11 Days: Sample Day 1

For our lives to have true purpose, we must look to a source that is both personal and transcendent.

We all make plans every day. Some plans are short-term, like planning our route to drive to work or making a grocery list. Others are more long-term, like deciding a career to pursue or a person to marry. Forming plans is one of the things that make us unique as humans. We don’t operate according only to animal instincts or mechanical laws of nature; we set goals and we work toward them.

But there are times when we long for a greater purpose. Our individual plans may come and go, but we want to know that life itself has a purpose and is heading somewhere meaningful. In other words, we desire a higher purpose.

Christianity teaches that life does indeed have such a purpose. In the Christian understanding, God created the universe and everything in it with the goal of demonstrating his glory and love to his creation. We humans are the pinnacle of God’s creation, and he has given us the responsibility to reflect his glory in the world. That is our ultimate purpose—one that gives substantial meaning to each of our lives.

Consider This

• When in your life have you felt the most satisfied, content, and purposeful?
• When in your life have you felt discontent and aimless?

Take Action

Spend some time really reflecting on your answers above. What was going on in your life in these different seasons? What characterized these moments? When you look back at times when you felt aimless, can you see a higher purpose in play?