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Living a Life of Significance

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Making Your Life Count

As we continue to adjust our lives and schedules to include the significant impact that our granddaughter Hazel’s leukemia is having on our world, it gives me a time to reflect on what is really important in life. That is why this Wisdom Note is titled “Living a Life of Significance.”

I believe all of us want to live a life of significance, knowing that we are making a positive impact on others and the world. The problem is that life for most of us is very hectic, and we have competing demands for our time, energy, and resources. Some days it is hard to keep our heads above water, and we constantly feel like we are being sucked into the whirlpool of life’s activities.

For these reasons, it is so important to live life intentionally and purposefully. Before Hazel’s leukemia diagnosis, I thought my schedule was jam packed, and that I could not add anything to it…and yet with this significant disruption in our lives, we are forced to choose what is most important, and realize that we have to let other things be dropped or delayed to a different season of life. It is with joy in our hearts that we accommodate these changes.

So how do can you live a life of significance?

If we are going to make this shift, we need to have an intentional mind shift from a life of activity to a life of purpose.  Begin living a more simplistic life, one where you take the time to stop and smell the roses along the trek of life and enjoy each day’s journey.

Living a simple life certainly requires intentionality. In a world that is hectic, busy, and hurried, simplicity is not. In a culture that encourages selfishness and excess, minimalism does not. And in a society that is rushing to gain more, satisfaction with less is counter-cultural.

To live an intentional life, we must begin by laying a proper foundation and then add practical steps on each day’s trek on top of it.

First, find a solid path for life.

  • Realize that your life is made up of choices. Every morning is a new day full of decisions and opportunities. You get to pick your attitude and your decisions. You don’t have to let the circumstances of your past negatively determine the pattern of your life in the future. You have a choice in the matter. You do not need to be stuck in the same pattern of living that you have been for years. Realize that every morning is a new opportunity. Thinking of this brings to my mind the Bible verses in Lamentations that we can rest in. Chapter 3 verses 22 and 23 read,

“The faithful love of the Lord never ends!
His mercies never cease.
Great is his faithfulness;
his mercies begin afresh each morning.”

  • Evaluate the path you are taking and the tribe of people that you are trekking with. Life is not lived in a vacuum. You are on a certain path and live surrounded by a tribe with its own culture that is moving somewhere. This tribe and its culture form a steep downhill slope. Living an intentional life will require you to take a step off of the trail and evaluate the path you are on to determine where it is heading, how it is affecting you, and if it is taking you in a direction you desire. We can get guidance to make these decisions as we read in Psalm 32:8 the Lord says,

“I will guide you along the best pathway for your life.
I will advise you and watch over you.”

  • Examine yourself. Know who you are. Get a strong handle on your passions, talents, abilities, and weaknesses. Focus your time and energy on this endeavor. It is one of the most valuable things you can do. God has given all of us abundant abilities and we should use those skills, just as the Prophet Daniel did as mentioned in Chapter 6:3,

“Daniel soon proved himself more capable than all the other administrators and high officers. Because of Daniel’s great ability, the king made plans to place him over the entire empire.”

Second, add practical steps.

  • Decide to live your life. Stop comparing yourself to others. You were not born to live their lives. There is no sense wasting your life being jealous of someone else. Instead, you were born to live your life. Determine today to be good at it. After all, you only get one shot. As Proverbs 14:30 puts it,

“A peaceful heart leads to a healthy body; jealousy is like cancer in the bones.”

  • Define a purpose. Identify what you want your life to communicate and what impact you desire to make on your world. Find a passion to live for that is bigger than yourself. Write it down. It will bring new meaning to your life. It will wake you from the slow death of only living for yourself. Matthew put it this way when he spoke of Christ in Chapter 20:28,

“For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

  • Set goals. Goals move us, and goals shape us. Set goals that are directly in line with your defined purpose. Goals do not need to be grand they just need to fit your season of life.  By their very nature, they will introduce intentionality into your life. In Paul’s 1st letter to the church in Thessalonica 4:11 he stated,

“Make it your goal to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands, just as we instructed you before.”

