The ultimate philosophical discussion of what this life is all about
By Andrea Hall
Copyright May 2014
All rights reserved
Contents
Acknowledgements
Introduction
Chapter 1
The concept of life; what is it all about?
Chapter 2
Do we even have time to think about the Meaning of Life?
Chapter3
What does the Meaning of Life Mean to each of us?
Chapter 4
Where do we go to find the Answers we need?
Chapter 5
Is our perception of life determined by our Social or Cultural Conditioning?
Chapter 6
Is what we perceive to be reality in this world the Real and only Truth?
Chapter 7
Is One’s Perception of life subject to change?
Chapter 8
Finally time to find the True Meaning of Life!
Chapter 8
Summary
Chapter 9
Wake up! See the true Meaning of this Life
Chapter 9
Summary
Chapter 10
This Life is not the True Reality
Chapter 10
Summary
Chapter 11
To overcome this World is the way to True Life
Chapter 12
The Joy of knowing True life once we find it!
Chapter 12
Part 2
Conclusion
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank my Heavenly Father Almighty God for giving me the wisdom, knowledge and understanding in order to discuss and consider at length this significant and important concept.
I thank all members of my family including my parents, two children and loved ones for helping me to learn the lessons I needed to learn, in order to write this piece of work.
I thank all those who I have loved and all those who have loved me in this world. I am grateful and appreciate all the things that I have been through; I believe those things have helped me to understand the concept of the meaning of life, by helping me to see the ‘bigger picture’ and relevance in all things.
I continue to appreciate all the love and encouragement given, as I continue to experience this journey which we call ‘life’.
I always enjoy considering and discussing such concepts as these and I genuinely hope this piece of work brings goodness, peace, light, hope and truth to many.
Everything I have written, is based upon my opinion and perception of what I believe to be the truth. It’s what the meaning of life has come to mean to me, as a result of my personal journey and experience so far in this world.
Introduction
The meaning of life; what is it? Who of earth’s mere mortals hasn’t asked this question or considered the thought, at some point in their lives? Has any ordinary human person ever lived and not considered the concept of the meaning of life?
I’m guessing that the average person may tend to believe that this physical world is the real world and the real life. I imagine that some people may even believe that this mortal earthly life is all there is. We always hear that saying, ‘you only have one life’.
The true meaning of life is a discussion that could go on and on forever. So many people have come and gone and have not found the answer. Some I believe did find the answer.
In regards to those who are yet to find the answer; if someone had said they had actually found the true answer, would anybody actually stop to listen to them?
If an individual could prove that they had found the definitive answer, then surely everyone would want to listen and hear about it! But would anyone choose to act upon what they had actually begun to say, even if what they had said, actually made real sense?
The true meaning of life; everyone certainly has their own opinion about it. I guess most of us don’t really consider the meaning of what our lives actually mean, on an everyday basis. We just accept that it is, what it is and we just try to make the best of it.
We all feel like this sometimes, wondering what this life is all really about. Is there some valid point to it or is there no real purpose to it at all?
I would have thought that everybody who has ever existed in this world, would have held some point of view in regards to this question, at some moment in their lives.
Basically I believe that it’s only natural that one would desire to know the answer to such questions.
You would expect that once a person is capable of some level of reasoning and intellectual consideration, the question may have cropped up at some stage in their mind.
Perhaps most people may hold a valid belief regarding this concept or some may decide not to entertain a thought about it at all?
I guess it would depend upon the belief system held by a particular individual? Perhaps the way one looks at life may depend on the way they view all the things in their life.
As well as questioning the many things that we have experienced and been exposed to during our lives; the main question we all think about is “what is the true meaning of life.”
I do believe that it is one of those questions that most people would like the answer to, if they believed that somebody could give them the real answer.
At times of stress we may find ourselves screaming “what is the point” or “why has this happened to me?” or “why is this happening?”
At times we can all feel like we have nowhere to turn and no one to give us the immediate answers to the questions that run through our minds.
We can at times feel lost and exasperated; we feel like there is so much going on in our lives and we don’t even really know why we exist in the first place.
It may be at times like these that I have begun to think to myself surely there is a reason why I am going through all this.
There has to be some significance to why I have experienced certain things in my life. There has to be a reason for the world itself and everything in it, to exist at all?
Just as the sun, moon and stars have a purpose, surely life itself has a purpose in itself. It is a concept that I have pondered over throughout my life.
I believe that it’s something that may overwhelm the mind until one decides to put the idea of it aside or find some meaningful explanation for one self.
Although most people may not think about the true meaning of life every minute of every day, it is something that can intrigue or overwhelm the mind at certain points during our lives.
For some of us we may have chosen to explore many fields of thought to try and find an answer, whether that answer be scientific, philosophical, factual, logical or via our own personal beliefs.
We may have conducted endless research on the internet, read a variety of books or basically tried to make sense of ourselves and the meaning of our lives through a variety of outlets and sources of information.
We also use our relationships, friendships and day to day associations with others to try to find an answer to our purpose in this world and the meaning of the life we live in this world.
We use our daily experiences which we encounter each day to try to comprehend the true meaning.
It’s not a concept that we can easily choose to ignore, no matter how we may attempt to remove the topic from our minds. We may try to put our thoughts surrounding it to one side and simply choose to get on with our daily lives.
Surely anyone with any degree of intellect with some level of soundness in their minds must have pondered this subject, even if it is something that they cannot truly understand or comprehend.
Just as all things have a purpose in themselves and all things that exist in the world have a natural purpose; then surely us as individuals we must have a reason for being too.
From the moment we are born we begin to experience each day, no day is ever exactly the same, we can never bring back the events of the day before or rewind ourselves in time to the previous day.
We never know what events may manifest itself as we live to see the next day.
Maybe when we experience tribulation in our lives or we lose someone we love, we may consider or say to ourselves “What is this all about?”
The events we experience can really hurt us sometimes, we may not understand it and we have to work hard and stay strong to get through it.
Sometimes when the unthinkable happens or we begin to face certain challenges or hurdles in our lives, we may say to ourselves; “What is the meaning of it all?”
We don’t always have an immediate answer or an explanation about why some things happen.
We may feel at times that we have nothing and no one to turn to and nowhere to find the answers that we may need.
There is so much to consider when we think about why some people believe life has a meaning and why some may believe it has no meaning at all.
On the other hand some people simply go about their business and go through life without considering anything in terms of the philosophical; they simply believe that everything is the way it is and nothing has any real relevance or meaning to it.
Can being happy and content make us feel that our life has more meaning? Do we take the meaning of life for granted, in that we believe it has no real purpose at all?
Some people would believe that there is a reason and purpose in all things. Others may believe that the whole point of life is to be happy and that’s it.
Most would probably argue that there is no wrong or right answer; it may be personal and depends upon an individual’s personal perception.
One thing we can’t argue about is the fact that the meaning of life will have a different interpretation, depending on what you think is important and whether or not you believe that this life is all there is.
How we attach meaning may influenced by whether or not we consider ourselves to be religious, philosophical or spiritual?
Or perhaps it depends upon how happy or satisfied we actually are in this world, during our lifetime?
Maybe the simple fact is that due to the distractions and false interpretations which exist in this world some of us have simply been looking in the wrong place?
If we can’t find a conclusive answer, then we usually just try to get on with it, no questions asked! Maybe some of us are yet to come across an answer that we can actually understand and relate to.
Maybe we just haven’t taken the time to really look into it and ask the right questions; however, who do we choose to ask? Perhaps having tried researching certain belief systems, we are yet to find some answer that appeals to our own belief system and way of thinking.
I’m also guessing that some people through no fault of their own, may hardly find the time to seriously consider such concepts, due to being preoccupied with the stresses and concerns of everyday life, myself included at one time or another.
On a more serious note, perhaps some people have even actually lost their minds as a result of being unable to comprehend and cope with the not knowing factor? Not knowing why they were born, who they truly are and what their existence is really all about.
Going through this experience and having a physical existence, without ever truly understanding or knowing why, may have actually pushed some over the edge.
For this reason perhaps some of us have simply decided not to worry about such phenomena.
It could be considered by some as a negative topic, that should simply remain hidden and undiscussed in the realm of the unknown; something one has no need to divulge into on a regular or daily basis.
On the other hand maybe some of us are just so happy and satisfied with the life that we lead in this world, that we don’t want to think about the more serious aspects of what this life actually means or why things exist as they do.
Some may think life is what it is, end of!
On the other hand no matter what we think about it, it is a concept that can never be short of interesting consideration and discussion. It’s definitely a subject that will always intrigue the intellect of many and conjure up meaningful dialogue.
It’s like a million dollar question; a puzzle we need to piece together. Does anybody know of someone who has returned to tell the tale?
Why do some people believe that life has no meaning whatsoever? Why do some people believe that this life is all there is and others believe that this life is unreal but is rather like an illusion, in preparation for the next?
There are many areas to evaluate in regards to why certain individuals think the way they do, in regards to trying to answer this vital question.
The possibilities of different schools of thought are somewhat endless. I believe every individual will adopt a belief that appeals to their own individual sense of reasoning.
Each individual will adopt an understanding that will appeal to them, according to how they view the world and their own selves within it. Maybe some beliefs are constructed by tradition and culture.
I personally believe in a Creator, because that appeals to my level of reasoning. I believe that everything and anything has to have had a beginning, something had to come first.
And something, cannot come from nothing. So there has to be God, there had to be a first. Everything had to originate from somewhere.
Even if there had been a ‘big bang’ that big bang couldn’t just happen or come about in and of itself, unless it came about by Almighty God.
It had to come from somewhere. And that somewhere had to come from something; to me whatever is first that’s the beginning, the beginning being Almighty God.
In my way of thinking, I could never accept that anything came into existence or just evolved on its own other than by the Word of God! That just couldn’t and would never ever make any sense to me. So there has to be a Creator of creation, the Creator having been in existence first, having always been Eternal.
The existence of God is a belief I have, which will and must always prevail, in order for me to understand and make sense of anything, including the meaning of life in this world.
My belief is that there is a Creator and as I believe there is a Creator, then that illustrates that everything was created for a purpose.
And if everything was created for a purpose, then that proves that this life itself has a purpose and some meaning.
So my understanding is that all and everything came from God and all things have some meaning, including life itself. The understanding is found when we go back to God.
I will elaborate further on this throughout the course of this work. You simply need to seek and you will find the truth and you will find the real meaning of life; it all starts with an open heart, a heart that is seeking the truth, will eventually be able to discern and see the truth.
The heart is the way to all truth; I believe that’s where you will find your way to the real meaning of true life beyond this world.
I have written this work as I believe I have found the answer to this question. I believe I have found the truth and that this truth has literally set me free. I would like others to also find the freedom in their hearts and minds that I have found.
I am grateful that I have been able to write this work as I believe if it helps to set even one person free, then it will have given my own life in this world more significance and meaning.
