At a street meeting held by a Salvation Army group, a young man who was a drummer in the band reflected on his past life and how it had changed. "Before I was converted," he said, "I used to drink a lot, but I don’t drink anymore. Before I was converted, I used to swear a lot, but I don’t swear anymore. Before I was converted, I used to womanize, but I don’t do that anymore." Then, he added, "Since I was converted, about all I do is stand on this street corner and beat this old drum!"
A lot of people–both before and after conversion–are like the young man who felt that about all he did was beat the drum. That translates into many lives as "get up, go to work, come home tired, and start the day all over again," or "do the carpool, do the shopping, get to the store, make sure the kids have their lunches, start all over again."
Francis Schaeffer, an apostle to the intellectuals of the last half-century, wrote, "Man, made in the image of God, has a purpose–to be in relationship to God, who is there. Man forgets his purpose and thus forgets who he is and what life means." And when you forget, you begin to think that your life is like a coffin with both ends kicked out, an endless, meaningless routine of drudgery and work.
The Bible says that you were made in the image of God. That gives definition and purpose to life, and beyond that it contends that God has a plan for your life–which takes away the uncertainty of where you are going and how you get there. A sense of purpose in life begins with a relationship with God, recovering of the sense of purpose that was lost when sin came into the world and separated mankind from God. Without God you are like an airplane pilot who has lost communication with the tower, like a traveler in a storm who has lost sight of the landmarks, and like an aged man with Alzheimer’s who cannot remember where he lives. You are disconnected, and that’s why life seems to be a journey without a destination.
So how do you come into a relationship with God? The first step is to acknowledge you need this relationship. The Bible says that all of us have gone astray, as sheep without a shepherd. Most of us have no trouble admitting that we’ve missed the path to purpose and fulfillment in life, so we quickly say, "Yes, this is what I need."
The second step is to understand that God sent His Son to bring us into that relationship, to show us the way back. So when you allow Him to become your Lord and Savior, you connect with God. In responding to the questions of the disciples, Jesus explained, "Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?" (John 14:9).
The next step is to find out how God wants you to live–His blueprint, His guidelines for purpose and fulfillment. You find this in the pages of the Bible, the age-old textbook on living.
Coming home to the Father allows Him to give you purpose and guidance so you can love, live and enjoy life. - Resource reading: 1 Samuel 17