What’s My Destiny, Mama?
From Emperors to Popes continued...
Today’s Verse
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.(Ephesians 2:10)
The Life in Front of Us
Forest Gump was one of my favorite movies of all time. In one scene, Forest is sitting at the bedside of his mom who is dying of cancer.
He asked her, “why are you dying mama?”
“It’s my time. It’s just my time, now don’t you be afraid sweetheart. Death is just a part of life. Something we are all destined to do. I didn’t know it, but I was destined to be your mama. I did the best I could. ” she replied.
“You did good mama,” Forest said.
“Well I happen to believe you make your own destiny. You have to do the best with what God gave you,” his mama said.
“What’s my destiny. mama?” Forest asked.
“You’re going to have to figure that out for yourself. Life is a box of chocolates Forest. You never know what you are going to get. I will miss you Forest.” She said, as she smiled and held his hand for the last time.
What is Our Purpose in Life?
“…it was only early in the nineteenth century that writers began to write directly about ‘the meaning of life.’ The most significant writers were: Schopenhauer, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, and Tolstoy. Schopenhauer ended up saying that the meaning of life is to deny it; Kierkegaard, that the meaning of life is to obey God passionately; Nietzsche, that the meaning of life is the will to power; and Tolstoy, that the meaning of life lies in a kind of irrational knowledge called “faith.”
In the twentieth century… held that the meaning of life is to live authentically or (alternatively) to be a guardian of the earth.(source).
What is your purpose and destiny?
A recent cultural call has been to “live your best life now; to live authentically.” This came on the heels of teaching that we must find our purpose in order to reach our destiny of fulfillment.
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.(Romans 12:2).
In our Western culture we typically equate our “purpose” with a vocation. We tend to think that what we “do to earn a living” equates with what we are passionate about. This has been the message for years now. We have an entire generation of young adults who grew up pursuing this as their goal.
And we’re taught that when we discover our passion, we will become fulfilled by pursuing it. We will then live authentically by not denying ourselves.
“And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”(Luke 9:23).
In the Untied States today we live in a culture that has afforded us the luxury of choosing any vocation we want. But this isn’t something that has been available for all people for all time.
I doubt many people who work the fields; clean out septic tanks; scrape up dead roadkill; or mop germ infested hospital floors would likely say they are “passionate” about their job, or it’s what they always wanted to be when they grew up.
Our purpose and destiny can’t logically be tied to work. Would we say that the janitor at the school has sold himself short by not going after his life’s dream of being a basketball player? Who would take out the trash? What about the women who scrubs toilets and mops floors for a living - has she missed out on her life’s calling? Are they both failures? Will their children be ashamed of them because they did such “lowly” jobs in life and always lived poor?
When you retire from your job, is your life now meaningless?
Yuval Harari is an influential World Economic Forum guru. He is a globalist professor who has captured the minds of many powerful elites. In a recent video he compared the technological revolution with the industrial revolution and how technology will soon transform human purpose.
“The biggest question maybe in economics and politics in the coming decades will be what to do with all these useless people?
I don’t think we have an economical model for that.
My best guess -and it’s just a guess - is that food will not be a problem, with that kind of technology you will be able to produce food to feed everybody; the problem is more boredom and what to do with them and how will they find some sense of meaning in life, when they are basically meaningless, worthless. My best guess at present is a combination of drugs and computer games.” (source).
He obviously isn’t referring to himself, or his audience, as he sees the problem being a “them” issue, not an “us” one. According to the globalist mindset, this will be the future for many of us who are in the “them” category. Their plan for our destiny is to just sit in a dark hole somewhere, eating bags of manufactured feed, playing video games, and staying drugged. Welcome to your destiny.
This is your best life now.
At this point you are probably thinking, “who is this guy? I don’t need to listen to him.” And you’re right. You don’t need to listen. But this is the mindset of powerful people who think it is their purpose to control the future of the earth and all humanity. It makes me wonder what the cultural call will be in the coming decades? “Conquer the next level?”
Do Not Fear Them
He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision.(Psalm 2:4)
Do we really think this is what God had in mind for us as a people? To sit around high, fat, and playing games all the days of our life? Will we be the new zoo animals for future elites to stare at?
If we gauge our destiny - our purpose - by our culture’s loudest and wealthiest voices, very soon, you truly will be useless…at least in the world’s eyes. Even today you may already be a “worthless” human if you are retired, or disabled.
