For What It's Worth

            I’m almost at the end of my childhood. Wow. Soon college, maybe graduate school, then a job (Lord willing those things still exist in five years). Marriage and children around that time (Lord help whoever falls for me). Maybe soon. Maybe later.

            I’m around a fourth done with my life.

            It’s made me think of this life. It’s short. As I look back (which some of you might joke isn’t very far), my life already has had so many missed opportunities. So many mistakes.

            But lest you think I view my life negatively, I don’t. MY LIFE’S BEEN AWESOME. I’ve had countless friends through the years and tons of fun and I’ve learned so much. And I’ve had a loving family with me throughout it all.

            But being at the end of my first stage of life has made me reflective. When you look at your life, this type of thinking should make you reflective, too.

            It’s made me think, why am I alive? Why am I here?

            As I look around me, I realize none of this will last. I look at friends and realize I probably won’t be friends with them 50 years from now. Some won’t be alive. I might not be alive.

            My education? That won’t matter in eternity. What I do with it is a different story, yes, but the education by itself matters zero.

            Money? It’s the same as education. What I do with money matters more than the money itself.

            Athleticism and looks? If I had any to begin with, they won’t even last me this life.

            So as I go forward with my life, I realize that living for these things is the height of futility.

What About You?

            So let me blunt. Why are you alive? Now, if you are well-versed in the ways of the Sunday school, you might answer, “I’m alive so I can glorify God.”

            Correct answer. But do you truly believe it?

            Solomon sums up the reason for our existence in Ecclesiastes 12:13, “The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man” (ESV).

            So think about your life. Enjoy it. Learn from it. Don’t forget the highs or lows because they made you into the person you are today.

           But remember why you were placed here. There’s still a future for us to live.