Although the work begins with a full philosophical evaluation of this concept; it concludes with an explanation of my beliefs in regards to the concept.
Chapter 1
The concept of life; what is it all about?
The true meaning of life; what is it? Where can we find the correct answer? Surely the true meaning of life can be found, if we truly desire to find it.
Just as there is a logical purpose to all things, there must be a logical explanation for the purpose of life itself?
It could all be so obvious. We ask ourselves “Surely this life can’t be all there is?”
Maybe we have never seriously desired to find the answer to this question before, or given it any real thought or consideration.
Perhaps the real answer is very simple; so simple in fact that up until now we may have actually missed it!
Maybe we might think that if we had been awake or alert enough, we would have already seen it or heard the truth about it by now.
You could be thinking to yourself, maybe if I continue to search for it, I may actually find it.
Or perhaps you believe you’ve already found the answer and as a result of your finding you have become a fulfilled and contented person, feeling confident in the knowledge of what this life is really all about.
Yes that’s it! You have found the answers you need and are simply reading this deliberation because you enjoy intellectual thought provoking discussion! Who knows your reasons? Only you know how you feel.
However, for those who still desire to find the answer, but are yet to find it, there are probably a multitude of reasons why you feel you are yet to find an answer that appeals to your sense of understanding of life’s most intriguing question.
Some of us may have tried to find the answer to life’s ultimate question, but maybe the answers we have found so far, just haven’t appealed to our own sense of rationale and reasoning.
So we have put all of our thoughts about it into a basket, put that basket aside and have simply decided to stop worrying about it.
Have you ever thought that the answer may be right in front of us? Perhaps literally appearing right before our eyes, but maybe we are just too mentally blind to see it; maybe we have been so caught up in the temporary things of this world, that we haven’t yet seen anything?
We may not want to admit that we have been far too busy occupying ourselves with all our problems and what we had considered to be more ‘important stuff’ to have actually begun to think about stuff like this.
We are so attentive to our daily concerns that we fail to make time to consider the ‘bigger picture’. We say to ourselves, “That’s just the way it is right now. Life is real hard. I’m so busy. I’m tired. I have a lot to do!”
We may think to ourselves that we have no choice but to make ends meet; we have a responsibility to look after ourselves and our families, so who can blame us for having no proper time to think?
There is so much going on in our lives and so much happening. There are many things we need to deal with. We get stressed out, occupied and distracted with our immediate concerns.
We begin to feel that we have no choice but to do our best to survive in this competitive fast paced ‘rat race’ world. The other solution is to be left on the social scrap heap!
Of course it is evident that not everywhere in the world is like a ‘rat race’, I know that some places on this planet are slightly more laid back, I have witnessed this myself when I have taken the occasional holiday.
However, I would assume that this rat race culture has become the general norm and the current state of affairs for most ‘civilised societies’ of the modern age.
However, regardless of the type of society we live in, or how much we have to do, this question regarding the true meaning of our existence will occasionally enter into our minds and may literally begin to bother us if we choose to let it.
“Rise and shine” we say to ourselves and along comes another day! Everything is rush rush rush! “I’ve gotta do this, must do that!” we exclaim.
We may try to the best of our ability to fit everything in and sometimes we will win and sometimes we lose and life goes on.
Sometimes it’s literally bed time before we are able to relax and say to ourselves “Hey! I wonder what this life is really all about.”
I guess it’s more likely that we will be more concerned with the events of the day that is about to pass or the day to follow, rather than think about what the sum of the total of our days lived during this earthly existence, actually mean.
As a result of having to survive and meet our daily commitments, we try our very best to meet all of our daily responsibilities, whilst fulfilling our basic lifelong objectives.
It can be exhausting enough at the best of times, before we even begin to throw such deep considerations into the mix.
Perhaps some people would feel that one shouldn’t waste time pondering over the questions that they may never be able to answer; life should be lived to the full, enjoyed and that’s it!
Is it a waste of time, to spend our time considering this concept, when we could use that time trying to achieve more during our physical lives?
Some may feel there is no answer, that life itself has no real meaning to it at all.
Some of us, may decide to surrender to the thought of never knowing the truth and agree to leave it in the realm of the unknown.
Do we decide to conclude that we will never be any closer to the real answer, regardless of what we actually do to attain that answer?
As well as fulfilling our everyday duties, maybe the vast majority of people have got so caught up with all the gadgets and modes of escapism in this world, that they literally feel unable to spare the time to really ponder the reason for their existence.
We have all been very distracted at some point in our lives. It has become the social norm to distract ourselves with whatever discipline or outlet we can find. Technology has literally taken over our lives, whereby we find we have no time to think or physically interact with people.
As well as being occupied with endless leisurely pursuits, sometimes we can become so bogged down with all the modern day stresses and demands of daily life too.
Eventually it becomes the rule that the last thing we find time to do, is actually think about why we are actually here. We just haven’t got the time to actually let it bother us it seems.
In my opinion, it’s a strange world we live in. If we begin think about it, we can see that we always manage to find time to fill our days with so many things, but we actually fail to find time to realise and think about what the collection of all those days we live through mean.
I do think how we use our time, or how our time is literally taken from us by all of life’s tedious distractions, could well be a factor that has stopped most of us from really finding the answer to life’s most significant question.
What question or consideration can be more significant than the reason why we are actually here?
Or what can be more important than understanding why we are experiencing any of this? If we don’t know why we are here and why things are the way they appear to be, then how can we make any real sense of anything that we do?
How can we truly understand who we are and how can we begin to understand others? How can we see a purpose in anything? The questions and considerations in relation to this vital concept are perhaps limitless?
I find that although we may find so much other stuff to distract us and take up our time, it is one of those questions that will remain and continue to surface in our minds from time to time.
It’s like something we cannot totally ignore, no matter how we may choose to try and ignore it. Our thoughts about it may simply come and go, whilst we try to get on with our lives.
Even when we may find the time, eventually we may come to the conclusion that we wouldn’t know where to begin looking for the answer to such a pressing question.
Where would we choose to begin looking, even if we really wanted to?
There is so much out there, everyone thinks their answer is right. And if one answer is right, then everybody else must be wrong. Does that entail the notion that everyone else has simply got it wrong?
We can’t all be right, when everyone has a different explanation and theory.
We usually don’t always know where to begin looking, or which source of information we should turn to. Some may choose to turn to religion, but which religion?
Some may choose scientific, historical or evolution based theories. Some may look to philosophy, others may look to nature.
Every field of thought has a different theory, often based on a thesis and conclusion. Some beliefs are based on faith. How would we know who or what to believe and which road to choose?
Some of us, may accept the notion that as we have no definite idea or real clue; we may as well just forget about it, give up and dump the whole idea of worrying about it altogether.
We put it straight into the middle of the pile of the other one million and odd things, that we may need to think about one day. However, we know deep down that the day of really giving ourselves time to apply our minds to it with real authenticity may never come.
All thoughts surrounding it are usually quickly abandoned and reside amongst the other stuff we can’t seem to figure out. We say in our minds, “I will think about it, but just not today.”
Others may think, “Why should I think about this stuff now? I need to make the most of my life now, whilst I’m young.” I’ve certainly heard this comment before.
I also hear “I need to work hard now whilst I can and make loads of money, so I can retire early and enjoy the good things in life.”
Some may even say “If this life is all we have, then why should I waste any time worrying about the meaning of it? May as well do as I please and make the most of it, before my time is up!”
We make the decision to attend to other things, the daily necessities of life, which require our urgent and immediate attention.
We just have too much going on.
As well as doing all the things we need to get done, can you also imagine the endless number of excuses that we all come up with?
There have been times in my life when I have been exactly like this myself and at times still get lost in my immediate worries. I understand that we can all get so bogged down with all our endless concerns and at times it seems like it can’t be helped.
Why it’s all happening, can at times begin to feel completely irrelevant. It’s hard enough getting through the day without trying to decipher why it’s all actually happening!
Chapter 2
Do we even have time to think about the Meaning of Life?
We may use our entire lives attending to worldly things before we even begin to take time out to think about why we are actually in the world! We may be right at the end of our lives, before it may enter our thoughts.
We may actually enter and leave the world knowing nothing of any real significance about the real purpose of it.
I can imagine somebody saying: “How can I waste time thinking about why I’m here, when I need to get things done? Right now I have this assignment to finish.”
I’ve also heard, “I’ve got to meet this deadline today or how will I get that promotion I’ve been waiting for?”
Perhaps you’ve said the following at some point? “What’s the point of worrying about the meaning of life, when right now I’m going to be late for work?” Or “Right now I need to get the kids off to school!”
We literally feel exasperated trying to achieve the things we believe we need to do.
I’m sure we may have all shrieked the following at one stage or another: “Right now I desperately need more money. I’m really in need of a pay rise.” Or “I need a new job. I need a second job. I need to start cooking the dinner. I’ve got to go and pick up the kids. I need to catch up on this show!”
The list of things we need to do and want to do every minute, of every single day of our lives, is literally endless.
First we have all the stuff we must do. Then we need to find the time to do what we need to do, then we want to relax and do the stuff we like to do!
There is always something else to do and when we don’t have anything to do, we would still rather lay around and do nothing than ponder the most significant question of all.
Once we get all the boring stuff out of the way and get some chill out time, we want to spend every minute doing the stuff we love to do.
At times we seriously do need some me time, or we may feel like we are literally going to explode at any second! This is perfectly understandable.
However, no one can deny that they may have wasted some time during their lifetime; time which could have been used to finally make sense of things.
We basically always have something else we have to do or want to do, before we find the time to think about why we really do anything.
I believe there are times when we would rather avoid using our spare time to think about why we ourselves, or anyone else does anything in this world.
In other words, we would rather waste time then ponder the significance of why we have actually been given that time at all.
How strange that we are happy to use that time and may even be ungrateful for that time at certain points in our lives, by never ever thinking what our time in this world actually means.
Surely that time, as well as all of our physical faculties must have been given to us for a reason?
Even one day in this world, must have been given to us for a purpose. Despite this, we don’t ponder on the fact that another day has passed us by; a day we can never change or get back. Every day the same mindless cycle continues. We never really think about it enough.
We go through the motions of daily life, everyone having their own personal experience of it, their own personal journey.
Each day may be slightly different or completely different compared to the one before. Along comes another day, a new day; the one that has passed before has gone forever, never to be seen again!
Some days we consider to be, what we would call ‘bad days’. When we have more pleasant easier days, where all has gone our way, we consider this to be a ‘good day’.
We barely stop to consider the events of a particular day in relation to what we may have actually learnt from it, opposed to it have been simply good or difficult.
Surely it’s how we choose to use those days, as well as how we decide to interpret those days, which will add to our understanding of the actual purpose of the total collection of them?
Each and every day our time is passing us by and most of the time we may have no clue as to what any of it all really means. So we choose to fill our time; we may try to find fulfilment, or avoid having to think about it altogether.
