This Life is Just a Dress Rehearsal

I've been pondering an e-mail one of our account executives sent me. This is a portion of an interview with Rick Warren by Paul Bradshaw. I want to share a portion of it with you.

In the interview, Rick Warren said:

"People ask me, 'What is the purpose of life?' I respond: 'In a nutshell, life is preparation for eternity. We were not made to last forever, and God wants us to be with Him in Heaven. One day my heart is going to stop, and that will be the end of my body-- but not the end of me.

I may live 60 to 100 years on earth, but I am going to spend trillions of years in eternity. This is the warm-up act - the dress rehearsal. God wants us to practice on earth what we will do forever in eternity. We were made by God and for God, and until you figure that out, life isn't going to make sense.

Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you're just coming out of one, or you're getting ready to go into another one. The reason for this is that God is more interested in your character than your comfort; God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in making your life happy.

We can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that's not the goal of life. The goal is to grow in character, in Christ likeness. This past year has been the greatest year of my life but also the toughest, with my wife, Kay, getting cancer.

I used to think that life was hills and valleys - you go through a dark time, then you go to the mountaintop, back and forth. I don't believe that anymore.

Rather than life being hills and valleys, I believe that it's kind of like two rails on a railroad track, and at all times you have something good and something bad in your life.

No matter how good things are in your life, there is always something bad that needs to be worked on. And no matter how bad things are in your life, there is always something good you can thank God for.'"


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What a novel concept. Think of someone else instead of me! It's funny. If I look at the people in my small group, where I work, or my neighbors, it's so true. We've all been through something, just been through something, or have something coming up we will have to deal with.

Right now, for our family it's a house we just can't seem to sell. It's a burden. But, in the grand scheme of things, Not so bad. It could be much worse. We are healthy and have a Creator who loves and thus far has provided for ALL of our needs. It's about 100% certain that I will forget the fact that He will continue to provide for me and my family. My faith seems to have a short memory.

I love this interview with Pastor Warren. Such a unique perspective on this business of life. I believe that God is concerned with everything in my life, both big and small. But he is most concerned with my character and not my comfort. He is more interested in my preparation for life beyond this one where I am with Him in eternity than whether or not I get the new iPhone. How am I living to serve Jesus and tell others about my King? That's what it is all about.

Okay, I would still like an iPhone.

Jack