The Goal of life is best summed up as a life of love... If we achieve no other thing, to have a life of work, recreation and rest with people around us that we share love with - that must bring great joy to God...

Think of it! If you were creating a game of life - isn't it most enticing to put a creature together, and see it grow, learn, and become aware of the wonders in the environment... To go on to learn to look after themselves and others... To find a mate and build a home, bring young ones into the world... Isn't this dance the most exciting there could be?

Even without the last stages, great life stories - whether real or fictional - are made of tasks - Florence Nightingale, and Frodo and The Lord of the Rings are two tales of great courage and excitement.

Of course we do have to love ourselves in order to love others - to care, to accept, and to value ourselves. Neither God's or other peoples' love can really touch us without this. It could be the biggest, bravest battle we have to fight in life!

 
Some people have a clear sense of destiny - from an early age they are fascinated by bugs, or other races, or books, or they know they are going to be a missionary. Some know this as God's will.

 
Perhaps most of us just puddle along with vague ideas of what life is all about. We toss between pleasing others, pleasing ourselves, not feeling very good at anything, perhaps jealous of others who stand out in some way.

Some people want to burn out for God, but without a clear call and destiny, we just succeed in burning out! There's usually some self-depreciation behind this wish to be consumned - forgetting that it is the dross, the rubbish, that is destined for the fire.

 
There are definitely things that work against us living the life God wants for us - namely the flesh (unredeemed human nature), the world, and the devil...

A good family life, good schooling that helps us find out what we are good at and enjoy, and a life lived according to the word of God - these are the things that will set the right things in place - and of course, it is rare to receive them fully.

We can do our best to fill the gaps, and this also I am sure, will greatly please God, that we long for the life of love.

And here's another triplet diagram...
Remember that the most common word for "sin" in the Greek means simply to miss the target... Not just wicked things, but making mistakes - the biggest of these is to ignore the one who created you, and not receive the forgiveness he offers through the death of Jesus Christ on the cross.

But for Christians there is a progression - not for punishment, but for reward... Not based on fear, on following rules and laws, but on living in love - loving God, loving your neighbour as yourself... This is the greatest calling...

 
As for our particular task - that is our adventure, to set out on the journey with the possibility we might not quite make it... But the life we live on the journey - that is crucial in our most important task - to LOVE....

 
Deb Burton
September 2006