We are works in progress

If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. (1 Corinthians 15:19 NIV)

 We all know that there were copious amounts of persecution directed at the first Christians, to whom Paul was writing. He meant to encourage them that their brief lives here were not the final word or the whole story.
 Life is often compared with school. I can remember grumbling along with many of my classmates about being stuck in school when we wanted nothing more than to get on with our lives. It was merely a training ground, an opportunity to garner knowledge and skills that we could apply later.
 I now believe that we are not supposed to peak in this school we call life. This life is only a stage. Yes, we are to gain all we can from it, but we don’t have to worry that we have somehow missed our destiny if all we have to show are some scars and hard-won wisdom.
 What, then, are we supposed to accomplish here? What does God want or expect from us in this life? What is our purpose? This is how Solomon stated it: “Everything you were taught can be put into a few words: Respect and obey God! This is what life is all about.”
 We are works in progress. —Phillip Lynch [1]

 Failure is only the opportunity to begin again more intelligently.  —Henry Ford

[1] Activated Vol 14, Issue 1