Unfinished: Believing is Only the Beginning
Verse
So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ. For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. (Colossians 2:6–10)
Food for Thought
Over the past few years I have had the opportunity to meet and speak personally to thousands of people as I have traveled around the globe. Many of them have come up to me to tell me a bit about their own lives and how they have sought to put their faith into action.
There is a powerful common thread of longing that I hear from them—a yearning for a deeper sense of purpose and significance in their walks with the Lord. They want to discover that one thing that God is calling them to do. They long to feel that they are doing something important for God and that their lives really count for something. They are young and old, male and female, wealthy and not so wealthy. They are lawyers and real estate agents, homemakers and students, accountants and engineers.
All of them want to experience the satisfaction of really knowing that their lives matter and that they are living in “the zone” of God’s calling and purpose for their lives. They want to feel complete and whole, living lives in which their faith is integral and not just something they do on Sundays.
But if I have learned anything about the purpose, meaning, and significance of life over the years, I have learned, for a Christian, it is not found in any job, even a job like mine. It is not found in any human relationship, no matter how important. Nor is it found in any accomplishment, no matter how significant.
Meaning, purpose, and significance are found only by aligning our lives with God’s purposes, in lives committed to following Jesus Christ. That bears repeating: The meaning, purpose, and significance of our lives are found only by aligning our lives with God’s purposes, in lives committed to following Jesus Christ.
In other words, it is not our work that brings purpose to our lives, nor is it our spouses, families, educations, abilities, money or our accomplishments. Rather, it is the purpose of our lives that brings meaning to everything else. And we find that purpose only in Christ.
Question for Reflection
Do you feel the longing described here? How have you tried to fill that hunger? Has it worked?
Prayer
Thank you, Lord, for creating me with a desire for you. Please help me turn to you when I feel lost or unfulfilled. Help me to know Christ in such a way that nothing else compares to the satisfaction he offers.
Unfinished: Believing is Only the Beginning. Copyright © 2013 by World Vision.