There have been times during my interviews when I have been asked where I hope to be in 20 years. This has always been one of the more challenging questions for me for a variety of reasons, of which I will enumerate two.
First of all, though I am still young, and not that experienced, I do know enough to know that I really don't know that much. It is a pretty big world out there. Nobody knows what the future will bring. When these two factors are brought together, an endless number of possibilities are born. Thus, while I do have a general direction I am aiming at, I am very flexible and open to anything which may change my current direction.
Secondly, I am usually fairly timid when it comes to sharing my personal thoughts, especially if I judge the audience to be not in the same boat (or not on the same page) as me. In other words, though there are occasional surprises, in general, it has been proven that not many people are really interested in what I am interested in.
So, what am I interested in? What is the goal of my life? Just answer the question, right, without making such a big fuss over it! Well, patience dear readers. I felt that I should give some background information, first, before we dove into this meaty subject. But, now the time has come. Prepare yourselves. This may prove to be less exciting than you thought. Or, not, I don't really know.
I will now lead you through my thought process, and give the answer to this question at the end, as my conclusion. Sound good? (Sorry, it doesn't really matter whether it sounds good to you or not, because I am unable to make accommodations if you don't think this sounds good.)
The goal of my life is to live a life without regrets. In 20 years, or at the end of my life, for that matter, I want to be able to look back and say, Now, that was a great way to live my life. I lived it in the best way I could. Now, I'm ready to meet the Lord.
The question then becomes, what will produce this result? There is one thing that many people are pursuing that will not produce this result. What I have in mind is living a materialistic and superficial life, where the goal is to make as much money as possible and to live as high of a standard of living as possible. I think that this will not produce the desired result in the end. Afterall, you can't take your money with you when you die.
So, what can you take with you when you die? Frankly, not that much. I realized that my accomplishments, my family and friends, and even my body were all going to fade away. Eventually, when I meet my Maker, I will have nothing left.
So, nothing I have on the earth today is permanent. In fact, my whole life on earth is a sojourning. My existence on earth is transient. One day will come when none of the things I usually worry about will matter. Everything will eventually disappear. This is the way things are.
What is sure is that one day, I will stand before God and give an account for the way I have spent my life. Thus, it doesn't matter whether I was rich or poor or whether I accomplished much or little during my life, if it isn't something that is valuable in the sight of God.
My conclusion is that while I am on earth, I should be faithful to live according to God's will, as revealed in the Bible. On the one hand, I do work to make a living. But, enough is enough, and my life isn't merely for making a living. What my life is for is the accomplishing of God's desire, in order that my life would be considered valuable by Him. It is God's desire that men would be saved, so my goal, regardless of what I am doing, is to speak to people about the Lord. It is God's desire that men would come to the full knowledge of the truth, so my goal, regardless of how people perceive it, is to thoroughly study the word of God, that I may know the heart of God, and how to live my life accordingly. Then, when it comes time for me to shut my eyes, I can sleep peacefully, putting all my trust on the promises given by the faithful God in His word.
First of all, though I am still young, and not that experienced, I do know enough to know that I really don't know that much. It is a pretty big world out there. Nobody knows what the future will bring. When these two factors are brought together, an endless number of possibilities are born. Thus, while I do have a general direction I am aiming at, I am very flexible and open to anything which may change my current direction.
Secondly, I am usually fairly timid when it comes to sharing my personal thoughts, especially if I judge the audience to be not in the same boat (or not on the same page) as me. In other words, though there are occasional surprises, in general, it has been proven that not many people are really interested in what I am interested in.
So, what am I interested in? What is the goal of my life? Just answer the question, right, without making such a big fuss over it! Well, patience dear readers. I felt that I should give some background information, first, before we dove into this meaty subject. But, now the time has come. Prepare yourselves. This may prove to be less exciting than you thought. Or, not, I don't really know.
I will now lead you through my thought process, and give the answer to this question at the end, as my conclusion. Sound good? (Sorry, it doesn't really matter whether it sounds good to you or not, because I am unable to make accommodations if you don't think this sounds good.)
The goal of my life is to live a life without regrets. In 20 years, or at the end of my life, for that matter, I want to be able to look back and say, Now, that was a great way to live my life. I lived it in the best way I could. Now, I'm ready to meet the Lord.
The question then becomes, what will produce this result? There is one thing that many people are pursuing that will not produce this result. What I have in mind is living a materialistic and superficial life, where the goal is to make as much money as possible and to live as high of a standard of living as possible. I think that this will not produce the desired result in the end. Afterall, you can't take your money with you when you die.
So, what can you take with you when you die? Frankly, not that much. I realized that my accomplishments, my family and friends, and even my body were all going to fade away. Eventually, when I meet my Maker, I will have nothing left.
So, nothing I have on the earth today is permanent. In fact, my whole life on earth is a sojourning. My existence on earth is transient. One day will come when none of the things I usually worry about will matter. Everything will eventually disappear. This is the way things are.
What is sure is that one day, I will stand before God and give an account for the way I have spent my life. Thus, it doesn't matter whether I was rich or poor or whether I accomplished much or little during my life, if it isn't something that is valuable in the sight of God.
My conclusion is that while I am on earth, I should be faithful to live according to God's will, as revealed in the Bible. On the one hand, I do work to make a living. But, enough is enough, and my life isn't merely for making a living. What my life is for is the accomplishing of God's desire, in order that my life would be considered valuable by Him. It is God's desire that men would be saved, so my goal, regardless of what I am doing, is to speak to people about the Lord. It is God's desire that men would come to the full knowledge of the truth, so my goal, regardless of how people perceive it, is to thoroughly study the word of God, that I may know the heart of God, and how to live my life accordingly. Then, when it comes time for me to shut my eyes, I can sleep peacefully, putting all my trust on the promises given by the faithful God in His word.
Written on May 7, 2010