RICH LIFE SERIES: 2 | TRAVEL LIGHT

Each of us strive to make our lives richer – capture moments of joy, experience new things, and spread love to people we connect with. This is what this series is all about: despite all your major problems, you can still make your life richer and better. Kapit, kapatid, it will be a fun ride. :) NOTE: IM A WORK IN PROGRESS«« Perfection not achieved yet. :)

RICH LIFE SERIES: 2 | TRAVEL LIGHT

What are you chasing after in life?

Might be the best job possible... or the highest paying opportunity...

You might be chasing after a relationship... or a desire to have one...

Or you might just want to really be the best of who you can be.

What you chase and aspire in life becomes your priority – you live for it, and you give it your best shot. We all try to get to our goals as fast as possible, because then it will give us room for more goals to set, and more goals to achieve. What are you perspiring for? Why dedicate this much time to what you do?

For many years, as a man I would often listen to the call of COURTSHIP. I started this illusion of having a girlfriend ever since Grade 1, and I must tell you I cried a lot of times (and made other girls cry as well) already. My sole purpose in life was to be somebody else's knight in shining armor. I reach that point most of the time, and I give it my all. But somehow, God would allow these relationships to end, and leave me with nothing.

I know of a friend who really wanted to be the top of her class. She tried hard and studied well, and towards the finish line she also started committing her life to God... and then she graduated with honors, but was not the top of her class. It is a pain for her seeing things happen before her eyes, and knowing that despite giving it all to God, her goal isn't the one she had achieved.

There is nothing wrong in desiring and pursuing. The Bible welcomes us to lay down our requests to God with prayer and thanksgiving (Phil. 4:6). But the Bible is also clear on goal-setting and getting there ––– as Proverbs 16:9 said, we plan our way but God directs our steps. Planning what we want in life is key, (Luke 14:28) for who builds a tower without first checking if he has enough money to build it? The second most-read verse in Bible Gateway (Jer. 29:11) gives God's promise that He knows the plans He has for us, giving us strength, hope, and a good future... 

But often, when we set our eyes on the wrong goals, we get disappointed when we fail or falter. What is clear though is that God has better plans for you, so set your eyes on the right goal.

It may sound too holy, but I believe in all the things we do, we should fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith (Heb. 12:2). As we run the marathon of life and target what we hope for, never lose sight of that One Being who fixed His eyes on you when He had to go through a terrible death and save us by paying the price. 

So when you work, work to give glory to the One who gave you the strength and talent.

When you search for love, know that He first loved you, and that He's holding His Best for your heart.

When you fear or worry about your future, rest in the assurance that He knows the plans He has for you.

Not to say that you have to stop pursuing your dreams and start pursuing serving God... (but what if that was your calling? hahaha) The Lord also commanded us to make good use of our talents. Just as Jesus shared in the parable of the five talents (Matt. 25:13-30), we are also expected to enrich the "talents" that were entrusted to us. If you just try to commit everything you do to the Lord and not to men (Prov. 16:3), your plans will be established as promised. The key is to drop all your baggages and commit all your steps to God. 

I know I have not committed my everything to the Lord. He became my Second Best because I ran after what I desired for in life ––– a perfect relationship. God woke me up by taking it away from me, and in the darkest times of my life I realized He is everything I would ever need. Had I set my eyes on Him, I could have done better. Now I realize a woman's heart must be so hidden in God that before any man sees her, they should first dive deep into God. In the same manner, the goal for me as a man is not to get the right girl at the quickest time possible –– the goal is to be a man after God's own heart, so much so that when God's Best arrives, I am a strong and enduring man of God.

My friend is now a college graduate as has recently passed the examinations needed for her goal. After years of questioning why God did not listen to her cries for her desires, all she had to do was fix her eyes on Jesus –– and He saw her through. It was a blessing to see how God was able to bring her closer and closer to what she prayed for, and at least today she knows God hears her, and He hears her very well.

True excellence in whatever we do is measured not by how many things we've brought to the finish line. Did we run at the right track? Did we reach the right goal? In everything we do, whether for work, love, studies, life and beyond, know that we are expected not to leave behind a mediocre performance. Matt 6:24 says that no man can serve two masters ––– so clear it with your heart as for whom are you doing all these things. If you let Him reign in your life and be the true Captain of your soul, you will experience true and lasting excellence.

RICH LIFE ADVICE:

To make your life richer and better, you have to travel light. With too many baggages –– wrong goals, encumbering desires that slow you down, pains of the past, uncertainties of the future –– you can easily lose sight of the everlasting. Drop them all off and run towards your Refuge, Strength, your Consistent, Never-Failing, Ever-Loving God. Your goals and plans are welcomed by God, and you are expected to do your part in reaching these plans. Just remember, fix your eyes on the right goal, and He will bless your way towards this desire. The true richness of life will depend on whether or not you learn how to be satisfied with less baggage and more of your Creator.