We make plans for now and preparations and plans for the future. We try to fill our time to create our own meaning of what our lives mean to us.
We try to live our lives to the fullest. We may use our achievements and relationships to try and accomplish a purpose. We use our accomplishments and interactions with others, to try to find some meaning to it all.
We do as much as we can within our power, to try to experience life. Whether that means travelling, recreation or fulfilling our hopes and dreams; we do all that we can to try and make sense of things and make a place for ourselves within the world.
Chapter 3
What does the Meaning of Life Mean to each of us?
Is a good appreciation of life’s blessings more important, than wondering why things exist as they do?
We all think about the meaning of life in different ways. Some people think about life’s true purpose and meaning and some others choose not to. They may decide to ignore it and reject the contemplation of it altogether.
It seems that depending upon your interpretation of the significance and purpose of all things, the meaning of life in this physical world, will have come to mean very little to you, or a whole lot.
An individual’s perception and opinion regarding the meaning and significance of life, may be influenced by the environment and social conditions that a person has been exposed to.
It could all depend upon how you grew up and how you were ‘brought up’. Although some people may choose not to deliberate on it at all, for some it is a thought worthy of some consideration.
It’s a personal choice, we decide how much we want to think about it and whether or not we want to think about it at all.
Everybody has the right to make that decision for themselves. We all as individuals have the ability to live our lives as we choose to and decide for ourselves the meaning of the significance of that life.
Nobody can force anybody to think about it, or stop anyone from wondering about it. I do believe how we feel about it, may determine how we conduct our day to day lives.
Surely it will influence how we look and feel about our lives and other people?
A person who has grown up in the western world may think that life is simply about working hard to fulfil one’s goals and dreams. Basically living life to the full ensuring that one fulfils his or her life to its full potential.
Certainly some people would consider life to be about being happy by achieving all one desires to achieve, as well as completing all of one’s ‘worldly ambitions’ if one has any.
The mentality that prevails within my own society is governed by the theory that we should attain the best in life and use all of our time to be the best that we can be; we should work hard to run the race and win.
It seems that this is the type of attitude that has become prevalent in modern capitalist societies.
An individual from another part of the world may look at life totally differently. They may feel that happiness or simply enjoying life simply for what it is, is more important, than finding or trying to apply some meaning to it.
Some may enjoy the beauty of life itself, opposed to worrying about attaining all its many material comforts to try and give their life some meaning.
They may consider social standards and possessions to be insignificant. As long as they have the basic necessities in life such as shelter, food and water then they are ok and perfectly happy. Perhaps the meaning of life, has no relevance in their lives.
It seems obvious to assume that those who are accustomed to knowing and having less may actually be more satisfied, grateful and humble for the little that they do have and so may actually lead happier lives. They may not feel the social pressure to attain to give their life value and meaning.
However, does our social and financial status influence our perception of the true meaning of life?
Surely it’s all about how we view life; that will usually determine how we interpret or understand the meaning of it.
It seems we could consider the question does the meaning of life mean different things to different people within particular societies?
I think our values will always govern how we feel about everything and this includes how we feel about the meaning of life itself.
Is how you look at your life determined by how you look at all things in existence, including how you look at yourself? Different people attach a different level of value to different things.
Would one individual value their life and consider that their life had more meaning and purpose than another?
What makes someone value their life and the purpose of it more than another individual?
Is it all determined by how we view the world and how we view ourselves as an individual being within it?
I have wondered if some people may not want to find the answer. They may think it’s a morbid or depressing topic that reminds them of their mortality on earth and pending death. Something which they don’t wish to spend much time thinking about.
Some of us are naturally more philosophical than others and may choose to question all things and wonder why it is, the way it is.
Perhaps some of us worry that if we know the truth about why we are really here, it may force us to wake up, make changes and take our actions more seriously.
We may begin to look at things more ethically and worry about our own standard of morality, something which we may have had a tendency to ignore or disregard in the past.
If we come to discover why we exist, it may prove to be incompatible with the things that we presently do and the physical worldly life we are currently living.
It could force us to make changes in our lives and in our attitudes, which have gone unnoticed before.
It could make us feel pressured to change and alter certain destructive behaviours that may be detrimental to our spiritual wellbeing, that we are not yet fully ready to do.
I’m sure that for this reason some people would prefer to remain ignorant. It’s often said that ignorance is bliss and for some people they are perfectly happy existing as they are. They may feel unwilling to change the way they think and amend their way of life.
Everyone is unique and I believe that deep down some of us really do care about the meaning of our lives, but don’t seriously know where to begin looking for real answers.
I am sure that from time to time, we all may have felt like this at some point or another. The answers that will make logical sense to one person may seem to be totally irrational to another. Every individual will have their own unique standpoint regarding the meaning of life in this world.
Chapter 4
Where do we go to find the Answers we need?
How do we decide what to believe or indeed who to believe? Do we go according to what we believe to be fact? How do we determine what we believe to be a rational argument in relation to this concept?
Where do we look to find a rational explanation of anything? If we cannot even prove that this life is the reality and all there is, how can we make sense of anything at all?
Is this why we choose to ignore evaluation of the subject because we struggle to find answers?
We are so busy with our daily lives but if we really think about it logically, it seems to be absurd that we can choose to live our lives ignoring such a vital consideration.
It seems to be obvious that if one has some level of intellect, one would surely make some time to think. At some point we must consider, is this life the real reality?
And more importantly if it isn’t the real reality what is the meaning and real significance of the experience?
Perhaps we have believed in a theory once, found it to be untrue and given up hope of ever finding the real truth.
To some it will never be considered a big issue; we are here and most of us will come and go in this world and will never have a real clue or understanding about why!
If you think about it, so many people have lived in this world. All different types of people have lived, from all walks of life; all existing in different periods, all with their own individual stories to tell.
Some will have loved and lost, some may have just lost, but all would have lived!
We all have experienced, it’s how we perceive and evaluate that experience. It’s how we make sense of it that makes us different.
Some will have fulfilled their dreams, others may have died lacking real fulfilment. Some may have lived happily full of joy and others may have died, living out their last days consumed by grief and regret, overwhelmed by negative emotion.
Whatever their story, they would have all lived some type of existence.
Each person will have had some physical experience, some coming to know themselves and their purpose for existence, others will have died not having learnt anything about the true meaning of life and who they truly were in regards to the bigger picture.
So as it goes many have lived and died, come and gone; some may have succeeded in having found the answer. Some would have left knowing as much as when they had first arrived; come and gone not knowing anything about the purpose or true meaning of life at all.
We think to ourselves, it can’t all be so morbid! Surely some people must have found an explanation for it all. So many people who we may consider to have been smart or learned. One of them must have found the true answer and found the way.
Yes of course, having interpreted this sensory experience for themselves, they would have come to some personal conclusion, according to their own perception.
They would have certainly have established their own beliefs based on their own sense of reasoning, even if they had not chosen to make those beliefs publically known.
Surely all the thousands of generations and civilisations of people that have come and gone, must have discovered a reason for having been.
Somebody out of all those people must have come across the answer. Or at least an answer that would have made sense to them.
Not everyone including myself, could ever be content believing the theory that nothing has any real meaning. My sense of reasoning does not allow me to accept such a thesis.
To believe that this life has no real meaning would prove to be totally illogical to me and I assume others regardless of the era in which they lived, may have felt the same way.
We are born into this physical world which is full of billions of people, live some form life, perhaps ten decades or less; then we end up in an expensive box collecting dust, buried six feet under forever?
We become a distant memory in the lives of others. A couple of nice photos and sentimental memorabilia is all that is left to prove that one ever existed. Memories is all that is left for those who are left behind to hold dear.
Then it’s all finished and slowly we fade from living memory, never to be seen or heard from ever again. This world here and now, is all there is?
That theory could never make any real sense to me. We say to ourselves, “Surely this can’t be it? We are born, we live and we go, end of?”
I assume that most of us think, that surely there has to be more to it than this? It’s perhaps the biggest question most of us will ever encounter in our minds during our lifetimes.
Perhaps for some this explanation is enough and makes total logical sense. For others this belief would prove to be insufficient and inadequate, so they search for a more comfortable, bearable understanding.
The only question is where do you go to find the answer that appeals to your way of thinking? What source will you choose to guide you to the ultimate truth that will help you understand the meaning of life?
That is the decision we all need to make at some point. We have to choose what makes logical sense to us in our own minds.
Chapter 5
Is our perception of life determined by our Social or Cultural Conditioning?
It all begins from the moment we are born into our individual environments and become a member of a given family or community.
We are taught the social rules of behaviour. None of these ‘rules’ are literally written down, however as we go through life we learn what is acceptable and non-acceptable forms of behaviour.
We learn the ‘norms’ of the system in which we live. We are taught what it means to be considered ‘normal’.
We are shown examples from social outlets and different forms of communication, expressing the way that we are supposed to act, think and feel, including the way in which we should aim to live. We are also taught how to feel about life in this world.
The unwritten rules that influence our individual societies seem to unequivocally teach us the way to live; we use these rules to fit into our communities and to fit into the world.
We use this information to help us to conform to the rules, which will enable us to make sense of things and survive in the world.
We learn about the concept of ‘being the best’ or ‘being the first and not the last’ and ‘being the champion’. We are constantly compared to one another. Everything is what I call the three C’s compare, contrast and competition.
We are fed the belief that we should make the most of ourselves and try to be better than others; the minimum that we should aspire to, is to be on an equal footing with our peers.
As we are constantly fed the belief that the life in this world is all there is; we are expected to prove that we have used the opportunities in our lives to the fullest. We are expected to make the most of it, as we are led to believe there is nothing else to come.
We are taught from a young age that we should aim to be the best educationally, academically, socially and financially.
This competitive notion of life is put in place as early as school life. Children are compared academically, tested and made to believe that being ‘brainy’ or ‘the best’ is the most important thing in life.
We are preconditioned to become totally engrossed in all the things of this world. We are barely educated to think of anything beyond that which we can physically see.
Educationally we are compared and told that we should aim to get the best possible grades and exam results to be a ‘star pupil’.
Once we leave school and if we decide to go on to further education then we try to prove ourselves again by becoming an academic success.
The better our academic results, the more respect we will gain in society. We may start to think that having others respect us, is the most important value worth striving for in this life.
In the world of work, we are valued for our work related success, according to our results and figures. In order to be a success at work, we must follow the work rules by generating business.
It all depends upon how successful we are in comparison to our colleagues in performing the task at hand? We are constantly portrayed as a success or failure in the workplace.
We earn commission to show that we are doing well and conforming to the rules; we are reprimanded or fired when we fail to meet the expectations and out do the competition.
We come to believe that having a successful career and being of a high position in the work place is the be all and end all of everything!
The real significant meaning of life or of anything else goes out of the window at the work place.
We fight against others to get the much desired promotion, so that we can value ourselves and be respected by others.
