Chris Howlett

Investment Plan

“A man has made at least a start on discovering the meaning of human life when he plants shade trees under which he knows full well he will never sit.” — D. Elton Trueblood

How many people have invested in your life? Parents. Teachers. Youth ministers. Coaches. Mentors. Pastors. Friends.

A guest preacher came to our church when I was young. He was the former pastor of the church where my father was serving at the time. It was a relatively small church in rural Warren County. Dad introduced him to the congregation just before he spoke, sharing all his accomplishments since he left that church, which were many. When the man stood up to speak he said that he felt like a turtle on a fence post: if you ever see one you know he didn’t get up there on his own.

We are all like the turtle. We didn’t get where we are on our own. Someone helped us. Someone along the way invested energy and effort into our lives. Ultimately, God is the one who invested in us and made it possible for us to live life and experience hope and fulfillment. Our lives are God’s gift to us. How we live our lives are our gifts to God and others. How are you investing your life?

What Is Success?

“To be what we are, and to become what we are capable of becoming, is the only end of life.” -- Baruch Spinoza

Success means being faithful to God’s purpose for you. For some people, this means using the talents and gifts God has given them to develop new products that make life easier for others. These people will discover significant material rewards for their talents because these talents line up with what society values. Others have talents society does not value near as much. Consider the person who is especially gifted at encouraging elderly persons having difficulty adjusting to life after a spouse dies. Although this person is using their talents and gifts just as, if not more, effectively than the earlier example, society simply does not value older adults (at least not Western society). Great financial gain does not issue forth from exercising these gifts and talents.

However, that is a successful life. Being the person God made you. Too many people, striving for what the world says success is, completely avoid success because they deny their basic identity as a child of God created in the image of God in order to serve the purposes of God. Financial reward may be in the mix for such people, but happiness will always remain elusive.

The challenge for those who want to be true to themselves and true to the God who created them, is ignoring the advice and direction given to them by the world and follow their hearts. God has a wonderful promise along these lines: “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart” (Ps. 37:4 ESV). If you are faithful to God’s purpose for you, you will discover true success in life.

Got Problems?

“The person who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.”  -- Chinese Proverb

Got problems?  Join the club.  We all have areas of our lives that are difficult; relationships that aren’t working; jobs that can be wearisome; and emotional baggage we’ve carried for too long.  Sometimes a problem can be overwhelming, stifling the joy of living, weakening our ability to adjust to life and conquer our challenges.  However, problems do not have to define our lives.

Got a problem?  Start picking up some stones.  Do something.  Don’t be a victim.  With God’s help you can overcome any obstacle, move any mountain, traverse any valley.  But, you’ve got to start today!  Always keep this in mind: God is greater than all of our problems combined! Jesus makes this very obvious in Matthew 17:20: “For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.”