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What is the meaning of life? Why am I
here? And where am I going?
Or another way to put the question is, "Is
there really any meaning at all?"
Who hasn't asked this kind of question?
There may have been times, back in the old days,
when most folks just had no time to
wonder. They worked themselves to death just trying to stay alive.
Sort of a contradiction, isn't it? But even then, I know there
must have been times late at night (or early in the morning) when they
happened to wake up and just stare at the ceiling, or maybe out the
window, and wonder what it all means.
Am I here for a reason? Is there
really a mind and purpose behind all the vast universe? If I find
myself powerless to change my life, or some aspect of my life, is there
someone or some thing that I can turn to for help? Is there really
a God, a Creator, a Keeper of the universe?
One good thing about hard work is that it
can occupy your whole being. Physical labor is like that in a way.
I can throw myself into clearing a property of debris and old growth, or
work to repair an old building and just work away for hours and days and
even months with little more in my mind than the next tiny goal of
throwing this tree on the burn pile, or stripping the paint from this
last bit of wood trim.
And though the mind may not be directly or
consciously focused on the bigger issues, while the body is fully
occupied with hard work, it seems as though some part of the brain or
the inner self is able to resolve some of the really hard questions, or
at least able to understand in some way that there is meaning and
purpose and a point to the whole of life.
If I can clear this bit of woods and get
that old shed painted before cold weather (and rain) sets in, then I
will be closer to my part of the bigger picture. I still may not
know the specific will of God for the whole human race, but I will at
least know that I am closer to being who and what I am supposed to be —
at least for now.
What if a man dies before he learns the
bigger secrets of life (and why do we keep calling them "secrets"
anyway)? Did he still accomplish what he was "supposed" to do? Do we
have to know the whole thing before we can fulfill our part in life?
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