We also work hard to earn more money, so that we can be more comfortable with ourselves, have better living standards as well as appear to be more acceptable to others.
We believe moving upwards will make us feel better about ourselves and our lives in general. And maybe to some extent it is true, who doesn’t want an easier more comfortable life?
However, the question is, should it be the all of everything and overtake all of our thoughts all of the time?
We want to be respected by our parents, siblings, friends and society as a whole. We want to illustrate that we are making a ‘success’ of our lives. We begin to believe this is what this life is really all about.
Next we are told that as we only have ‘one life’ we should seek to make the best of ourselves socially, as well as in every area of our lives.
We may try to have the best social life, by being popular and having lots of friends. We may try to do our best to be respected socially. How social we are, can also help us to appear to be more acceptable to our peers, work colleagues and those around us.
We may work hard to portray the perfect social image, in order to fit into our society. We want to illustrate that we fit into the world, have a place in the world and that we belong in the world.
We may try to make the best of our lives by being popular, having an agreeable personality and reflecting an image of the ideal persona or character, even if it’s fake.
It seems that even if you pretend or exaggerate your character to be something other than the person that you truly are, it’s acceptable as long as it helps you to make money and move forward! This definitely appears to be the case if one aspires to become a celebrity.
Being boring, quiet and unsociable may not be considered to be a reflection of someone who is in possession of a social demeanour or characteristic to be admired. Being reserved in this world doesn’t seem to help to make one move forward, or become more acceptable to others.
It seems as though the more of an extrovert you are; the more your character appeals to the status quo, the more financially successful you will be.
How you portray a life of success socially depends upon how you are able to entertain and make other people warm towards you; you should be able to make them happy and make them laugh.
You should also appear to agree with the way they think. Even if that means hiding your true self.
You may begin to believe that the meaning of life is about showing others that you are comfortable with the world and with being in the world.
You must be able to display the characteristics of the ideal personality to move forward. If you look unhappy to be in the world or be a part of this world, others may not want to be in your company.
Everybody is expected to just follow the ‘rules’. If you are not following the ‘rules’ you will find it difficult to fit in.
The general feeling has become as though, this world is all there is and you need to love it and do all you can to make a success of yourself here and now, or be cast aside and looked down upon.
If you are not a people person, or you’re unable to reflect the social ideals held by your society, then others may consider you to be an ‘odd ball’ someone who has not been able to live up to the social expectations of a given society. Someone who does not fit into the world.
This type of person may not be considered to be somebody who has made a success of their lives. As the meaning of life has come to mean that one should simply follow the masses, do as everyone else does, no questions asked.
It seems we are judged according to how we have managed to conform to the social settings and ideals laid out within our societies and within the world.
We are judged first and foremost by our looks and our outward appearance. Following that, we are judged by our material and academic achievements.
If we make a fuss about anything beyond this world, we are considered to be weird or strange. I think it’s even more worrying to blindly follow, without one thinking for oneself. I personally think that’s strange!
The final and probably the most significant factor which most consider to be a determining factor in regards to whether or not someone has made a success of their life, is how financially well off they are.
It is generally believed that one who has a high financial status, regardless of what they have done to acquire or come into that wealth, is considered to be someone who is successful.
Even if one just inherits money but has never done a day’s physical work for it, that person will still be respected above a financially poor person who has worked hard all the days of their life. How can that be?
As long as somebody has wealth they are looked up to. They are considered to be someone who knows the meaning of life! They know how to fit into the world.
That person is respected as someone who knows what life is all about, regardless of the fact that they may know very little about anything else.
Little consideration is given to how that wealth came to be, or how it was accumulated; nobody is really interested in that.
As we are fed the false notion that this life is all there is, then most believe that the purpose of this life is to live a life which involves accumulating all the physical comforts of this world and doing all that you can to get them.
It is constantly fed to us that we have one life and the main purpose of it is to find happiness via an increase in our finances and material possessions.
The aim is that we should try to become wealthy and financially secure no matter the cost to ourselves or others.
“Yeah sure,” I say, we are also led to believe that other stuff brings happiness into our lives like love, a good relationship, family life and good health.
However we are generally led to believe that the accumulation of money is the only real way to find ultimate satisfaction and happiness in our lives in this world.
We are encouraged to believe that having money will put an end to all of our problems. We may begin to believe that having more money will even give our lives more meaning!
Is that why we have lotteries? People may falsely come to believe that money is the way to make all their dreams come true.
Were basically being told that the purpose of our lives is to be engrossed with the desire for material delights and that the here and now is all there is, so we should aim to have all our desires fulfilled now.
We are falsely conditioned to believe that materialism is the way to true life. In other words we are told that the meaning of life revolves around having the material things of this world.
It then becomes built into our thinking that as we only have one life; then surely the purpose of it, is to make ourselves as happy as possible by accumulating as much as we can, so that we may be happy.
It doesn’t matter whether that money was earned through hard work, inherited or earned immorally or unethically, as long as we have it, do whatever it takes to get it and do whatever we can do to maintain it, that’s all that counts.
That is the premise of how the unwritten or unspoken rules of most societies within this physical world works. That’s what the masses have been led to believe their lives are all about.
Although it has been proven time and time again that endless money, possessions and materialism in itself doesn’t make anyone happy, we are still encouraged to spend our entire lives engrossed in trying to get it.
Although I do believe it is nice to have some comforts in life; I don’t think it’s wise that we become overwhelmed in trying to accumulate those things that we forget to even think about why we may have been put here in the first place.
Those looking in from the outside give respect to the one who is considered to already have it all.
This is all based upon the fact that we are taught from an early age that the purpose of this life, is to become who we think we are entitled to be, opposed to becoming and realising who we truly are, in regards to the ‘bigger picture’ as in an existence beyond this world.
This idea of competition and ‘survival of the fittest’ starts in early childhood, goes on throughout our lives and exists throughout all sections of society.
Has this world turned into a place which is all about egotistical materialism? We may eventually start to think that this is what our lives are all meant to be about. Is it all about our egos and our possessions? Could that be the real meaning of life? I don’t think so.
In regards to this life itself, as we are told that this life is all there is and all there will ever be, some may strive and fight to get everything they want out of it, regardless of whether or not they hurt themselves or others along the way.
Some follow the view that we should be who we want to be and get what we are supposed to get.
Basically our societies seem to impose the view that we should do as we please and do all that we can to live this life to the fullest because this life is all we have.
So many people believe they literally have ‘one life’. They believe it’s here and now and that’s it. I hear people say it all the time. Is that the way most people have begun to think?
As a result of this, morality and ethically sound judgements have declined to some extent; the rules that at some point influenced our moral standards have somewhat gone out of the window.
We are fed endless information via our social and media outlets, encouraging us to strive to achieve and get as much as we can, so that we can find true happiness.
The type of sources of information we allow to influence our thinking may determine how we come to think about ourselves and our lives.
This information goes into our minds over and over again. I guess that we tend to go along with what we see in front of us. Once we are over exposed to the things of the world, we may begin to stop thinking for ourselves.
Does all that we see and hear about in this world eventually become like a form of mind control, so that most people may eventually come to accept that this physical life is the reality of all things?
This is usually the notion that supports the idea that we should aim to become a financial success, to be financially viable, so we have the power and influence in our lives, to do whatever we want to do in this world.
It has become perfectly normal to believe that all we should care about is being happy here and now and not even begin to think of anything past that!
Are we influenced to put all of our effort into receiving all the physical comforts that this world can offer and strive for whatever it is that we think we need, to make our lives here and now feel like a ‘success’?
There are endless movies and novels illustrating the way in which people have worked hard and fought to achieve the riches and comforts of this world.
This at times has revealed the lengths that individuals will go to in order to achieve and aspire to meet their worldly ambitions.
Most systems and societal beliefs seem to condone the view that we should do all we can to achieve our dreams and become ‘successful’ people. We are told that we should do all we can to be happy now.
Some may interpret this to mean that hurting or deceiving others along the way is acceptable if kept out of view, as long as we get to receive what we want or ‘need’ in life and get the happiness we deserve.
It seems that some people have become so worried about appearing to be a financial failure, that they will do all they can, to illustrate to others that they haven’t ‘wasted’ their lives, by ending up with less than the average person.
Of course thankfully, not everybody in the world condones this type of behaviour or thinks this way and this type of immoral behaviour is never openly supported by most people.
Although we do have a choice whether or not to focus our minds on such things, this may influence some to worry more about their bank balance, opposed to worrying about their actions and future beyond this world.
Chapter 6
Is what we perceive to be reality in this world the Real and only Truth?
Do most people believe and perceive that the ‘life’ in this physical world, is the real and only life? I guess some people do believe this existence here and now is all they will ever know and all they will ever have.
I would imagine that some people only believe in what they can physically see and physically hear, to be the real reality of all things.
Our usual most common perception of reality is based purely upon what we can perceive via our physical senses.
Some of us may consider faith as something some individuals may choose to indulge in. Even so regardless of one’s beliefs, some may believe that this life and everything that takes place within it, is still an actual reality.
I suppose that until we see or experience different, most of us will use and rely purely on our five senses to tell us what the truth is.
Some will believe that this life is all there is and it’s real. They may think that as it feels real and that’s all they know, then it must be real. We believe that if we can see something or hear something than that makes it a fact.
We believe that if we can find valid evidence for something, then having seen that evidence will provide confirmation of the truth.
It’s the same with this physical world, if we perceive something in this world, then we believe it must be real and of the truth.
However, just because we perceive something, can that ever provide sufficient evidence to confirm whether or not something is the truth?
We constantly hear the saying “You have one life.” Or you hear the cry “Live your life because this life is all you have.”
We also hear the words that we should ‘Live life to the full’ or ‘Live your life’.
Some of us do not question what we cannot logically prove or disprove. For this reason we may take what we can see here and now in this world to be the real thing.
As a result of this view, it appears to be the case that most people spend their entire lives focused upon making their physical lives in this world more pleasant.
A pleasant life and what that feels like, will have a different meaning depending upon your outlook in relation to this life.
We may come to believe that as we only have ‘one life’ we should make the most of our time and live it to the fullest by succeeding in having whatever it takes for us to be ‘happy’ in the here and now.
What most of us fail to realise is the fact that, if we only use our minds to tell us what is the truth, we may at times find ourselves living according to a lie.
Whatever our minds are exposed to will have an effect on how we look at things.
Basically we are told that we have the conscious mind and the subconscious mind? I’m not able to confirm or deny this, as it’s not my field of expertise.
In relation to this, the only thing I do know is that our minds can definitely be influenced and can often become extremely clouded.
The state of our minds can be a means to total confusion, or total clarity. If our minds are filled with untruths, then it will be more difficult to discern the truth. Something may appear to be the truth, which actually isn’t.
When it comes to the mind, it’s all about perception and what we come to perceive to be the truth in our minds. An incorrect perception can very well become a false illusion.
