“And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good.”
–Genesis 1:31
The creation of the earth gives us insight into our origins—and God’s intention for us.
“Then God said, “Let us make man (humanity) in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
So God created man (humanity) in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.
And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good.” -Genesis 1:26-31a
What is the meaning of life?
If you look back over that scripture, and read it to understand God, yourself, and the people around you—we can draw some conclusions.
We were created in the image of god
You are intrinsically valuable from the get-go; because you are an image-bearer of one so great the entire earth and and universe were birthed from his words.
we were given a job to do
What God’s eternal purpose for us is we may not know yet. But we know the job we’ve been given while we’re here here on earth: to have dominion over the earth. How is that going? Have you ever thought about the authority you’ve been given over the birds around you, the ants under your feet, and every critter that crosses your path? We can ask God for direction in how to step into our destined role.
we are part of a whole
“Male and female he created them.” Together we make up the image of God—artistic and logical, passionate and rational, strong and nurturing, goal driven and relationally driven. These are characteristics that we often attribute to one gender or the other; but the truth is that these attributes spread themselves out over both sexes—and together we make up a whole unit that bears the image of God. Regardless of whether you are a man or a woman, you are an essential piece of the creation, and your gifts define what it means to be what you are.
Be fruitful and multiply
A fruitful tree is healthy, strong, and bears a lot of fruit. This is God’s intent for us. This is a good time to mention that when our destiny is broken, it can be the source of our greatest pain. When love is broken, run to your God in prayer, cry out to him—and seek him for the strength and satisfaction of relationship that he intended for you.
you have already been given wealth
Every fruit, every vegetable is yours for food. Modern industry has cloaked fat and salt into colorful packages, but the real packages—the perfect serving size of an apple, the vitamin C in an orange—these were designed to perfectly supply your body with nutrients and pleasure. We are grateful for his generosity.
Everything you see was intended for good. For life. For love.
Seek God today, seek his goodness.