What God Expects of You

What does expect of me? That is a very prominent question consistently on my mind. Well...mostly consistently. You have undoubtedly asked the same question, though you may have worded it differently. "What is God's purpose for my life?" or "What is my path?" or maybe simply "What am I supposed to do?"

It's a fair question. And it's fair to ask God. I think He likes questions. We don't always like His answers, but that is probably because His definition of "answering" is rarely the same as ours. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

According to the Westminster Confession of Faith (written in 1646), the chief end (the purpose) of humans is "to glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever." So, one could argue that God expects me to glorify Him and enjoy doing it. This raises two questions.

1. Why should I think that this document has anything to do with my life? (After all, this isn't Scripture.)

2. If this does still apply to me, what does it mean to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever?

In answering the first question I'm not going to give any history lessons about who wrote it or why. That would probably be very interesting and useful, but I just don't think it's necessary. If we are arguing whether or not this document is Scriptural, let's just take a quick peek at the Bible.

I'm not going to share any specific Bible verses, just stories as a whole. Let's look at the very first story. God creates the world. This is a very interesting story. One day (or however time worked before days were created) God decided to create the world that we know. Maybe it was His first time. Maybe He created 27 worlds before this one. We don't really know. The fact is, on this particular "day," He created the world we know. Earth, Mars, the sun, moons, stars, galaxies, dinosaurs, ants, platypus, and a couple of humans (not all the same day).

You know that story, but perhaps you haven't thought of one thing. What was the original purpose of humans. Adam and Eve. Two sinless, naive individuals who knew no evil. Now, we often talk about how massive the universe is. We likely will never find an end to it. Much of our own planet will undoubtedly never be explored. There are stars we will never see, planets no satellite will locate, sea creatures we will never find in the deepest blackness of the ocean.

Adam and Eve saw the same world we see, without the sin, of course. They saw the stars and the whales and the dinosaurs and the crickets and dogs and cats and bees and cheetahs and mountains and trees and apples and the blue sky. So what was their purpose? They didn't have to tell people about Jesus, because Jesus had not come yet, and even if He had there was no one to tell. They didn't have to fight crime because if a crime was committed they would immediately have known who did it (that and there was no crime anyway).

What I'm getting at, you see, is that they didn't have a purpose in the way we think of having a purpose. God really only gave them two commands. Don't eat fruit from that one tree where the creepy snake lives, and enjoy this wonderful world I have made for you. Neither of those are quotes, but that is basically what He said, and it sounds an awful lot like that document those one guys wrote several hundred years ago.

Genesis records that Adam and Eve walked with God quite literally in the Garden of Eden. They went on walks. They chatted. God asked Eve what her favorite tree was, and she confessed that she couldn't get enough of the smell of the spruce. God asked Adam what he had named the tiny, black, flying insect, and Adam proudly proclaimed that he had named it a "fly." And then Eve said it was a terrible name and God laughed and then Adam laughed and Eve joined in and life was beautiful.

Life is not the same now, clearly. I can only imagine the pain Adam and Eve experienced from no longer experiencing the friendship they had with God. Adam would be out toiling in the fields, wiping the sweat from his forehead when he thought he heard God say something. He would turn excitedly, only to be met with utter silence. Eve would pick fruits from the trees and every day be reminded of the fruit that had separated her from the one who had given her life.

Adam and Eve still had purpose in life, but it was now a scarred purpose. This was the point in life where life became more complicated. There was now evil. There was confusion and God felt distant.

Time passed and the purpose in life changed quicker than the passing of seasons. First the purpose was to simply survive. Then it was to conquer. And then it was peace. And then it was to have a family. And then to be happy. And then to be rich. And then to be popular. And on and on. And here we are.

Here we are. Here I am, wondering what God expects of me. I wonder what major He wants me to have, and who I should marry, and where I should work, and if I should buy an Apple Blast or a Vanilla Latte from Caribou. Big questions and little questions that never seem to go away. And then I think of Adam and Eve. Before the Fall. And I think I have it all wrong.

You see, God's "purpose" for your life, what He "expects" of me, has nothing to do with any of these questions. These things are important, no doubt. So is spreading the Good News of Jesus and His death and resurrection. But that isn't your purpose. It's not my chief end.

God wants to walk with you. That's it. That's all. He wants you to put down your video games, your homework, your pride, your milkshake, your lifestyle, your friends, your family, your relationship, your cheeseburger and hold His wonderful, nail-scarred hand.

Life isn't always easy. It's not always fun. You and I aren't always happy. But then again, God never promised us happiness. Paul wasn't happy while he sat in prison. Jesus wasn't happy as he hung on the cross. Christians aren't happy as they are burned at the stake and skinned alive.

God could care less about happiness, that's why he never offered it to us. Instead, He offers something much greater. Joy. Joy is understanding that life is beautiful, whether you are happy or not. And if you have joy, you can glorify God and enjoy Him forever no matter the circumstance.

Joy is what kept Jesus walking toward Golgotha. Joy is what kept Paul and Silas singing in prison. Joy is what keeps missionaries in war-torn countries, and what keeps you catching snowflakes in our mouth as you walk home from losing your job.

So what does God expect of me? I think He just wants me to wake up in the morning, give Him all my troubles right away, get out of bed, and just live. Life has enough problems. We weren't created to worry. We weren't created to have any concern whatsoever as to what tomorrow would bring. I'm not saying not to plan ahead. I'm saying planning ahead has nothing to do with your purpose.

Your purpose in life is to spend every single breath you have glorifying God, and to love every second of it.