The US Declaration of Independence says among the unalienable human rights, given by our creator, are ‘the preservation of life, and liberty, and the pursuit of happiness’. While we might think the pursuit of happiness to be a somewhat selfish, and therefore unchristian trait, we find that the authors of the Westminster Confession of Faith had something similar in mind. They stated that the chief end of man (the meaning of life) is ‘to glorify God and ENJOY him forever’. The pursuit of enjoyment, happiness or pleasure is actually what makes life worth living, as those who feel they have no joy in life often turn to suicide.
The question though is; ‘what do we pursue our joy in?’ Our society is very good at telling us what to enjoy, and how to enjoy it. We enjoy money by saving or spending it. We enjoy work by climbing the ladder of success. We enjoy sex through any means available to us. We enjoy popularity through Facebook and Instagram ‘likes’, comfort through expensive houses and holidays, and status through cars and clothes.
But the meaning of life is not to enjoy the stuff God gives us (though we’re of course allowed to, with thanksgiving). The meaning of life is to enjoy God himself. So how do we do that? By meditating on Jesus’ love, holiness, peace, courage, forgiveness, beauty, mercy, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, majesty, power, generosity, splendour, and all around awesomeness, until it ‘explodes in our soul’. When this happens, we realise how infinitely more valuable ‘treasures in heaven’ (Jesus) are than ‘treasures on earth’. As Helen H. Lemmel’s famous hymn says:
Turn your eyes upon Jesus, Look full in His wonderful face. And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, In the light of His glory and grace.