Our value in the world’s eyes is gauged by our productivity. Once we no longer produce anything, we are no longer of value. We become disposable. This is how “those in charge” think about our purpose. And that purpose leads to our destiny: death.
Forest Gump’s mama had it right. We are all destined to die. That is our ultimate destiny. To that we may ask, “what is the point to life then?” If we believe the world, there is really little point at all for most of us.
But fear not. They aren’t God. They are not our Creator. Or as my seven year-old self would say: “They aren’t the boss of me.”
God is.
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.(Ephesians 2:10)
This is what He says about our purpose.
Our purpose in this life is to do good in all we do. That’s it. It isn’t complicated. We don’t need to go to seminars and pay thousands of dollars to discover it. We don’t have to have exceptional IQs. We don’t need PhDs. We don’t need to have walls of awards, or cheers of approval. We are just to live a life of goodness, serving others. A life pleasing to God. A life of walking each day in the Spirit, not in the flesh.
“Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”(Romans 8:8)
I know it isn’t very climactic feeling. There aren’t fireworks going off or musical crescendos filling the air as hearts soar to the majestic sound of a glorious purpose. In fact, it may seem rather disappointing. It may be kind of depressing. Especially if we have been taught all our lives that we are special. We are magical. We are unique. We are important. We are the center of our universe. That is how many children are raised these days.
Do you think that Harrari would say this about you and your kids?
To God, the one who made you, you were so important that He gave his only begotten Son to save you. But to the world, you are unimportant and useless.
So in the words of my husband, “We are all-important, and not important at all.”
In the World
You have one purpose and value to the world: to contribute your energy and time to work and produce something. Once you can’t, or won’t do that, you are expendable and worthless. In this regard, abortion and euthanasia makes perfect sense. Much like dead-heading a rose bush. Death is our final destiny.
Our egos tell us we want to matter. We want to be valued and make a difference. We want our lives to count for something and have significance. We crave people’s approval and praise.
That is why there is this concern from those at the forefront of the technological revolution. They realize that the tools they are creating will make human endeavors unnecessary. So if our value is in what we produce, and we make a world where we no longer produce things, the logic follows that we are no longer valuable or useful. That is our destiny - if we give our allegiance to the world. Good luck.
In Christ
In God’s world, it’s different. Our purpose is to do good in everything we do. Not so that we can obtain eternal life, but to please God, to love others, and for the reward we will receive in His Kingdom.
“His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’”(Matthew 25:21).
We are to spend our entire lives serving others and doing good. Our destiny is life, not death. We don’t have to struggle with it. We don’t have to work hard to figure it out. It isn’t meant to be an ego stroke. It is simply the truth. Do good works. That is your purpose. And the outcome of that is that it glorifies God. It gives God a good reputation.
Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.(Colossians 3:23-24).
Whatever you do
Today if you are mopping a floor, or changing a baby diaper, or solving a critical water shortage problem…no matter what it is you spend your days doing, work at it with all your heart. Because whatever you do, you do it first for the Lord. We live a life of service. And a day will come when we our works will be examined.
“…waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works. Declare these things; exhort and rebuke with all authority. Let no one disregard you.”(Titus 2:13-15).
Our final destiny is our blessed hope.
To be continued…
Today’s Question
Verses to Explore
“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness…”(2 Timothy 3:16).
If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your[a] life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.(Colossians 3:1-4).
Today’s Prayer
Father, I pray today that whatever I have in front of me that my heart is set on you. I pray that every attitude, and every action is pleasing to you. If I don’t please you in what I do, then what is the point? I love to bring joy to others. I want to spend my days in kindness. And I know that the only way to serve you is to get my mind off myself, and think about how to bless someone else. Maybe it will just be a smile or a kind word today. I’m so thankful Father that my worth isn’t found in what others think of me. I’m thankful that our judge isn’t the mother-in-law who despises us; the child who is ashamed of us; the wife who cheated us; or the boss who fired us. I’m so very grateful that you gave all of us the simple purpose of being good and kind. I’m thankful that you give us your Holy Spirit to have the sincere ability to do that. I look forward to that day when I can look at you and hear you commend me for doing good in this life. help all of us today to rest in our purpose and just be good and kind in all circumstances. And through it all I pray it brings your name glory and honor and praise. Amen.❤️
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