We Were Made To Praise Him

We were created for the sole purpose of praising God. It's really that simple. Our lives were made to praise God. Every fiber of our being longs to know God and praise & worship Him. He is so deserving of our praise that we cannot help but worship Him with all that we are.  We praise in word, in deed, in song. We praise with our talent, our time and our very lives. Our chief purpose is to praise Him. It is easy to forget, to get distracted or to put it off for another day, but we must remember our higher calling, what is truly important, and that is knowing the God of the Universe and living lives of worship.

Now I teach my kids that the reason they were made is to love God and tell others about Him so that we can bring as many people to heaven as possible. Heaven...our true home, our eternal home, our intended destination. God desires that all be saved and we are here on earth to reach out to the people our lives come in contact with; people who might not be reached if not for us. That is our real job. But perhaps, lives that are overflowing in praise to God, lives in awe of Him who holds the universe in His hands, who spoke it into existance, and yet who loves us so deeply that He gave his only son to save us, perhaps lives that are radiant with praise are a testimony of themselves. We need not try to tell others of our faith, our very lives will reflect it. It will ooze out of us and we will be hard pressed to restrain from telling others about the Great God we serve! Lives full of praise to God radiate God's glory, overflow with His love, extend Christ's caring hand, live out their faith & make a difference. How can they not? How can a life steeped in praise to God not reflect who He is? His peace amidst life's trials, His direction and purpose, His unassailable joy no matter what? Lives of praise...so simple, so natural, so powerful. Stop. Be quiet...each day. Take the time to think on Him, read about Him, praise Him. I believe lives will be changed...mine and yours.

Making a Life

There is so much to do each day. So many trivial things can fill your day making you essentially lose your day...each day, every day, leading up to a lifetime of not truly living, but just doing. Doing the mundane. It takes a concerted effort to pause and take some time to breathe, think, be quiet. It takes more of an effort to stop and smile, to fully listen with your eyes, ears and mind, and to plan what you actually want to do with your day, not just have to do. It takes courage to let go of some of the things  on your endless to do list and choose instead to do something worthwhile, meaningful. It doesn't have to be something magnificent. It can be simple, and quite often the simple is better than the grande, as long as it is something worthwhile to you. Play a game with your kids, laugh at their jokes, listen to their stories with full, undivided attention, go to their "restaurant", read a good book on the couch with your 10 year old, do a puzzle, take a walk and enjoy the sites, write a poem or write a friend.

It also takes a purposeful effort and introspection to look at your life and see what you really want out of it, how you want to live it, and what God intends for your life. It takes determination to set aside the mundane and chose instead those things that have more meaning and value. I think in slowing down, in discarding some of the trivial items, you can choose those things that make a life, truly a life and not just a list. And in doing so you will find peace, purpose, direction and a life worth living. Jump off the treadmill and make time for your life. You only have one to live.