Senior Pastor, the Chapel Scott Chapman

What difference does my life make? Will it matter that I walked the earth? What legacy will I leave? Will anything in the world be better because I was here? At the end of it all will my life have mattered. These are questions that all of us ponder at times. In moments when we gather ourselves and reflect on days gone by and our years yet to come, we wonder about our contribution to the world, God’s kingdom, our family and just in general.

Most of us are insanely busy and lead very full lives. We work hard, spend time with our kids, go to church, Facebook our small group, cut the grass and oh yes, have a moment in the day to actually relax. All that activity can lead us to sometimes feel like a gerbil on a wheel running as fast as we can, but going nowhere. Strange, isn’t it? Sometimes the busier I am, the more I wonder about my impact.
Most of us find out that life can happen all on its own. It moves on day after day like a huge river waiting for no one. Our lives flow along with it, moved by its currents. To change course takes intentionality, energy, and perseverance. In other words, it’s really hard; that’s why most of us don’t make many changes, or at least big ones.

We grow up, we get a job that leads to other jobs, a house that leads to other houses and we get married, which usually leads to kids. By then, who has time to think about life? It’s simply moving too fast. Change at that point is hard, because we have made so many commitments and have accumulated so many things that need to be maintained. Everything seems tied together, dependent on one another. We fear that if one block is pulled out, everything else could come crashing down. In those moments, life can seem like a long game of Jenga. In those instances, it can feel like life is happening around us or even to us. We can feel trapped, fenced in or pinned down.

It is then that we usually wonder where it’s all going. Does my life have meaning? Does what I do really matter?

These are the times we decide to change course, to get in shape, by a sports car, start a business, have an affair, relocate to a new city or immerse ourselves in new diversions and hobbies. The problem is we usually find that these changes don’t really change much of anything, at least in a good and lasting sense. At best, they rearrange the elements of our life in a different order that’s more fun for a while – until it starts to feel like everything else. At worst, we grab at things that promise more than they deliver and shipwreck our lives. In those seasons we find out that there are far worse things than being bored.

God gives us a different choice. He gives us the opportunity to partner with Him in building His kingdom on earth. This sounds far-fetched at first, but when we stop to realize that God made us in a particular way, with gifts and skills and talents to use, we understand our potential to build an eternal legacy with Him.

The highest and most noble use of our lives is serving God. It is the only way our life can have eternal significance. The Bible tells us that at the end of our life, we will stand before God to give an account of all that we have done. On that day, two questions will be central. “What is your relationship with my Son?”, and “What did you do with the life I gave you?” Our first answer determines where we spend eternity. Our second answers affect our experience of eternity. While, I don’t know everything that means, Scripture is pretty clear that God rewards these who are faithful to Him. All of our accomplishments that don’t have eternal significance will pass away (1 Corinthians 3.11-15). On that day, the positions we’ve had, the money we’ve earned, the accolades we’ve accumulated – all of them will become meaningless. On that day, all that will matter is our relationship with Jesus and the things we’ve done to serve God.

How can we do that? Does it mean we all have to start churches or become missionaries to Africa? Probably not, but what it does mean is that we should take a look at how God has made us and figure out how to serve Him with our life. Some of us are very relationally-skilled, others are skilled with their hands, others have talents in leadership and technology. Whatever your gifts are – put them to work for God, help Him build His kingdom on earth.

I think one of the greatest hindrances – particularly for men – is the fear of boredom in church work. They imagine it to be the tedious planning of activities, endless prayer meetings, and hours spent with challenging, difficult people. The truth is, serving God is the greatest adventure there is. It demands boldness, wisdom and courage. It is an opportunity to leverage who you are to make a real difference in people’s life for eternity. How cool is that!

How are you making the most of your life? What are some of the most impacting ways that you have served God? What is your biggest fear associated with serving God?