our hearts and publically that God has secured a place for us in Heaven, by the shed blood of Christ on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins, then we have indeed glorified Him.
The reality is that for each of us reading this e-mail, we probably only have 30, 40, 50, maybe even 60 years. And what will we do with them. We will drive our cars, go to our destinations, pursue our goals and then…be gone. And all of that……is really, really good, as long as at the end of our time, God has indeed been glorified.
May I suggest then a different phrase to call out then the one that seems to have been embraced by those ancient people groups?
“We were here and Christ matters! Don’t forget Him! Learn from Him! Consider Him! Marvel at what He has done”.
| “You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Each man’s life is but a breath. Selah” –Psalm 39:5 |
For God’s glory, Rob