I have always been something of a people watcher. When I am in crowded places like an airport or a busy mall I find it fun to play “detective” or “Sherlock Holmes” and try to deduce what I can about a person based on certain clues that I see in their appearance, hear in their conversation or notice in their choices.
One thing I have noticed is that if you watch someone long enough (or watch your life in a mirror) you will begin to notice that people seem to live for certain things. We might not actually say that we are living for those things, and yet consistently the choices reveal a priority and a focus that is undeniable. (Shoes/clothes, jewelry, sports, cars, entertainment, laughter, etc) That is not to say that every person is fully aware of what they are living for but patterns emerge and a careful analysis can show what we are at least attempting to live for.
So, let me offer you 10 possible things that your life is being spent on:
- Are you living for self?
- Are you living for pleasure?
- Are you living for the weekend?
- Are you living to make money? (And spend it?)
- Are you living to try and be happy? (Have a good time?)
- Are you living in order to try as many experiences as possible?
- Are you living for success? Fame? Power?
- Are you living for the next moment of what is fun?
- Are you living for your desires/your appetite?
- Are you simply trying to survive?
I believe that many people are very likely living in more than one of these 10 places simultaneously or else vacillating between some of them, and yet if we look objectively at these 10 we can also see a gaping hole. What about relationships? What about health? What about wholeness? What about spirituality? What about eternity? What about God?
The Bible tells us that we cannot serve two masters, we will either serve one or the other and in fact when we try to have two foci in our lives we end up catching neither one and may end up loathing one (or both, or ourselves) because of our divided focus/heart/life.
In my next blog post I will talk about how to change what we are living for, but for now, I simply wanted to challenge you to look at the decisions you are making and the possible behind-the-scenes reasons that you make those choices.
If you and I will turn away from the empty things that so many end up living for and instead focus on relationships, health, wholeness, spiritual and eternal life and above all the good and gracious God of the universe, our life will be so much better and we will finally discover purpose, meaning and fulfillment along the way.
Pastor Michael Johnson 