Come Alive and Live
Imagine you had nowhere to live and struggled to find even the basic necessities of life. Then one day a message came with a letter from a wealthy billionaire informing you that he wished to adopt you and make you his heir. The messenger had instructions to take you to the billionaire’s home while he was away finalizing all of the legal paperwork to adopt you and amend his estate officially. When you arrive at the house you’re overcome by the beauty and splendor of this estate. You enter and immediately find yourself in a warm and inviting room filled with comfortable couches, and chairs, and lit with warm glowing lamps. The walls are covered with dark wooden bookshelves filled with leather-bound books, and the floors are adorned with hand-woven silk rugs. On one of the tables is a note, left by your new father that says, “My beloved child, this is now your home. Please treat it accordingly while I’m away. I believe you have everything you need.”
Day by day you sit in the comfort of that room and its plush chairs, staring out the front windows wondering when your new father will return and you can enjoy everything his estate has. Weeks and months pass, as you watch the lawn become overgrown and weeds invade the flowerbeds. You wonder why your new father would allow these things to happen, why he didn’t make some provision for the upkeep and maintenance of his home and grounds. While you certainly are thankful to be comfortable, warm, and dry in this beautiful room instead of living out exposed to the elements, you do get a little bored at times wishing there was something entertaining or enlightening with which to pass the time. And occasionally you wish there was a little more to eat and drink than the cheese, crackers, and ice water set out for you each morning on the coffee table. At night the darkness throughout the large house can be unnerving, especially if there are storms raging outside. Then one day your newly adopted father returns. You run out the front door to meet him, excited to finally be off with him on an adventure. But this is when everything changes.
You tell him how thankful you are for his return and how you’re ready to begin your new life as his son, how bored you’ve been, how tired of cheese and crackers you’ve become. That’s when he looks at you with confusion and compassion on his face. He asks you, “Haven’t you been enjoying all the food stocked in the kitchen? Haven’t you read all the books in my library? Haven’t you visited the game room, the bowling alley downstairs, the indoor swimming pool, or the indoor basketball court? And why is the lawn overgrown? Didn’t you find all of the equipment in the barn? The mower, the edger, the tractor? Why haven’t you kept things in shape and ready for my return?” In shock, you explain that you’ve never ventured beyond the first room you entered all those years ago. Tears come to your father’s eyes as he smiles a sad smile and embraces you. “Poor child, you haven’t known the truth of all you had been given and entrusted with. I left you everything you needed to care for this home and enjoy it as if it were your own because it has been from the very first day. We will enjoy it together now, but I wanted so much more for you, and expected more from you in the meantime.”
When we enter into New Life in Christ, we are brought from utter spiritual destitution to the abundance of God’s Kingdom. But most Christians are content to simply sit at the doorway and wait when God intends that we not only begin to live into our responsibilities as heirs of the Kingdom, but to enjoy the meaning, purpose, and significance found in fulfilling those duties.
Many Christians are not living in Christ. They’re simply existing in Christ. The work we are given by God to do is not toil. When we move and live in the ways we were created for we truly come alive in Christ. This work doesn’t give us salvation, in fact, our salvation enables this work. And through that work we not only find purpose, but the world sees Christ. It’s never too late, you’re never too old to begin to find the significance that comes from living your Divine Purpose.