Our minds can become so blocked that we can no longer see the truth, because there is a total blockage.
We can be living under a blockage of consciousness, where our minds are literally unconscious of the truth. We are unable to decipher reality, because our minds are literally blocked. Although at the time we may be unaware of it.
If we really only believe in everything that we are exposed to and everything we can physically see; what actually happens when we are led to believe that something is the truth, purely by what we see and hear? We will naturally just start to believe without questioning.
There are times when the mind can play tricks on us or when the mind can become clouded by the different elements which exist in this world. Something that we may perceive to be the truth, can in actual fact be a lie.
You may think that what you always see and hear is the truth, but it may be a deception. It may be an illusion based upon your perception. How do you know that what you perceive here and now is the truth?
When your mind is clouded without real clarification, you may find it difficult to distinguish things clearly.
We could compare this life to that of our dreams. We need to think about how we feel when we experience dreams. When we are dreaming, our dreams can feel like they are reality.
We can even wake up crying and screaming as a result of that experience. It’s only when we wake up, we realise that we were dreaming and it wasn’t real. It only appeared to be real.
When we are stuck in a state of a deep dream, we perceive the events in that dream to be a reality. We are convinced that what we are seeing and experiencing is the undeniable truth.
The dream takes us on a unique experience and journey. It’s only when we are removed from it that we are able to see that it wasn’t real after all.
In the same way we believe that our dreams are reality whilst we experience them, we use our senses in this world and are convinced that this life is real.
The fact that we are having a physical experience in this world, seems to convince us that this life is real too.
Perhaps we will one day wake up and see the reality of this physical experience and be able to truly see it for what it actually is, another experience? In my opinion, our lives in this world are just another experience just like in our dreams.
How can you prove that this life is all there is and that you’re not just having some type of sensory experience, similar to what you experience during your dreams?
Doesn’t it make you think that perhaps our dreams were given to us for a reason? Perhaps our dreams are there to give us a clue and make us think.
I think our dreams are there to remind us that although we may perceive this world to be the only reality, it may not be the real reality beyond our sensory perception.
It took me a long time before I would begin to wake up, see clearly and view the life in this world like this.
As a result of my life journey, my personal perception of life in this world and its meaning began to change and manifest itself in my life.
Chapter 7
Is One’s Perception of life subject to change?
I remember when I was in my teens, I thought life was all about having fun, getting a good education, then getting the best job, looking good, making money and buying designer gear.
I wanted this, I needed that. Like most young people at that time, I didn’t have a care in the world. I had no major concerns or worries I was simply happy being me!
I had to be slim; my sister and I regularly attended the local gym. I had to look nice to impress my friends. I had to get nice clothes. I had to have the latest shoes.
I worked part time on a tiny wage, so I didn’t have loads of money, but I did my very best to buy what I could afford. I even treated my sister occasionally, we were very close at the time. I wanted to make her happy too! Life was fairly easy, my life felt good to me.
Life was about nothing else apart from enjoying the summer weather, listening to the latest tunes on our tape recorder and using any excuse under the sun, to pop out of the house and run to the local shops so we could chit chat and gossip with our friends!
It was fun to be honest and we were young. Life was all about having fun and bumping into our friends, that’s how it was.
I remember my fourteen year old sister sitting in front of the mirror for hours doing her hair, she would tong each strand of her hair into a curly ringlet. Each ringlet had to look pristine, perfect.
Each curl shining and glistening immaculately. When it came to her hair my little sister was a perfectionist! The local kids were always impressed by her hairstyles.
I just used to sit there watching her. Hairdressing was never my thing and I was useless at it.
It was like all or nothing for her! I had so much respect for her skill. It seemed like her new hairstyle had to be the latest fashion statement on the street.
That’s what life meant to us; a lot of hair gel and a gleaming head of hair pulled up into the tightest ponytail you had ever seen!
Nothing else really mattered in life, as long as we were happy and looked good on the road.
Once we stepped out of the door into our local neighbourhood to pop to the shops, we never knew who we could bump into.
It was so important to look the part. We couldn’t be seen looking anything but our very best! That’s what life was all about, very care free.
A quick chat and half smiles with the locals were exchanged, then it was time to get back indoors. Hours in front of the mirror just for a five minute visit to the local shop! It’s so funny thinking about it.
At that time for me I didn’t think that life had any meaning; doing and having whatever you wanted that’s what life meant to me.
I would say to myself, “Being happy and enjoying yourself, that’s what life is all about.”
That’s how I felt at the time, like the meaning of life had no real significance. Nothing really mattered, nothing worth worrying about anyway. I never thought about the meaning of life.
As I got older and finished my education, I then entered the world of work. My first real job was in an upmarket retail department store in the city.
My job was to sell designer goods to wealthy clients. I wanted to progress at work, achieve a lot of sales, make the customers love me and show my manager that I had the skills to sell all the products and be a real success.
I would work hard and get paid. It was enough money to buy my clothes, shoes, make-up and go out clubbing occasionally. I was young and independent; paying rent, living my life, spending my money each month.
I thought this was what life was all about, trying to be a good person and doing as I pleased. That’s what I saw other people doing. They were just working to get paid, living their life.
After a while I got bored with my job. I felt frustrated. I wanted to use the education that I had attained at university to get a better job.
To some extent I began to feel like a failure. I felt like I wasn’t living ‘life’ by achieving as much as I could. I wanted a more challenging career. I began to think that’s what life was really about.
I began to be consumed with thoughts about getting a better job, that’s all I thought about. I would spend every lunch hour on the phone making phone calls.
I would search endlessly through the job section of all the local newspapers looking for a different job.
I needed to find another role, something better. I needed to get something else that would remove the dissatisfaction I was feeling.
My life became consumed with thoughts about achieving more in my life.
I wanted to use my brain and I wanted to be respected, because I thought that, being respected by others by having a respectable successful career, was what life was really all about.
I saw that those who had moved up the ladder were treated better, had more authority and were treated with respect.
I didn’t want to be at the bottom of the pile. I didn’t like being spoken to disrespectfully. I didn’t like to feel demeaned in front of others. I didn’t want to feel like a failure in life.
My way of thinking may have been shallow at the time, but that’s how I felt. I saw the way people were treated differently.
Managers were in charge and were treated with respect, ordinary workers were spoken to like children. Those at the bottom of the ladder were left to feel small and belittled.
I couldn’t stand it anymore. Being treated like this was really having a negative effect on my level of self-confidence. I hadn’t studied for three years and educated myself to be treated like a fool! I felt annoyed by the way the workers were treated.
I was forever concerned with what I could and should do to improve my status in life. Apart from that, I still wasn’t really concerned about what life itself, was really all about.
By this time I felt that life meant being treated with respect. I didn’t think I was above anybody else, but I simply wanted to be treated with respect and dignity like other people.
As I grew older my desires in life began to change. I then began to think life was all about finding a suitable partner and starting a family.
I thought that as long as I was happy and had the basic necessities, then that was enough. I didn’t think about much else.
I considered myself to be no different than anyone else. I was living my life getting through each day.
Nobody else thought or talked about the meaning of life, so I thought I didn’t need to either. This world and everything in it consumed all my thoughts and took up all of my time.
In regards to the other areas of my life, I did believe in God, but I would only think about my Creator a lot when I needed to pray for something desperately.
I believed in the existence of God, but regardless of my faith in God, I thought that this life here and now was totally real and I had to work hard to make the best of it.
At the time, I didn’t imagine that life had any significant meaning other than the fact that we live and die.
I thought about what was morally right and ethically right. I thought that my purpose and responsibility in life, was to do the good and avoid the bad.
I thought it was up to me to live according to my personal values and to know the difference between right and wrong.
I thought that I was to spend my life trying to get a good career and have a family. I wanted to be a good person and achieve good things.
I didn’t think about whether or not my life had any real purpose or meaning beyond that.
I just thought that’s what all people do; they live, do normal day to day stuff and then they die and that’s it. End of, there was nothing else to it.
I believed there was a Creator who had put us here, but I didn’t think about it all too much.
I didn’t see anyone else highly concerned about it, so I thought the main thing was to get on with life. I thought that was the normal thing to do.
I was just busy getting on with my life. I believed that there was a God in control of everything, but I generally believed that life was really about what was happening in the here and now.
I thought I was supposed to try to live as a good person, live my life now as best as I could and then hope to get to heaven afterwards.
I was fully concerned with all the things in the physical world and my understanding of things was pretty much based upon all that I could hear and see and that’s it.
I thought that what I could see and hear was pretty much the true reality of things.
I assumed that I was just like the average person. I believed that this life was the real life. It was my understanding that I should try to make the most of it, within reason.
It was after many experiences and lessons learnt, that I began to see that this life was more than what meets the eye. Up until then, I didn’t have a real clue about anything.
My real purpose in life and the real meaning of life could have literally passed me by.
Eventually one day it had happened to me! The True and Living God woke me up out of my spiritual unconsciousness. It was time to wake up to the truth! I had a spiritual awakening. It’s like the spirit part inside of me, woke up and came to life.
Chapter 8
Finally time to find the True Meaning of Life!
In order to realise and find the true meaning of life, one has to know and understand the concept of spirit. I have come to believe that this world is a manifestation of things created in spirit. Spirit is the real truth!
Before I came to realise this, I didn’t truly know who I was either. I didn’t realise that God was a Spirit and I didn’t realise that I had a spirit part inside of me, which was a part of my real self!
I thought I was a knowledgeable person who understood and knew a lot of things.
I had always been quite a philosophical person, in that I loved to debate and think and question most things. However, the truth was, that up until this point in my life I didn’t really know much at all about anything.
It all began when I was in my mid-twenties. I remember my sister telling me about some ‘religion’ of some sort, that she had found. I remember her being so excited about it, telling me all the good things she thought about it.
Every day she began to ring me, telling me I needed to join up as soon as possible before I died. Ok it does seem to be quite dramatic looking back, but at the time there seemed to be some urgency about it all.
Every time I saw her she appeared to be so happy, I hadn’t seen her look so happy and enthusiastic about life and the future in years.
At last she seemed to be so full of joy and fulfilled, totally convinced that this thing was the truth.
On each occasion I saw her, she would have a book or piece of literature to give me, reminding me that I needed to join up as soon as possible.
We would read the literature, discuss it and even look at the pictures.
It seemed to be something that made some sense and even appeared to come up with ideas about life and life after this world.
Eventually I began to think that it sounds like it’s the truth so it must be! I was very young and naïve at the time. I believed that if something said it was the truth, then surely it must be?
I didn’t bother to do much further research about it. I didn’t know about the main concepts or precepts that it was based upon.
I didn’t know how it was established or any historical facts. I had heard a little bit about it before and now I had heard about it briefly again.
I sincerely believed that it was all based upon the True Living God spoken of in the Holy Bible. After a while, without much thought or research I got involved in it, not knowing it was something totally different.
