One day Snoopy and Charlie Brown were out playing fetch. Charlie threw the stick. Snoopy chased it and brought it back. Charlie threw it again. Snoopy chased it again. Suddenly Snoopy stopped. And the comic strip pictured him thinking to himself, “I wonder what people will say about me after I’m gone … He was a nice guy … He chased sticks.”
There’s not much point in chasing sticks, nor in living a life that “chases the wind” as Solomon put it (Ecclesiastes 1:14). And what are the sticks we chase? The stick of success? The stick of wealth? The stick of health? And WHO decides the sticks we chase, the goals we pursue? And, more importantly, WHO is throwing your stick?
He was a nice guy, he chased sticks. He was a nice guy, he died wealthy. He was an interesting person, when he died they made a museum out of his house. She was a famous person, when she died, they used a whole column in the obituary section of the paper. He was one of the greats. When he died, it made the front page. He was a nice guy. And he died. And she died. But what for? For what reason? What did they do that gave both their life and their death meaning? What can I do in life that will survive my death?
George McDonald wrote, “In whatever man does without God, he must fail miserably, or succeed more miserably.” Or as Jesus put it, “What good is it … to gain the world, but lose your soul?” … to lose your essence … to lose who you are … who you are designed to be. Chasing sticks?
God has given me so much to do,
And I’m so far behind,
I’ll never die.
I remember Landon Saunders asking the question, “What are you doing that will survive your death?” It made a tremendous impact on my life, and I think Jesus is asking the same question in a story he told about a “rich fool” (Luke 12). It’s a story about a man who was so successful that he had to upgrade, update, and expand his entire physical plant. He had collected and accumulated a massive amount of materials. But he had not made the kind of investment that would survive his death. I guess that’s why he’s called a “rich fool.”
At one point in the story the question is raised, “This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?” You see, everything that I ask to give my life purpose, to be my reason for living, must also be able to tell me what it will do for me then.
Then is the real test of a life purpose.
What is a life purpose today? What does it mean to have a life goal? For some it means to win a medal, or chair a department, or author a best seller, or rank high in their field of work. For others it simply means to make it, to put food on the table, to get out of debt, to survive. But what ever I’m going after, what happens when my life purpose has taken me as far as it can, and it’s not far enough? Just how far can the very best of temporary goals take a person?
I guess I’m asking if it’s really fair to ask something temporary to do something it’s not designed to do. You know what I mean — to ask my position to give me integrity, to ask my schedule to give me self-worth, to ask my checkbook to take away my worry, to ask my heritage to give me character, to ask my accomplishments to erase my failures — to ask something temporary to give me something permanent.
And so, how do I avoid a success that fails? I know it might sound crazy to even talk about successes that fail. But they do, all the time. Success fails when it takes me away from my children, when it makes my spouse a stranger, or when it teaches me to be selfish and arrogant. Business may be a booming success, but what about life and relationships?
And so, what does Jesus’ story teach us about avoiding a success that fails?
Talk To The Right Person (vs. 17-18) “What shall I do? This is what I’ll do.” There are fourteen personal pronouns in this man’s speech to himself — my crops, my barns, my grain, my goods. Who is he talking to? Himself. And what does the story say is the real source of his success? It’s easy to miss. Verse 16 says, “the ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop.” You see, when we break success down into it’s parts, we are left with a series of important questions. Who gives us the raw materials, who brings to us the opportunities, who builds into us our skill and talent, and who grants us the time to put it all together? Answer — The one who made the ground. Talk to the right person, and it’s not you.
Follow The Right Plan (vs.17) “I have no place to store my crops.” Here’s my question — What plan is this man following? You can see it in the word “store.” That’s it. This is his life plan — to produce and store. All of his time and energy is given to keeping, accumulating, stockpiling, hoarding. And for whom? Well, no one else is mentioned in the story. This man is given great gifts, which he plans to share with no one. He’s not following the right plan.
Pursue The Right Goal (vs. 19 “Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.” Of course, there is nothing wrong with enjoyment, but there is a huge difference between making a living and making a life. This man was really concerned with storage, but you can’t store your life in a barn. Just imagine what this farmer could have done with his success. He could have called his family together for a time of worship, thanking God for his rich harvest. He could have invested his wealth in his community, making it a better place for everyone. He could have shared his wealth with the poor, the widow, the orphan, the destitute. He could have pursued a hundred different goals that would impact the lives of people. And all of his goals would survive his death.
You see, relationship is the only success that doesn’t fail. Only people will last forever. Investing in people is the only work that will survive my death.
As a missionary to Ecuador, Jim Elliot was killed at age 29 by the very tribe he was trying to teach. He once said:
“He is no fool
who gives what he cannot keep
to gain that which he cannot lose.”
One day Snoopy and Charlie Brown were out playing fetch. Charlie threw the stick. Snoopy chased it and brought it back. Charlie threw it again. Snoopy chased it again. Suddenly Snoopy stopped. And the comic strip pictured him thinking to himself, “I wonder what people will say about me after I’m gone … He was a nice guy … He chased sticks.”