  • Stay focused. We live in a world of constant connectivity and distraction that is begging for our attention nearly every moment of the day. On this trek of life, learn to take the paths less traveled. Turn off the distraction and live your life instead. Take time to enjoy the simple pleasures that everyday life can bring you, if you are still enough to see them. Travel light when you can and remove nonessential physical belongings that are robbing you of time and energy that could be better spent living intentionally. Hebrews 12:1 encourages us,

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.”

  • Learn from others. Successful people are curious people. They possess the humility to learn from others. Identify people accomplishing their purposes and goals. Then, study them and learn from them. As the Apostle Paul wrote in his 2nd letter to his protégé Timothy in Chapter 1 verse 13,

“Hold on to the pattern of wholesome teaching you learned from me—a pattern shaped by the faith and love that you have in Christ Jesus.”

The worst thing you could ever waste is your life. We all bring value to our world and indeed the entire world. Instead, commit yourself to living intentionally and on purpose. It is then we can say that we are living a life of significance. Living a life of significance draws us closer to God and help to conform each of us as His image bearers. 

Hazel is responding well to her treatments, and the doctors are encouraged with her progress.  The chemo and steroid treatments are starting to take their expected toll on her little body. She has swollen up significantly and is losing her trademark red hair.  We realize that these results are temporary, but it is difficult to watch Hazel suffering. Through it all she has times where she is happy and smiling. I would appreciate continued prayers for Hazel and her family.

#basilforhazel
basilforhazel.org

Love At Christmas

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A Story of Christmas Love

Today let’s explore the ultimate gift, which is God’s gift to us – salvation through Jesus Christ whose birth we are celebrating. Today we are exploring the first part of our story.

How do you measure the value of a present? How do you judge its worth? By its size, or by its weight? Do you judge it by its cost, or perhaps by its usefulness?

Let’s examine God’s present to us. It was wrapped up in strips of clothes instead for fancy foil paper. It was laid in a smelly feeding bin, and not placed neatly under a scented pine tree. Regardless of these humble beginnings, God’s gift is the most important gift we will ever receive. It is a gift that we can share with everyone and yet retain it for ourselves.

Let us examine God’s Word in 1 John 4:9-11, “God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other.”

How do you measure the value of God’s gift to you? I would suggest three ways.

1. God’s gift to you is measured by its usefulness.

What is the usefulness of His gift to us? Notice the usefulness of the gift in verse 9 above, “…so that we might have eternal life through him.”

Jesus said it this way in John 10:10, “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.”

What a promise that is! Not just life, not just existence, but a life that means something–a life that has worth, a rich, full, and satisfying life. A life with a purpose. A life that has value. A life with meaning. A life that will have eternal consequences and benefits.

Ephesians 1:4 says, “Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes.”

FACT: You are here for the glory of God.

Your purpose is to live a life that magnifies the Lord, to encourage and support fellow Christians, to become more like Christ, to use your gifts and talents in helping others, and to tell those who don’t know Jesus that there is Good News. Your purpose is to bring glory to God in all you do and say. And when all is said and done, you should long to hear the words written in Matthew 25:21, “The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’”

God says you have brought me glory. You have enlarged the kingdom of God. You have done well. God’s gift of salvation to us is useful. It gives us meaning and value. Our purpose is to bring glory to God.

Because of God’s love for us, He has provided the best Christmas gift to us–a rich and satisfying life on earth and a life for all eternity. God, through Jesus Christ, took on human flesh and dwelt among His creation so that He could redeem us. This Christmas take the time to reflect on the wonderful gift that God has given us and fulfill your purpose of bringing glory to God.

2. God’s gift to you is measured by its cost.

As we serve such a loving and Holy God, we are to give Him our best. He doesn’t want our leftovers. He doesn’t want cheap stuff. He wants the best you and I can give Him. Remember the story of the wise men when I referenced how King David insisted on paying the price for his offerings in 2 Samuel 24:24, “But the king replied to Araunah, ‘No, I insist on buying it, for I will not present burnt offerings to the Lord my God that have cost me nothing.’ So David paid him fifty pieces of silver for the threshing floor and the oxen.”

