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LIVING WITH A LACK OF<br />
PURPOSE<br />
Sadly, we can often settle for less than a life that is fully fulfilled. To<br />
live your whole life without finding or fulfilling your life purpose is<br />
indeed a tragedy. Unsurprisingly, studies have shown that a lack of<br />
purpose increases the risk of depression, suicidal thoughts, poor<br />
relationships and substance or alcohol abuse. In fact, a recent survey<br />
showed that those with a low sense of purpose had a 2.4 times<br />
higher risk of dying than those with a high sense of purpose. 2<br />
This is nothing new. Living without a sense of purpose can lead to<br />
what the writer of the Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes described<br />
as a life that seems completely ‘meaningless’. Having tried everything<br />
‘under the sun’ – intellectualism (the pursuit of knowledge), hedonism<br />
(the pursuit of pleasure) and materialism (the pursuit of money and<br />
possessions), the writer concluded that it is all ‘meaningless’<br />
(Ecclesiastes 1:2).<br />
LIVING WITH A MISGUIDED<br />
PURPOSE<br />
It’s one thing to live with no or little purpose; it’s another to live with a<br />
misguided sense of purpose.<br />
Imagine the following scene from the 2004 Athens Olympic Games.<br />
The American rifle shooter Matt Emmons is one shot away from<br />
winning the gold medal. He aims his rifle at the target, 50 metres<br />
way, takes a deep breath, fires and hits the bullseye. The computer,<br />
however, fails to register. Emmons shrugs, calls over the judges –<br />
who shrug too. Was it the gun or the computer malfunctioning?
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