So many times people ask, “Why am I here on this earth?” “What’s my purpose?”
The answer to that question is in the very first chapter of the Bible. Genesis 1: 26 (NIV) says:
Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
The first recorded purpose for humanity was to take care of creation. I don’t see anywhere in Scripture where God rescinds that purpose.
Have a look at Psalm 148.
“Praise the Lord,” it says. It gives a list: heavens, angels, sun, moon, and stars — and tells them all to praise the Lord, to worship the Creator. Then it says in verses 5 and 6:
Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for at his command they were created,
and he established them for ever and ever—
he issued a decree that will never pass away.
Then the list continues, leaving nothing (and no one) out. Whether you’re a sea creature, land creature, bird, or bug. Whether you’re an old person or a young person or a child:
Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for his name alone is exalted;
his splendor is above the earth and the heavens.
What’s your purpose in life? To worship God. Worship motivates stewardship, reminding us to appreciate God’s natural world. By fulfilling the decree God gave us to care for creation, we enable it to worship God with us, resulting in a greater symphony.
Can you just imagine praising God with the gush of geyser, the haunting song of a whale, with a field of daisies, their faces to the sun? Creation praises God by its very existence, by being what God designed it to be.
How can YOU praise His name?
Exactly what I needed to remember right now — I was feeling discouraged by the fact of so much destruction going on. All that heaviness flees when I remember I have a purpose, and my purpose is not to save the world by changing other people, it’s to praise the Creator by lifting up my heart and tending what He gives me to tend. This is encouraging. Thank you.
I’m so glad I was able to encourage you. This post was born from my pastor’s sermon last week. It hit me at a deep level, and I’m glad the resonance carried through.