David said if he was going to give a sacrifice to the Lord he was going to give his best – something of value, something of worth. Why would David say that? Because that is what God has done for us. He has given us the most precious gift He could possibly give–something of worth, something of value, something that is one of a kind. He gave us His son.

Look at 1 John 4:10 again, “This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.”

God knew what had to be done. He knew what price had to be paid. He knew what it was going to cost Him, and He sent the best for you and me. He sent Jesus Christ–born as a child for the salvation of the world. If He gave that much to me, what should I give Him?

FACT: God’s gift to YOU is valuable.

3. God’s present to you is measured by its effectiveness.

If you get a toaster for Christmas, you expect it to be able to make toast. If you get a coffee machine, you expect it to make coffee. If you get a hair curler, you expect it to be able to curl hair. So the question that needs to be asked is “Is it effective? Does it do what it was intended to do?”

What is the love of God intended to do? CHANGE YOU.

Look at these three verses again in 1 John 4:9-11, “God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other.”

To me, they seem almost like a mathematical formula. 1+1=2. See how it all adds up. God’s gift is useful PLUS God’s gift is valuable EQUALS we ought to love one another.

Verse 11 says this, “Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other.”

“Ought” sounds like a suggestion, but it’s not. It’s not just some suggestion that God is making to us. The Greek word for “ought” could be translated “must.” The root word actually means “to owe something.” You owe a payment. You are under obligation. You must pay it back! Let me restate the last part of verse 11 again.

…since God loved us that much, we MUST love each other.

Why? Because God is not done loving the world yet. He wants to keep loving the world–through you and through me. Jesus said it this way in Matthew 5:14-16, “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.”

Does God’s love change you? Does it affect your behavior? Does it affect the way you treat people? You see that is what love is intended to do. It doesn’t make toast. It doesn’t make coffee. It does not curl hair. It changes us into loving compassionate people who care for the needs of those who around us. God wants to love the world, but He has a desire to do through you. Are you willing to let God show His love through you?

God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. “This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other,” 1 John 4:9-11.

FACT: We certainly MUST love each other.

Because of God’s love for us, He has provided the best Christmas gift to us–a rich and satisfying life on earth and a life for all eternity. God’s love is useful, God’s love is valuable, and God’s love is effective. This Christmas, take the time to reflect on the wonderful gift that God has given us, and fulfill your purpose of bringing glory to God.

Shifting Your Focus

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Focus on Fulfillment

There are seasons in your life where you have to focus a lot of time on your finances. This is to be expected and is especially true when you are a younger adult.

Each of us should be planning and structuring our lives in such a way that we can shift from a focus on finances to fulfillment. This does not mean that we cannot have a level of fulfillment during every season of life, but when you are faced with limited resources, then it also limits your choices.

I am convinced that it should be everyone’s goal and desire to become completely debt free, even it if means living a modest and frugal lifestyle.  If you are not willing to make those sacrifices, then your choices in life will always be restricted by the debt that controls you.

As you free yourself from debt, it liberates you to make wiser choices an impact others on a greater scale.  This is a way to live The Meaningful Life, or as I like to refer to is as The Rich and Satisfying Life.

When you live a meaningful life, you make your actions, your choices, and your moments count. You achieve this by deciding who do you want to be and what experiences you want to create unfettered by financial bondage.

Once you break free of financial shackles a simple strategy to focus on fulfillment is to focus on “the greater good” and give your best where you have your best to give. It’s about playing to your unique strengths and sharing your gifts with the world, or more specifically, YOUR world. This will help you rise above the trials and tribulations of daily living and help you find a higher ground. It will allow you to fulfill your God-given purpose for your life.

You will learn to do more meaningful things by making meaning in the things that you already do and choose to do. You are the most significant meaning maker in your life. A simple way to add more meaning is to identify a mission or a cause or a message you believe in. Remember John 10:10, “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.”