It appeared to be ok at first, however once I realised it was based upon a totally different belief system and concepts, compared to my original Christian beliefs, I became totally confused.
It was many years before I was to realise that what I had got involved with, was actually completely different, compared to what I had originally thought it had been.
My mind was totally blocked up, in some type of hypnotic false state of consciousness. My mind had been completely taken over.
I remember being lost and in a state of utter confusion for many years. I was stuck in something that I had initially thought to be the truth.
It felt like I didn’t know what to believe. I didn’t know which way to turn.
It was like I couldn’t think clearly anymore; I couldn’t think straight at all, my mind was totally bungled up.
I would go in and out of it. One moment believing I was following the right thing, another moment I was unsure.
One moment I would follow all the rules, another moment I wouldn’t take part in it at all. I was totally confused about everything.
I began to think to myself hang on! Something isn’t right here. If this thing is really true, why do I keep going in and out of it?
I began to think either something was wrong with this thing I was following, or something was really wrong with me? In my mind I wanted to do what was required of me, I wanted to follow the rules.
Why couldn’t I stick to it and do all that I knew I was supposed to do? No matter how hard I tried, I felt like a failure.
I just couldn’t understand what was happening? I thought to myself perhaps this thing just isn’t right for me.
Eventually I just moved away from it, began to give up on it completely.
Then one night I had a feeling.
I don’t know why, but something inside me, convinced me that something was wrong. I decided to do some research.
I wasn’t happy anymore. Something didn’t feel right. I needed answers. I sat in front of the computer and thought to myself, perhaps I should go and compare it to what I had believed and learnt when I was a child.
I decided to do some research.
I read a lot of things about it. I looked into its background. I discovered many things that I hadn’t known. All these years I had been blindly following something that I actually barely knew anything about!
I thought to myself I will go back to the Holy Bible, start afresh and do some research there.
I began to read the Holy Bible and what it told me about God. It described how God is Love. It described how to dwell in love, is to dwell in God and to know God is to know love, because God is love.
In 1 John Chapter 4 verse 8 it says ‘He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love’. I had no idea. I never knew this, I never knew that God is Love.
I began to read on. Chapter 9 says ‘In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him’.
I also read that we are to test the Spirits to see if they are true. Basically the way we test the spirit is to look at their fruit, does their spirit produce good or bad fruit?
Jesus said that many false prophets and false Christs would come in his name. But we should look at their works, to see if they are really from the True and Living God of the Holy Bible.
I believe at this point, on this night I awoke inside. It’s like the spirit essence of myself came to life. It felt like a jolt within me.
It’s like my mind had been awakened. It felt as if my mind had been totally blocked before and had now been set free. I could see clearly again. I began to cry.
Almighty God our Heavenly Father of the Holy Bible was the Truth! Jesus the Son of God, who was sent to save our sins was the Truth! I began to find my way to the true meaning of life.
I began to think about how I felt, in order to discover and see true reality. I believed in love and I knew that love was real because although it was something I couldn’t see, it was something within me that I could definitely feel in my heart.
I began to see that what was true and what was real, was to be found from within. If God is love, and love exists, then God exists. And God forever lives!
This illustrates that we came from the True Living God as we ourselves have love within.
In the Holy Bible it describes that the being of man is made up of different elements. We are told that we have a spirit, soul and the body.
The body is the flesh and the soul and spirit is the inward part of who we are on the inside.
In John chapter 4 verse 24 of the Holy Bible it says ‘God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth’.
We also come to know that God is a Spirit and breathed into mankind the breath of life.
I learnt about the concept of spirit. Spirit we cannot see with our physical eyes. So I began to see that this world and all that was physical was not the actual reality. Just because we may perceive something to be real, that doesn’t mean it is real.
I felt like this world was definitely not the true reality, the concept of spirit had proven that. Spirit we cannot see but we know it is real, as we have a heart and can feel.
At this time I thought to myself that perhaps I couldn’t see God physically, but I believed that we could experience the spirit, as we can feel that life and spirit exits within us on the inside.
By this life which exists within, it seems then logical to assume and believe that there is more to our existence than that which we can only perceive through our senses.
We have to start by acknowledging who we are in all aspects, in order to begin to find the true meaning of life.
Firstly I believe that the heart is the way to the truth.
I believe that the heart is of the spirit. We cannot see the heart but we know it exists because we can experience emotion. Through the open heart we can find the truth.
I believe that by listening to Jesus and by believing in his words, we will find the way to the truth and understand the meaning of this life.
Jesus tells us that his words are Spirit and Life. In John Chapter 6 verse 63 it says: ‘It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life’.
I believe that if we focus and look at life only in terms of what we experience via the flesh, we won’t understand the meaning of this life.
I personally eventually woke up from my own unconsciousness and realised for myself that the things of the spirit are the truth.
The fact that Jesus said that his words are spirit and Life, that was more proof that his words are the truth. My spiritual journey via this experience enabled me to realise this for myself.
If we look at life and walk according to the spiritual aspect of ourselves by being led by the Spirit of God, we will find the way to the truth.
If we listen and open our hearts to the words that Jesus spoke, we can find the truth. This truth being the way to true life.
Once we understand the way to true life is through Jesus, we can begin to understand the meaning of our existence here in this world.
Chapter 8
Summary
As this is a philosophical discussion and having graduated in philosophy, I know that every claim or thought must be discussed and evaluated. This includes my personal belief in the existence of the True Living God.
Although I do believe that everything can be questioned, I do believe that if you can find the beginning, you can find the truth.
I believe that everything and all things must have had a beginning. I don’t believe that the things of this world could have originated by themselves. So I disagree with the theory of evolution.
It would prove to be totally illogical to me that something could just originate in and of itself, unless it had always been.
How can something come into being in and of itself unless it was eternal? This proves that there has to have been an Eternal Creator in the beginning. This proves the existence of a True Living Eternal God.
The only thing that could come into being in and of itself, would have to be something that has always been. That which has always been is the True Living God.
It is difficult for us to comprehend eternity using the faculties we have. We are so used to viewing things in terms of time, but God is a Spirit and Spirit is eternal and surpasses the boundaries of time.
We have to understand the source of life which is God, as all things came from God. According to my own sense of reasoning, there can never be any alternative solution, or explanation to explain the creation of life or the existence of anything.
Therefore I believe in a Creator, I believe in the True Living God of all creation. I believe that all things were made by God and that all that ever was, or that ever will be, will only come into existence by the Word of God.
Therefore I believe that there had to have been a Creator that created all things. Just like the saying about the ‘chicken and the egg’, we are always asked about which one came first.
For me I’ve never been all that interested in which came first I would be more inclined to find out where the chicken and egg actually came from?
Basically how did the chicken or egg actually come about? Neither one could have landed here on earth by itself without having been created in the first place.
I don’t believe either one of the chicken or the egg could have come into existence in and of itself or by itself.
It had to have an originator; everything has to have an originator, all things that have been made, must have an origin, a beginning. And the beginning had to be first and the first was God.
As I believe in God, I also believe that everything has a necessary purpose; therefore this life itself must have a purpose and this life itself has to have a meaning.
It goes against my sense of reasoning to ever comprehend of things coming into existence purely in and of themselves, without a valid purpose.
You may ask does something need to have a purpose. Why can’t something just be, for the sake of being?
Well for me I believe all things were created for a purpose, as there is a Creator full of Wisdom who put them there. Therefore nothing was created void without a valid reason for being.
Chapter 9
Wake up! See the true Meaning of this Life
As discussed in early chapters for the vast majority of my humble life, I questioned many things in life, but I never spent time evaluating the concept of the meaning and purpose of life itself.
I lived, worked and travelled. I tried to experience the ‘good things in life’, good food, nice clothes and accessories. I tried to do the best that I could within my means.
I tried to achieve the best that I could academically and socially. It’s evident that from time to time I did get distracted along the way, but generally before I learnt the truth, I tried to fit in to this world and make a ‘success of my life’.
I took it for granted that this world was all there is. I did believe there was a Creator, but apart from that I didn’t think about whether my life or anyone else’s, had any real purpose or meaning beyond this world.
My reality and the reality of my existence in this world, was based upon the precept that this world was real and the physical outward aspects of an individual counted for who they were as a being.
I didn’t know the concept of spirit. I didn’t know that God was a Spirit and I was unaware that we all have a spiritual component within ourselves. I discovered that in this world the individual is made up of elements of the physical, the soul and spiritual.
As I learnt that God is a Spirit. I also learnt that God is Eternal and as discussed earlier this makes perfect sense to my level of reasoning.
I believe that this life is our opportunity to be led by the Spirit of God, so that the True Living God of all creation can wake us up and prepare us for the true life to come!
I believe that the life we experience in this world, is an experience that we go through in order to learn and remember who we truly are.
Once you understand that spirit is truth, then you will understand that this life is simply a journey to bring that and all things to your remembrance.
The meaning of this life is for us to remember who we truly are. We are to remember the spirit aspect of ourselves and be led by the Spirit of God in order to pass over into true life.
We need to realise that it’s the spirit aspect of ourselves that may inherit the Kingdom of God and not our physical bodies.
The body will decay after death when the spirit leaves the body. The spirit will leave the body, and the body will return to dust, as the spirit is the truth. It’s the spirit that may inherit true life.
It also makes me conclude that if we as individuals also have a spiritual component to our being and spirit itself is eternal, then this illustrates that we as individual beings have the potential to live on as spiritual beings through Jesus.
I then think to myself well how may one do that? How may one live on? The answer is we have to be led by the Spirit of God. We need to believe in the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross as atonement for our sins.
And as the spirit is truth that proves that this life here is only temporary and that the real life to come after here, will be the true life, which is lived through the spirit.
The physical body is not eternal and neither is the physical world. Eternal life is found and will be lived through the spirit and not through a physical body, like the life we live now.
In 1 Corinthians Chapter 15 verse 44 it says: ‘It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body and there is a spiritual body’.
Once I discovered and was awoken to the concept of spirit I realised that the soul and spirit aspect of who we are, is more significant than who we are physically, because if we are to live on, we won’t live on by the body but by the spirit. True life is in the spirit and not the body.
If we are to be guided on to eternal life we have to be led by the Spirit of God. We have to let the Spirit of God dwell within us, live in the Spirit and walk in the Spirit.
It is the spirit that may be granted eternal life and not the body.
So this illustrates that Spirit is the Truth and this world the physical world, is not the true reality. I believe therefore that I have found the meaning of life; I believe this life is simply a journey for the spirit within.
I believe the purpose of this life is for us to wake up to the fact that we who are led by the Spirit of God through Christ, are Sons of the True Living God and will live on.
In Romans Chapter 8 verse 14 it says ‘For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God’.
The True Living God of love, who made all created things by his Word is a Spirit and we come to know him through Christ by the spirit. For me that is the meaning of life, for one to come to this realisation.
