“For to me, to live is CHRIST

and to die is gain.” (Phil 1:21)

This is such an intense verse. Go ahead and tell that to someone and see their reaction. That scripture wraps up what the true meaning of life is. There’s a purpose to all of our lives. And to find that purpose is the most important task in anyone’s life. Otherwise, let’s face it, you can go through life totally aimlessly.

Christ represents so MUCH of that purpose; He’s your creator, your salvation and redemption, He represents your passion and your conviction, and your happiness and fulfillment and so much more. Happiness comes from serving and giving your life away. Jesus said so, in Mt 16:24. Until we understand this, we’re going to struggle to be happy in life. Happiness comes from self-sacrifice, not self-gratification.

The reason why Paul could say that he was happy is because even through the dark times of his life, he was giving his life away to help others. Can you say that about your life? You’ll never be able to say that when you are living for yourself, because you’ll never find happiness in status, fashion, social media, salary or all forms of physical gratification.

Paul is saying that in order to live happy you must stay focused on your purpose and not your problems. “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain”.

You fill in the blank…“For me, to live is ______.” Is it a TV series? Sports? Clothes? Family? Friends? Career? You could fill in that blank with a lot of things that are not bad, things that are good in and of themselves. But nothing deserves the place of the One who created you and gave you your purpose of life: Jesus.

Would you take a moment to really meditate on your ultimate purpose and determine how you fill in that blank, because it will determine how happy you are in life. If you answer “money” or “success” or “pleasure” or “power,” you are going to be unhappy for most of your life. The issue isn’t whether there’s something wrong with those things; they just don’t deserve first place.

You weren’t created to make a bunch of money, then die and have it given away. God has a far greater purpose for your life. There is only one answer that leads to happiness: To live is Christ.

To get the life you really want, give your life away.