Page 9 - GOALS PDF

The Apostle Paul speaks of (1) abundant earthly life, and (2) eternal life

that comes after it for believers in God and followers of Christ. It’s not
‘either-or’ but ‘both-and.’ Now, even to us believers who strive here on

earth he warns us ‘to keep one eye on heaven.’ We are warned not to
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have only a worldly, 3-D perspective, but embrace God’s 4 dimension.

If we only focus on an afterlife, this can really drain us from any desire
to live pointedly for today. If we only focus on an afterlife, we lose all

relevancy of having (1) purposes, (2) priorities and (3) practices.

The Bible says, ‘life is but a vapor.’ One translation says it’s like ‘a

mirage.’ We sometimes don’t view life as being brief, but it truly is if it
is viewed in the over-all spectrum of time. I’ve reached an older stage

in life where I look back and wonder where it went. A song I sing talks
about life being like a spring, summer, autumn and winter – and it all

passes very quickly like the seasons of the year.

Besides, eternal life in itself does not give us a purpose. It’s not even

just a destination – a place where some people go. I discard testimonies
I hear about visions of heaven and eternity. Almost all of them talk

about the beauty of heaven, seeing a long dead parent or friend, or
maybe about seeing a dog they had. Some talk about angels.

But almost none mention God himself or his Son. Heaven is not just
about a PLACE, but a PERSON: the person of God. If God is omitted

from the equation, there is no heaven, at least in my mind.

I don’t think God gives most of us a ‘pre-determined purpose.’ I don’t

think he has written a script for us to follow, or has created us to be like
puppets on a string. But he has put both life, and eternal life, in our

souls and we are drawn to both of them. In the book of Job in the Bible,
Satan is quoted saying that man will give anything for his life – meaning

his life on earth.

This life is very important to most of us even if we believe in eternity.

The reports of there being so many suicides makes it evident that it

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