What Makes Your Life Meaningful
You receive meaning—you don’t achieve it.
Modern life tells us that our worth depends on how much we produce and what we achieve. But the Christian story tells us something deeper. In the Incarnation, God crossed the universe to connect with us—and in doing so, gave our lives meaning.
This is at the heart of what the writer of Colossians is saying:
“Christ Jesus is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers—all things have been created through him and for him. He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” (Colossians 1:15–17)
I realize that the idea of the Incarnation doesn’t resonate with everyone. Some people don’t believe in God. Others may accept the idea of a divine presence but struggle to see God as personal—or to believe that Jesus was God in the flesh.
Still, there’s a place where many of us meet: we are spiritual beings. As I explored in the first reflection, we long for love, meaning, belonging, and connection to something beyond ourselves. The practices we follow to pursue these longings form what I call our spiritual pathway.
There are countless spiritual pathways in today’s world. And yet, at the deepest level, I believe they fall into two basic types.
The first sees meaning as something we must achieve. On this path, we try to create significance through career success, social influence, power, or wealth. We are told that human life is about becoming somebody—earning our place, proving we matter.
The second kind of path sees meaning as something received. It flows from relationship—communion with something or someone beyond ourselves. We find significance not through effort, but through being loved.
The first pathway depends on constant striving. Andrew Root describes this as the will to power—the relentless drive to overcome limitations, conquer challenges, and assert control. Sociologist Hartmut Rosa adds that in our accelerating world, we must move faster and do more just to keep up. This path often leads to exhaustion and alienation.
By contrast, the second path is marked by expectation, openness, and trust. We don’t seize meaning. We wait for it. As Simone Weil put it, “We cannot take a step toward the heavens. God crosses the universe and comes to us.” That’s the essence of Christian spirituality.
This doesn’t mean followers of Jesus are passive. Colossians urges us to be deeply engaged in this relationship:
“Continue securely established and steadfast in the faith, without shifting from the hope promised by the gospel that you heard.” (Colossians 1:23)
Our lives become a response to the love we actively receive. The Benedictine motto ora et labora—“pray and work”—captures this rhythm. We open our hearts to God in prayer. God sends us into the world in love. And then calls us back again to deeper communion.
This post is the second reflection in a four-part series The Infinite in the Everyday.
If you missed the first essays, you can read it here:
Part 1: Our Holy Longing
On the next two Fridays look for:
Part 3: Rethinking Your Spiritual Path
Part 4: Where the Infinite Finds Us
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I do agree that people fall into one of those two categories in life… earning vs. receiving. But is the first pathway really spiritual? It seems like striving for recognition, power, and wealth are more for the ego than the spirit!
I remember that my dad lived to use this maxim- "There are two kinds of people in the world,givers and takers. Be a giver. There are too many takers. "