July 22nd - Acts 20:24

Paul said: “My life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.” What’s the purpose of your life? We all have to agree that this is an excellent question, but most of the time we may be busy with our work, family, church, hobbies, sport and a thousand other things so put off asking it. The apostle Paul recognised that his life was under threat and he might not have much time left. Paul was clear that his life’s work was to communicate the good news about the wonderful grace of God revealed in Jesus. What an amazing ministry he had! His leadership, teaching and example were of incalculable importance and we are still deeply conscious of our debt to him. In all honesty our roles are unlikely to have the same world-shaking significance as his. However, each of our lives is important and we need to make sure that we use our time well. This life isn’t a rehearsal for anything. It’s the real thing and we need to ensure that we are giving our best. I have the privilege of mentoring a number of people and our conversations are all focused on helping my mentees to reflect on the direction of their lives. Not everyone will be able to have a mentor, but it is valuable for all of us to have such highly focused conversations with someone from time to time. The busyness of life can very easily push such times of reflection to the margins, but they need to happen so it is wise to set aside time to ensure that they do. Question How would you describe the purpose of your life? Prayer Lord God, thank you for the gift of my life and for every opportunity that you give me to serve you. Amen