We also have to realise that God is love. So we have to let God’s love manifest itself within us. We have to let God’s love dwell within us, so that we can know God; we have to walk in love and love one another. We need to open our hearts to God’s love within. We have to let Christ dwell within.
In Romans Chapter 8 verse 10 it says ‘And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness’. So through Christ one can come to know God’s love and find true life, once the Spirit of God dwells within.
I think that the meaning of this life is to become spiritually minded and to wake up within. I believe it’s a journey of a transition in the mind to take you from a carnal mind which leads to spiritual death, to that of a conscious spiritual mind which leads to an eternal spiritual life through Christ.
Chapter 9
Summary
Once you take on a spiritual mind then you will begin to discern the truth which is spirit. I believe that we go through many lessons in order that the spirit aspect of ourselves may awake to this fact.
We begin to wake up to the fact that we exist on the inside.
As this is a discussion one may question how or why I can feel convinced by my findings. Well I believe that we were granted all the attributes of intellect, we need to come to this realisation.
I believe that some may never awaken to this conclusion and I also expect that some may awaken sooner than others, according to life lessons learned by the soul of the individual.
We have been granted provisions including our sensory faculties, we have been granted intellect, a heart and we have also been given a soul and spirit whereby we might experience who we are from within.
I believe everything we have been given, is to assist us in our discovery of ourselves whilst in this world.
I believe that once we make the discovery the next step is for us is to make a choice. I believe the choice is that we decide whether or not to be led by the Spirit of God.
I believe that those who choose to remain with God in their spirit, by being led by the Spirit of God will come to see the real truth.
Our perception of life in this world will change and we will see this physical experience for what it is. I believe true life after this physical world, will be made up of the spiritual and no longer the physical.
Therefore I believe the purpose of this life is to choose the physical which is temporary or the spiritual which is eternal.
In my opinion we wouldn’t have been given intellect as well as a spiritual element, if we didn’t require it.
I believe we were given both elements so that we could realise who we truly are. Once our spiritual eyes are opened you can see this world for what it is; it’s simply a physical experience.
It’s an experience which one may perceive as reality. Once you awaken to the spirit element within yourself and take on a spirit mind then you will see that the true reality of all things is spirit.
The physical although it feels real, is just a perception. It feels like reality because it is a sensory experience.
Having an experience, doesn’t prove it is real. Just as when I’m having a dream experience, at the time I cannot prove that the dream is real or unreal.
During my physical experience in this world I cannot prove that this world is real. However, the way I can prove that it’s not the true and only reality of things, is by the fact that I know I have a spirit part within me.
The spirit is outside the boundaries of the physical.
If one cannot use their physical faculties, they still have a spirit element within. When one leaves this physical world, the body is left behind to decay.
It’s only the spirit that exists beyond the limits of this physical world, which proves that the spirit is the true reality.
In my opinion we were granted a spirit as a way to remind us of the true reality within us and to eventually wake us up from spiritual unconsciousness.
All that you see and hear will not reveal all truth, as your mind can deceive you, so your spirit will reveal truth.
That true reality is found once you open the door of your heart through coming to know Jesus Christ. You have to start by opening your heart to the truth.
By opening the door of your heart you can perceive the truth.
When we fail to open our hearts then we fail to perceive the truth. A hardened heart will be unable to see and find the truth. You need to open your heart so you can see with your heart.
Any falsehood can manifest itself physically before your eyes; because you perceive it to be reality, you then think it’s the true reality. To find the real truth you need to realise who you are within and find yourself within.
The way to see the real truth in all things is to begin by having an understanding of yourself. If you don’t understand yourself within, then how can you expect to understand anything outside of you?
By understanding who you are, you can begin to discover and see the truth in all things.
And once you come to realise the purpose of this life, then you will see it for what it is; it’s simply a world which we need to overcome.
We need to overcome the physical to elevate ourselves through Christ to the spiritual, which is the true reality, real life and real truth.
Chapter 10
This Life is not the True Reality
As discussed in earlier chapters it is easy for one to believe that this world is real and is the true reality. For many years I went through this life trying to work hard and strive for the things of this world.
It is clearly evident that before I had my spiritual awakening, I thought the meaning of life was to enjoy my life and to work hard and gain financially in order to make my life as pleasant and as comfortable as possible.
As a result of us wanting a happier and more comfortable life, our perception of this experience and whether it is the real reality or not, becomes irrelevant.
We get so caught up in our minds as we become so focused on trying to make the best of it. Our minds can become carnal as we focus on all that is physical around us.
I thought that the here and now was the most important thing that I needed to think about. I thought who I was as a being and everything about my existence was only related to my existence in this world.
I didn’t really consider anything much beyond that.
I was caught up in the moment carried according to my physically senses. I was led by what I could see and hear and feel. I thought that who I was physically as a body, with emotions was all I was. I didn’t think there was any more to me than that.
I thought the reality of things, was whatever I experienced through my senses. I wasn’t ready I guess to become aware of anything beyond that.
And until an individual may wake up, it may be difficult for one to perceive anything different.
Each day we experience a sensory experience that follows on from the day before. We use our senses in order to get through each day, to experience and live our daily lives.
I believe at times we get so consumed with all the daily issues we have to get through, that the idea that this life and everything in it begins to consume all our energy and thoughts.
We feel and experience emotion, tribulation and at times periods of enlightenment, fulfilment and joy.
We experience pain, sadness and happiness. Nobody can deny that the experience we live through during our lifetimes touches us inside deeply to the core.
It’s so much so, that as mentioned earlier, some may actually try to end this physical experience by taking their own lives. They may get so overwhelmed and distraught, that the world overcomes them instead of them overcoming the world.
It’s sad but true that the experience for some, is so difficult or painful that they want to escape from it permanently.
We feel so deeply that we may literally believe this world has to be real, because we can feel it!
However we always need to remember, just because something looks real and feels real does not prove it is the true reality does it? This was proven earlier in relation to the concept of dreams.
We can be convinced at the time that our dreams are the real reality even though they are just an experience.
Regardless of how nice or terrifying our dreams, we always find the dream is not real at all, once we finally wake up!
I believe once we wake up in our minds spiritually, we can also see that this experience is not the true and only reality of life either.
Until that point, we will continue to live according to the false belief that this world is real and that this is all there is.
In order to progress and gain true understanding of ourselves, our existence now and our purpose in this life, we need to move towards adopting a spiritual mind opposed to the carnal mind.
We need to focus our hearts and minds towards heavenly things which are eternal opposed to earthly physical things which are only temporary.
I believe that this physical life is only temporary, just like our dreams. I believe it’s also a sensory experience based upon our perception.
As the experience is based on our mental perception of time and reality, the experience may appear to us to be totally real.
Just because we have a prolonged sensory experience of a particular existence, does it then make sense for us to assume that the experience is definitely real?
I don’t think so; having learnt about the existence and prevalence of ‘spirit’ I no longer associate this physical experience as the true reality of things.
The fact that we have a Creator who is Eternal proves that eternity exists and proves the fact that the life here is not the true reality.
The life here is an experience whereby we are given the opportunity to wake up and see the true reality of the existence of eternal life.
We spend so much of our lives and time during this experience worrying and striving for the temporary things of this world.
Even if we live a long, happy, healthy and fruitful life in this world, this world is a temporary physical experience of existence.
Each day passes us by and is gone forever never to be lived or experienced again. That’s all we have here, a temporary short existence; eventually our journey here in this physical world will inevitably come to an end.
No matter how hard we work to make our lives as comfortable, happy or successful in this world, there will never be any permanence involved in any of it.
Each day we may strive to collect possessions, reside in a nice home and build up our finances for a rainy day.
What is the point in spending all of our time trying to achieve this, if it means we have no time to think and discover who we truly are?
We can’t take anything with us when we leave this world; we will no longer exist as a physical being, so we should think very carefully about how we choose to spend our time whilst we still have it.
All that we work for and labour for all our lives in this world, will either gather dust, become unusable, or be left for others to inherit on our behalf.
It’s literally pointless to focus all our efforts and labour on the physical things of this world; all of which will not benefit us beyond the time limits of this world.
In John 6 Chapter 27 it says ‘Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him have God the Father sealed’.
Yes of course we all need to survive, make ends meet and aim to enjoy a joyful life experience, but more importantly than that, we need to come to realise that all the things of this world will eventually pass away.
It makes more sense to apply our hearts and minds to heavenly things opposed to worldly things as heavenly things will abide forever.
In Matthew Chapter 6 verse 19, 20 and 21 it says: ‘Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also’.
So according to this particular scripture in the Holy Bible, we are even advised by Jesus, not to collect and hoard up earthly treasures which will eventually spoil, but we should focus our hearts and minds on the treasures of heaven which will last forever.
So again we see it makes no sense to waste the time we have been given trying to consume and collect all the things of this world. If we really want to experience true joy forever we need to focus our hearts on the things of heaven.
We do need some things for our basic use but I guess we shouldn’t become overzealous trying to attain things that will not benefit us after we pass on from here.
Just like material possessions have a sell by or use by date, we too have a certain life span. The lives we live here are limited by time and eventually our time here will be up and finished.
We need to find the true light of Jesus in our hearts now, whilst we are here, to be on our way to finding true and everlasting life.
Chapter 10
Summary
To summarise my findings, I believe that the true meaning of this life is that we are to come to know the True Living God by opening our hearts to Jesus.
I believe we are to seek the Kingdom of God here and now whilst we are in this world, which will help us to see the truth and overcome the things of this world.
If we want true joy in our lives to receive the things our hearts truly desire forever, we should start by seeking the Kingdom of God first, by opening our hearts.
In Matthew Chapter 6 verse 33 it says: ‘But seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you’.
We should seek God first and the things of God first in our lives.
Without the guiding light of Jesus in our lives we can become deluded in our minds and the world may eventually overcome us, instead of us, overcoming the world.
So we need to find God in our lives, by coming to know Jesus, to help see us through.
We need to always remember that everything in this world has a temporary and non-permanent life span, this includes ourselves.
It makes no sense to do what is morally or ethically wrong to gain temporary riches in this world, if it means that we become spiritually blind and poor. We always need to think whether or not a particular action is beneficial to the spirit within.
It’s our spirit that will live on if we make the right choices, not the body. So it’s useless to nourish the body if it means we impoverish our spirit.
We should aim to find true richness and the light of true life within our hearts by knowing who we are as Sons of the True Living God, Jesus being the only Begotten Son of God.
Isn’t it better to have less materialism and distraction from the truth in our lives here and now and be blessed with the joy of true light and life for all eternity?
Wouldn’t it be better to forego some of the temporary delights and comforts of this world and save our souls, if it would mean that we are able to find and enter the Kingdom of God that lasts for all time?
Chapter 11
To overcome this World is the way to True Life
In order to find our way to true life we need to overcome this world by hearing and believing the words of Jesus. In John Chapter 12 verse 47 it says ‘And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world’.
