Why Are We Here?

While ISIS is seeming to cause havoc and trauma, Christians being killed for their faith know that they are living and dying for something greater. They have found that real joy comes from God, even in tragedy. In our comfortable world in America, what can we learn from this unwavering faith?

Photo by: Rickie Ross

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By RICKIE ROSS

Think forward to the end of your life and look back.

Do you think you had a good life?

Was it a lot of fun?

Did you do what you loved?

Perhaps the most important question might be, “What have you done that is truly lasting?”

With everything that has been happening with ISIS, addressing this topic in hope that we may be able to realize why Christians in the Middle East are doing what they are doing seemed extremely fitting.

This world is filled with constant reminders that you, yourself, are the most important person in your own world and that you need to do whatever brings you the most joy right now.

I think the problem is that humanity, as a whole, is living for itself in a world that was created by God to be lived for Him.

He is righteous, holy and glorified and He sustains the universe, all for His own glory, and if we choose to ignore that and live however we want, will we be not only lonely and unsatisfied, but we will be living totally apart from our created intention.

I don’t think we should expect anything less, however, from ourselves.

We were simply born selfish, not by our own accord, and we want what seems to make us happy.

In my opinion, however, there must be a solution to the problem.

There must be something out there worth living for that is greater than ourselves and that is lasting beyond this life.

I cannot believe, or even see logically, that we have evolved into what we are today and are now living for nothing but this life in a cycle that eventually ends in death.

What is the point to life?

When I started college this is a question I really began asking myself frequently.

I fretted over and wrestled with the simple question of why we are here, and I speculate that many of you have asked, or will ask, this question as well.

Everyone wants to feel like they have accomplished something and that they have made a positive impact on this world, but why?

Tom Brady is an all-star quarterback for the New England Patriots who has won four Super Bowl rings and is arguably one of the best quarterbacks in the game, but even he admits to not knowing the answer to this question of life.

“Why do I have three Super Bowl rings and still think there’s something greater out there for me?” Brady said in a “60 Minutes” interview in 2010. “I mean, maybe a lot of people would say, ‘Hey man, this is what it is. I have reached my goal, my dream, my life. …’ Me, I think, God, it’s got to be more than this.”

The reality is that most of what we do in this life does not last.

Brady will leave this Earth one day and his Super Bowl rings and fat contract will be left here to his family.

He will even be remembered as one of the greatest to ever play professional football, but 50 years after his retirement that is all people will say about him, that he was one of the greats.

There must be more to live for than that.

There must be something we can do that is lasting and worth living for, and I believe that answer has to be Jesus.

The answer is not religion; this life is not about going to church as much as possible or donating to as many charities as can be found.

The reality is that in the back of our minds we all believe in something and we all long to be a part of something truly greater than our own little worlds.

God does last forever; He is infinite.

In my opinion there is no other option than to live this life for Him, being completely satisfied knowing that we belong to Him because He loves us.

Christians being killed by ISIS members are dying for something that lasts and for something they believe in.

The Bible can be believed because it has proven to be true.

According to the Jeremiah Project, it does not contradict itself, as do other religious books.

Christians dying for their faith know they are living for something greater than themselves.

They have a higher purpose, and I believe everyone does.

I believe that there really is more to life than this earthly life, and I encourage you, reader, to read and find out for yourself if you believe the Bible to be true.

If you don’t believe the Bible is true, ask yourself why.

Research and come to an understanding of what the Bible really is, not what other people say it is.

We were created for a larger purpose than ourselves.

Jesus really does satisfy and through Him comes a reason to live and a hope for something greater.

When all is said and done, He really is all we need.