What is the chief end of man? The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. I’ll never forget the evening; it was early February 1997. I was hosting my weekly talk show at a Christian station in Miami, Florida. My guest was sharing the teachings by a special speaker at the local Christian college that week by the name of John Piper. I was fascinated by our conversation.

After the program I asked him if he had any recommendations as a follow up to our discussion. He said Ralf, “You need to order a copy of Piper’s book “Desiring God.”  Four days later it arrived. I opened the package read the subtitle and literally threw the book across the room. And there it remained for over two weeks.

The subtitle of Desiring God is “Meditations of a Christian Hedonist”. Blasphemy I thought to myself. Actually I said, “What kind of crap is this?” But as I reflected on the discussion I had with my guest a few weeks earlier, and how I, was so drawn to what he had shared, I picked the book off the floor and began to read it.

As Piper shares his opening remarks, he changes one word in the first question of the Westminster Confession to read, “The chief end of man is to glorify God (BY) enjoying Him forever.” He then takes 358 pages to make his case for Christian Hedonism. The statement that hooked me for good was when he wrote, “God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.” This one statement is the Christian hedonist manifesto in a nutshell.

I am a voracious reader and usually can go through a book of this size in a week or so. But it took me nearly 6 months to finish the book. Every paragraph was filled with amazing truths that simply captivated me. I had to stop continually to drink in what I was learning and absorb it into my life. If there remained any doubts in my mind as to the ultimate Why of life, Desiring God helped resolve them.

It is from God and God alone that we derive our significance and purpose in life. He is the One who sustains us. He is our security, and only He can give us what Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones couldn’t find… Satisfaction!

The reason we are unable to find true rest and life balance is because we try to find our significance, satisfaction, security, and sustenance on our own, and in all the wrong places. Like Jagger “cause I try, and I try, and I try, and I try, we live our lives at breakneck speed trying to obtain what can only come through God and God alone.

Do you want true rest and life balance? Start here!

• YouTube