Our only purpose in this life is to overcome the world by rejecting what is false and believing in the Truth, which is Jesus who was sent.
That is the meaning of this life to overcome the world and find our way through Jesus to true life. It is not an easy task to overcome the trials and tribulations of this world. Nobody could ever say that.
This world is filled with so much temptations and distraction; there is the constant choice between good and bad. It’s a constant struggle. It’s like an ongoing battle to choose the right path and stay on the right track.
When we believe in the words of Jesus and are led by the Spirit of God, then we have God’s guidance and protection in this world.
If God’s protection is absent in our lives, it will be more difficult to overcome the elements of this world. We need God’s help to overcome it all.
We become literally powerless in this world in regards to defending ourselves to the negative influences that come into our lives, if we are without God’s guidance.
What is the point of fighting against the inevitable, by hiding from the truth? This world and our existence here is only temporary. We see that no one stays here forever, no matter who they are or what they have.
We experience a very short journey. It may feel like forever some days when we have difficult days that seem to drag on, but it’s literally a short space of time.
We are told that if we can manage to make the choice to overcome this world, then after this life, we have the opportunity to eat from the Tree of Life.
The Tree of Life is described as being in the midst of the Paradise of God. In Revelation Chapter 2 verse 7 it says ‘To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God’.
If we think about it, wouldn’t it be better to forgo some unnecessary things in this life and enter into the Kingdom of God, knowing that the benefits of such will last forever and bring us everlasting joy for all eternity?
The choice seems pretty simple to me, we should not let the temporary things of this world deceive us.
I think that the real meaning of this life is that it is a journey and experience to enable one to open their spiritual eyes, the heart to the truth. That truth being that we all came from the love of God.
God created all and everything that was ever created. The True Living God of all creation, is the beginning, the Alpha and O’me-ga.
In Revelation Chapter 21 verse 6 it says ‘And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and O’me-ga , the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely’.
The Father and the Son are One and when we come to know Jesus the only Begotten Son, then we also come to know the Father. In John Chapter 14 verse 7 it says Jesus said: ‘If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him’. The Father and the Son are sealed as one from the very beginning.
Once we are led by the Spirit of God and understand this fundamental truth, then we will come to understand the real purpose of this life. We need to accept God’s gift to us, which is Jesus. Jesus came to save the world, that through him we might be saved.
Once we accept Jesus as our personal Lord and Saviour then our sins are forgiven. We are washed by the blood of Jesus. We are removed and cleansed of our sins.
And eternal life the real everlasting life, is to know this truth and remain as one with God in one’s spirit.
We are to know the True Living God through knowing Jesus who was sent. It starts when we open our hearts.
In Jeremiah Chapter 24 verse 7 it says ‘And I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the LORD: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart’.
I personally believe that the purpose of this life is to wake us up to the truth; we can open our hearts to God, which can lead us to the truth and after this world to inherit True everlasting life.
It is only Jesus who takes away all the sins of the world.
It is through Jesus that we can live forever, as Jesus forever lives.
Jesus is Alive!
Chapter 12
The Joy of knowing True life once we find it!
Until we wake up to the truth, we may believe that what we are seeing is reality and we may believe what we are hearing is the reality.
However, it’s not until we truly wake up within our hearts and minds that our perception of the truth will change; we need to remove the hardness from our hearts, to find and understand the mystery of the kingdom of God, then we will be able to see the truth and hear the truth.
As God is love, when our hearts remain hard and absent of love within, we cannot perceive the real truth. We are blind to the truth and unable to see and hear the true reality of all things.
According to Mark Chapter 4 verse 11 and 12, its says Jesus spoke and said ‘Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the Kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables: That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them’.
We can get so caught up with the cares of this world that we become blind to the real truth. When we hear the Word of God we can listen for a while and then once again become distracted by the deceits of this world.
As a result of not standing strong in our beliefs we can lose ourselves to the deceitful things of this world.
In Mark Chapter 4 verse 19 it says ‘And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful’.
The Word of God will show you the real truth and the real meaning of this life. This life as real as it may appear to be, is simply a perception just another experience.
Once you begin to see and hear the words of Jesus by opening your heart, your perception of this life will change and you find your way to the Truth.
Abiding in the love of Jesus is the only way by which you can understand the meaning of this life and the purpose of your own life within it.
I believe the world itself is not the true reality you have to find yourself within through knowing Jesus to perceive the true meaning of this life.
It’s a journey of the spirit and the soul within and that soul has to choose to open up to the truth and abide in the truth. The truth that was sent to us being Jesus.
In 1 John Chapter 5 verse 11 and 12 it says ‘And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life’.
So true life is found in the Son as the Father and the Son are one. In John Chapter 14 verse 10 says ‘Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works’.
Jesus is the way to eternal life and our journey during this life is an opportunity for us to open our hearts to realise this.
In John Chapter 14 verse 6 it says that Jesus said ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me’.
There is no other way to the truth but through Jesus. By believing in all the words and works of Jesus, we can see that he came to truly show us the true way. He showed us that the truth was beyond this physical world.
In John Chapter 11 verse 25 and 26 it says Jesus said ‘I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?’
I believe that Jesus came into the world that they who cannot see the truth might see and to help those of us who can see the truth, remain blind to the things of this world.
In John Chapter 9 verse 39 it says ‘For judgement I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind’.
The purpose and meaning of this life, is for us to find the Truth who is Jesus Christ and have our sins forgiven so that we can have everlasting life.
Chapter 12
Part 2
Conclusion
I believe that once you open your heart to the truth and you are led by the Spirit of God, your understanding of the meaning of this life begins to change.
You begin to see all things in a different light; as God begins to shine his light upon you, your mind begins to find wisdom, knowledge and understanding.
Once you receive spiritual enlightenment then you can see that everything that has occurred in your life has happened for a specific reason.
We may not understand the reasons why certain events have occurred in our lives, but as we learn to trust in the Wisdom of God we learn to accept all in good faith.
We are even told not to lean on our own understanding of things. In Proverbs Chapter 3 Verse 5 it says ‘Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding’.
Knowing that everything which occurs in our lives, happens for a purpose helps us to leave the past behind and move on.
It helps us to learn to forgive others just as we would like God to forgive us for our shortcomings and mistakes.
When we know that there is more to life than this world it helps us to accept ourselves more and our circumstances.
The life we experience in this physical world is a journey. We all have our own path to walk, bridges to cross and our own burdens to bare.
I believe that our experiences and how we survive them are definitely a test of our strength and character. It’s our journey, it belongs to us. And each journey must be lived, regardless of whether we understand all that we experience or not.
I have my journey and you have yours.
Nobody can live your life for you and you cannot live somebody else’s life. We each have our own assignment to complete.
You cannot know how somebody else truly feels and they can only empathise and sympathise with you.
They can only begin to try and comprehend what you feel according to their own understanding. Nobody can carry your load or burden and you cannot fully take on anyone else’s.
We have hope that one day we may be blessed by having had patience during our times of difficulty and tribulation in this lifetime.
I believe that having a relationship with the True Living God through knowing Jesus, helps us to feel secure in the fact that we know that we have God’s help and protection to see us through.
When we have more understanding, we realise that this world is not the true reality and so we learn not to worry so much about everything that happens.
We accept the fact that it’s just an experience something we have to go through to get the everlasting joy that awaits, if we choose to listen and believe in the words that Jesus spoke.
I believe that we are all on a journey and during that journey we may make mistakes. I believe that when we understand that God has a plan to give us good, then it helps us to be more accepting of ourselves and others. We are blessed to have Jesus in our hearts to cleanse us of our sins.
I believe that I first found real joy when I came to understand and learn that God is love. Love is the best thing one can be blessed with in one’s heart.
The feeling of joy and happiness that love brings can feel like such a blessing in such a harsh world. You know that love is real because you can’t see it but you can feel it. Once I read that God is love I knew that the True Living God was the real Truth.
Love can make you feel on top of the world and lift the spirit within like nothing else can. It is a blessing to experience real love in one’s heart.
I believe that when I learnt that God is love then it confirmed for me, that the True Living God of the Holy Bible was the Truth.
I know that love exists beyond the physical. It’s something felt by the spirit within. By recognising that I had love within helped me to understand the Truth that we came from God and that it’s our choice to remain with God in our hearts.
Just knowing that God is love and love brings happiness, joy and peace makes me feel happy.
Just knowing that love is a beautiful thing and that love is of God, makes me get through this life, because I feel that I have something joyful beyond this temporary physical world to put my trust and faith in.
There are times when we may feel weak or afraid but I believe that knowing that God wants the best for us and is always with us, can help us to overcome all things.
I believe that the purpose of this life is to learn the truth, then once you have discovered the truth, then you can walk having some inner joy and peace. To be led by the Spirit of God, means one can find joy and peace whilst living in this world.
I believe joy is not only found when we are blessed during our lives in this world, but true joy comes when you have full belief and hope in something beyond this world, which will bring true joy everlasting forever.
Despite the tribulation; the joy and peace comes when you put your trust in God and know that God is by your side every step of the way.
I believe the joy comes when you realise that the desire for the temporary things of this world do not make you rich; it’s the desire for heavenly treasures and the things of God that give you richness in your spirit.
According to Mark Chapter 8 verse 35 it says that Jesus said ‘For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s, the same shall save it’.
In Chapter 36 it goes on to say ‘For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world but lose his own soul?
A person who is spiritually rich by knowing God within, is truly rich. Having a hoard of possessions and finances does not make one truly rich.
That is the purpose of this life, to know God in one’s spirit; that is what makes one truly rich.
When one is consumed with trying to accumulate or achieve in this temporary world then one may become distracted from the real meaning of life.
One can fail to understand anything if they fail to see who they really are within and where they truly came from.
Of course some may be totally satisfied with this world and this existence; it may be the perfect world for them.
However, I believe that anyone who would love to have everlasting Joy for all eternity should take the time out to truly discover the truth for themselves.
The meaning of this life will always have different connotations for different people; each individual will have their own belief, but I think the least we can do is find out what it really means to each one of us.
We basically experience a collection of days. These days we call ‘life’. Some experience more days than others. Every day is unique. Doesn’t it make sense to conclude that those days have been given for a purpose?
Just as our dreams are an experience. No matter what we choose to believe, we cannot prove that this world is a reality. I believe that’s because the reality is spirit.
This proves that the body is not the ultimate truth. I believe the Truth is Jesus and the way to the truth is through him. I believe that is where reality is.
We will see the world for what it really is, an experience based upon our perception. It’s not the real life. The kingdom of God, which lasts for all eternity is the real reality.
Surely the true meaning of this life is for us to finally wake up and realise this?
We must wake up and realise that God is love. We must believe in the Truth Jesus Christ who was sent. Only then will we see the real reality and find the true meaning of our lives. Only then will we begin to understand the meaning of life and see the path that leads to our Eternal home.
Know The Truth Forever and Live 