episode 14. INVESTING IN LIFE

who do we follow? thelawdsway

So, I have made my #foryoupage to be 80%, so far, filled with the Christian side of TikTok. I was scrolling on TikTok yesterday afternoon and I stopped to watch this one post that had a screenshot of Ecclesiastes 11:4-6.

The post read the chapter from the New Living Translation (NLT) version. Now I read from the Christian Standard Bible (CSB), so I went over to read it in that version:

4 One who watches the wind will not sow,

and the one who looks at the clouds will not reap.

5 Just as you don’t know the path of the wind,

or how bones develop in the womb of a pregnant woman,

so also you don’t know the work of God who makes everything.

6 In the morning sow your seed,

and at evening do not let your hand rest,

because you don’t know which will succeed,

whether one or the other,

or if both of them will be equally good.

Upon finishing reading it, I scrolled back up to the top and the subheading for the whole chapter (so verses 1-10) was called 'Invest in Life.'

So, today I want to talk about investing in life.

When I first read the whole chapter, I was like 'how has it taken me this long to come across/hear of such verse' and it made me really evaluate how much more I need to be doing as I continue on my spiritual journey because this is a powerful chapter. Moving on from the self-reflection, I started questioning what does it mean to invest in life?

Definitions

Before we go any further, here are the three definitions of 'invest,' 'in' and 'life.'

Invest: devote (one's time, effort, or energy) to a particular undertaking with the expectation of a worthwhile result.

In: expressing the situation of something that is or appears to be enclosed or surrounded by something else as well as expressing a period of time during which an event happens, or a situation remains the case.

Life: the existence of an individual; vitality, vigour, or energy; the period during which something continues to exist, function, or be valid.

Message

The common word within these three definitions is 'energy.' Although this word isn't explicitly stated in the definition for 'in,' the act of expression is the use of energy. Energy is having the capacity to be active, to work, to be lively.

The ability to invest in life is the capacity to have energy and for that energy to be used to its maximum potential whilst living. You yourself cannot invest in your life when you've passed, albeit others can do it for you, but YOU will no longer be able to do it for YOURSELF.

Making investments, is making smart decisions but at the same time, being aware that there may be some form of a risk attached to said investment. To invest is to act and to act you need to be able to work and produce such work in a lively manner. It is the opposite of being still as being still doesn't produce results (e.g., verse 4).

Arguably, being still provides protection from the risk of investments to a certain extent, because with no action there's no risk of a consequence having the ability to occur from said action. However, if you decide to render yourself still, won't you be deemed to lack faith? As although the main requirement to making investments is to know how to make smart decisions, there is a requirement of faith to be involved as even though you are aware a consequential risk may arise from such investment, you still believe in yourself enough to pursue the investment and achieve the result you are aspiring to achieve (e.g., verse 5).

That is the essence of investing in life: to make smart decisions and have the faith to be ready to pursue the outcome of such decision, in spite of any consequential risk that may arise from such decision. Some decisions may work out great, and some decisions may set you back. If you believe in yourself to continue to push forward and achieve the life you want to be living, you will have the ability to get yourself back up every time you fall and continue to sow the seeds of success you desire to grow into something fruitful (e.g., verse 6).

Investing in life isn't an easy task. It takes planning and it isn't something that can be quickly drawn up. You have to be genuine in how you make your investments, and in turn, ensure that the investments that you are placing into your life are genuine and pure. To be able to effectively invest in life, you cannot store sorrow and hatred in your heart as the focus will not be on how you can elevate yourself, in a wholly manner, but how you can elevate yourself to give yourself a so called 'entitled right' to belittle others.

Our duration of life and with the time we have to invest in our lives amount to the size of a mustard seed. Time is immeasurable and in the immeasurable timeline of life on earth, life as we know it amounts to even less than one second in the earth's history, in other words it is fleeting moment of time (e.g., verse 10).

In knowing this, invest in your life carefully, wisely, and fruitfully.

Remember, Trust in the Lord, Love like the Lord and Walk with the Lord. TLW

who do we follow? thelawdsway