THE BIBLE
Can we trust a book written 2000 years ago?

EYEWITNESS
Did the writers of the New Testament get their picture of Jesus right?

GOD - MAN
Is Jesus really God?

RESURRECTION
Did Jesus really rise from the dead?

RELIGIONS
With so many religions, why Christianity?

SUFFERING
If there is a God, why is there so much suffering?

TRINITY
Understanding the Trinity.

SCIENCE
The complementary nature of Science & Christianity.

FORGIVENESS
What it is and why it matters?

GUIDANCE
How does God guide?

REPENTANCE
What it is and why you can't get to heaven without it.

BORN AGAIN
What does it mean to be converted and born again?

SAVING FAITH
The kind of faith that will get you to heaven

ASSURANCE
Can I know for sure that I am going to heaven?

TRUTH
What is truth and does it matter?

MORALITY
Does it matter how we live? A Christian view of morality.

THE CHURCH
God's vision for his family, the Church. A call to the churches of the new millennium.

PURPOSE
How can I find a great purpose for living?

IDENTITY
Who am I; Finding my true identity as a human being and as a child of God.

SELF-ESTEEM
How can I feel good about my self? The Christian basis for proper sel-esteem.

LIFE AFTER DEATHChristianity's Hope & Challenge.

THE CROSS
Why did Jesus Die? What the Bible says about the Cross.

Grace
The importance of grace in the New Testament.

A purpose that satisfies the deepest longings of the heart

Robert Louis Stevenson once declared that "an aim in life is the only fortune worth finding." To not only have an aim in life, but to have found that purpose for which one was ultimately created, gives a deep and lasting sense of peace and direction to life. David could confidently declare, "The Lord will fulfil his purpose for me" (Psalm 57:2; 138:8). This is not fatalism. It requires active cooperation on my part and the surrender of my will to that purpose*. It may not be an easy road, but the knowledge that God is working out his purpose in my life and that this purpose is going to have great lasting value, not only for myself, but for others whose lives God can touch through mine, far surpasses the fleeting pleasures that this life alone can offer.

I was impressed by an article in Decision magazine, an interview with Nurse Aileen Coleman entitled "Serving God among the Bedouins". She has lived In the Middle East for 50 years. Aileen Coleman established the Anoor Sanatorium for Chest Diseases in Mafraq, Jordan, together with Dr. Eleanor Soltau. She concluded the interview with these words:

I sometimes think of the Scripture that says, "Those who honour me I will honour" (I Samuel 2:30, NIV). I would never look for honour from anybody on this earth, but it seems to me that over the years, God has given us the privilege of serving Him. That is the greatest honour.

This is home. I was 25 when I came to the Middle East, and now at 75, what would I do if I moved to the West? I'd be bored to tears! I plan, as long as my health permits, to stay working in the Middle East. I'd like to die here.

In contrast, there is great sadness in the picture of Lord Byron sitting in a little Italian town, writing in his diary, "I go to bed with a heaviness of heart at having lived so long to so little purpose." Unfortunately, that is the story of too many. Jesus offers something far better and much more satisfying. David Brainerd, who exercised a very fruitful ministry to North American Indians in the mid-18th century, said, as he lay dying at the age of 29, "I declare that for all the world I would not have lived my life otherwise." He also declared, "There is nothing in the world worth living for but doing good and finishing God's work, doing the work that Christ did. I see nothing else in the world that can yield any satisfaction besides living to God, pleasing Him, and doing His whole will."

Dr. James Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family, was asked in an interview what he wanted written on his tombstone. He replied:

When I reach the end of my days, a moment or two from now, I must look backward on something more meaningful than the pursuit of houses and lands and machines and stock and bonds. Nor is fame of any lasting benefit. I will consider my earthly existence to have been wasted unless I can recall a loving family, a consistent investment in the lives of people and an earnest attempt to serve the God who made me. Nothing else makes much sense.

*I have explored the question of how we may find the will of God for our lives in the booklet How Does God Guide?

Foreword

How can I find a great purpose for living?

Life with no meaning

Purposes that are too small

A purpose that fits with reality

A purpose that satisfies the deepest longing of the heart

A purpose that enables us to face life's greatest difficulties

A purpose with lasting consequences

A purpose that involves a choice

Conclusion

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