Saturday, July 02, 2005

Made To Last Forever

We live in a culture where nothing is “made to last forever”. We’ve become accustomed to products designed for short-term use: cars, computers, clothes—whatever the product, we expect to replace it sooner or later with the latest update or newest fashion.

We see this in our culture’s concept of relationships, and even of human life.

Friendships die as families move; and sometimes are still-born because often-relocated people become reluctant to make new friends.

Marriage “till death do us part”? It’s still in most marriage vows, but is it voiced with sincerity? It seems there are a lot of “dead” people walking around—they have parted from the relationship so death must have already occurred, right?

The “sanctity of life” is an increasingly outdated concept as the aged, infirm, or others who are seen as a “burden” become expendable.

Now comes Rick Warren saying you were made to last forever. “This life is not all there is.” On page 30 of “What On Earth Am I Here For?” Warren says, “The most damaging aspect of contemporary living is short-term thinking."

To grasp this concept and its implications for your life today (whatever the date is when you are reading this), you almost have to consciously reject the creeping secular world-view and embrace the biblical concept that this life is not all there is. We have an eternal destiny for which this life prepares us.

Now, let’s ponder these questions:

1. Warren asks, “Why do you think God made us to last forever?” Answer that question if you like, or at least challenge the secular noise bombarding you daily and ask, Do I think God made me to last forever?”

2. Think of some things in your daily life that are affected when you fall into “the most dangerous aspect of contemporary living” which he identifies as “short-term thinking”. (finances, relationships, time-management, etc.)

3. What if you grasped the concept that God’s purpose for your life was not just for this earthly life, but for eternity. Would it make any difference in how you see God’s purpose for you in this life?

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