The Nature of Life

The great metaphors of our society are found in the movie theaters. Years ago, a friend of mine called them "Daydreams from Hollywood." Not a bad description. Most movies have an incredible ending that is designed to make things right. When the protagonists in the movie, "Jurassic Park," were surrounded by Velociraptors ready to dine on them, suddenly a T Rex entered the scene and killed all of the raptors. Hollywood does this because they want to sell their product. We all want to believe that the ending is going to come out okay, and when we pay to see the story we want that result. Reality has a way of bringing this sort of thinking to a close; things don't always turn out right. The Great King who built the Taj Mahal was jailed in the last decade of his reign by his own son who wasn't willing to wait to replace him after death. King David of the Bible was challenged by his own son, Absalom, but beat the challenge back; same problem, two different results. There is a happy ending sometimes but not as often as the movies portray; an unhappy ending is more likely. However, in the great theater of life, God promises us a happy ending. If you are willing to allow yourself to grow into the maturity that God plans for you, you will end up in paradise with God. This process is not going to take place in a short period of time or even in one lifetime. Look around you at the state of the world currently, and you can see what a daunting task lies before us. Things may likely get worse before they get better. What can we do about it? There are three rules that God has placed before us and if we follow them, we will ultimately succeed. The first rule is the Golden Rule. To make this rule work we must adopt the second rule which is to love ourselves and our fellow human beings equally. If we don't love ourselves and each other, the Golden Rule will not work. The last rule is that we have to stop preying on each other and taking advantage of each other for our own gain. To abolish selfishness may be the hardest task that we face. If you are optimistic about this one, a short hop on the freeway will teach you the lesson you need to learn; this one will be tough. To recap the three: (1) follow the Golden Rule; (2) Learn to love yourself and your neighbor; and (3) live unselfishly. To do this by yourself means that others will take advantage of you. However, I have good news for you. Most of what we want is like fast food, tasty but non-nutritious. If you learn to live within your means, financially, emotionally, and with due regard for the others in your life, you will be healthier and happier in the long run. I recently saw a biography of Michael J. Fox. His life may not be perfect, few people live perfect lives, but it is full of good examples of how a person can deal with fame, adversity, and the challenges of life. He has a book out, and I would suggest that you read it. Here is a role model that we all could profit from studying.