Life: Why Live if You Have to Die?

Chapter 2: What Is Life Anyway?
Singer Peggy Lee’s best-selling record asks a question of life that expresses the feelings of many who live solely for the delights of this world:
When I was twelve years old, my daddy took me to the circus—the greatest show on earth. There were clowns, elephants, and dancing bears and a beautiful lady in pink tights flew high above our heads. As I sat there watching, I had the feeling that something was missing. I don’t know what. But when it was all over, I said to myself: Is that all there is to the circus? Then, I fell in love with the most wonderful boy in the world. One day he went away, and I thought I’d die, but I didn’t. And when I didn’t, I said to myself: Is that all there is to love?
I know what you must be saying to yourselves. “If that’s the way she feels about it, why doesn’t she just end it all?” Oh no. Not me. I’m not ready for the final disappointment. I know, just as well as I’m standing here talking to you, that I’ll be saying to myself, “Is that all there is?” If that’s all there is, my friend, then let’s keep dancing. Let’s break out the booze and have a ball—if that’s all there is.
Horace Bushnell, that great clergyman of the nineteenth century, said, “Every man’s life is a plan of God.” William James, psychologist and philosopher, said, “If this life is not a real fight, in which something is eternally gained for the universe by success, it is no better than a game of private theatricals from which one may withdraw at will.”
Life Is a Mystery
A mystery, according to Webster’s, is something above human intelligence. It’s a secret or an old form of drama in which the characters and events were drawn from sacred history. Life must be like the wind. Jesus said to Nicodemus, “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going” (John 3:8). That is a mystery.
The story is told of a minister, Dr. J.H. Jowett, who decided one day in England to preach on the text, “The Wind Bloweth Where It Listeth.” Upon studying the text, he realized that he knew nothing about the wind. He decided to consult a sailor about the actions of the wind.
When he went to the harbor, he approached a sailor. “Can you tell me something about the wind?”
The sailor looked as if he thought the man demented. “No.”
The minister pressed the question. “But you have been sailing the seas all your life. You must know something about the wind.”
“I repeat, sir, that I do not know anything about the wind. All I know is, when I feel the wind blowing, I raise my sails, and I am wafted to my port.”
Dr. Jowett hurried back to his study. He had his sermon.
Life is a mystery. We are not able to accurately foretell the future. Nor can we relive the past. The beginning of life is still shrouded in mystery, as is our ability to create life. Who made the sun so essential to life? Where did the elements in the soil come from, and who sprinkled them so evenly throughout land and sea? Who produced a magnificent carpet of green grass over all this great big, beautiful world? Who made the trees so strong, stately, and enduring? Who gave to humanity all the systems and processes that make it possible for him or her to be alive, inventive, and creative? Who made science possible? Who gave scientists the tools, materials, and human resources to work with? Who caused the rain and all other things that support life? What a mystery! But wait. We need to achieve another dimension. Faith is the doorway to our understanding of the mysteries of life.
Faith
What is faith? The apostle Paul gives us a clue. “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see” (Heb. 11:1). A little boy was crossing the ocean with his father, the captain of the ship, when they ran into a storm. The waves tossed the ship about like a cork, and everyone was stricken with fear. The boy sat still with his eyes directed toward a certain spot. He sat there quite unperturbed as waves dashed about the ship. Someone asked him if he were not afraid.
And he answered, “I have my eye on that little window and through that window, I can see the bridge. And on that bridge is my father. My father is the captain of the ship, and he has taken it through many storms.”
Oswald Chambers said, “Faith that is sure of God is the only faith there is.” When one uses faith to travel the highway of life, mystery and mysterious disappear.
Life Is a Gracious Gift from God
An old shoemaker said:
Life is what we make it;
Sweet or bitter, hot or cold,
As water slaking thirst, we take it,
Life is either ashes or pure gold.
Ashes or pure gold? When I was six years old, my parents gave me a “kiddy car” for Christmas. It was a bright red, beautiful, and loads of fun. Rather than pedal, I asked my brothers to push me because I wanted to go faster and faster. My selfish, self-seeking, self-centered choices led me right into a tree in which I very quickly totaled my parents’ gift on Christmas Day.
Ashes or pure gold? God gave us our life as a gift, hoping we would use our higher potential in becoming a whole, complete, productive person (pure gold). We were chosen, you and I, and entrusted to help our divine Father complete His plan of bringing His kingdom to earth as it is in heaven. That gift of life—so new, so precious, and so needed—has been abused, misused, and scarred many times that it is beyond recognition. However, there are those who accepted their gift and went forth to build a life.
Life Is a Race
The writer of Hebrews says, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us” (Heb. 12:1) (NIV).
One dreary day when we were in high school, I saw my brother run the mile race. He was leading on the final lap when, on the backstretch, he was intentionally spiked on the back of his leg. It seemed as if he dropped out of the race. Then something miraculous happened. With a bleeding limb, he suddenly surged forth with a speed that caused him to win the race.
“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Heb. 12:2). That’s what life is all about. It’s a race. It involves preparation, struggle, and reward.
Life’s a Journey
An elderly lady used to lead us in singing “Life’s Railway to Heaven”:
Life is like a mountain railroad,
With an engineer that’s brave;
We must make the run successful
From the cradle to the grave;
Watch the curves, the fills, the tunnels,
Never falter, never quail;
Keep your hand upon the throttle,
And your eyes upon the rail.
You will roll up grades of trial,
You will cross the bridge of strife;
See that Christ is your conductor
On this lightning train of life.
Always mindful of obstruction,
Do your duty, never fail;
Keep your hand upon the throttle,
And you eye upon the rail.
As you roll across the trestle,
Spanning Jordan’s swelling tide;
You behold the Union Depot
Into which your train will glide;
There you’ll meet the Superintendent,
God the Father, God the Son,
With a hardy joyous plaudit,
Weary pilgrim, welcome home.
Life is a journey. Every traveler has observations, experiences, and destinations along the way. The outcome of the journey is directly tied to the traveler’s decisions, choices, ambition, and level of responsibility.