IN THIS FAST PACED WORLD, IT'S LIKELY OUR PATHS MAY NEVER CROSS AGAIN. So what if they don't? In a world of cheap promises of wealth, health, and happiness, I've discovered something that has made a lasting difference in my life--and I'd like to share it with you. You don't need to be somebody special to make this discovery yourself. I'm just an ordinary person. But one day I found that there was something more to life than living for weekends, working a lifetime to stay ahead of bills, growing old, and finally . . . death. OUR PURPOSE FOR BEING HERE From the beginning of time, according to a special book called the Bible, life was meant to be a richly satisfying experience. The purpose of life even included friendship with God himself In fact, God created man and woman to enjoy his friendship in a perfect world of love and trust. God created humankind in his own image (Genesis 1:27). He shared with them qualities similar to his own-- intelligence, conscience, personality, speech, the ability to choose. The things that still give our lives meaning today. Despite a great start, there came a time when the first man and woman, Adam and Eve, chose to go against one of God's instructions to them. The consequences were immediate. Their sin--the choice to disobey God--broke their once-close friendship with him (Genesis 3). Even worse, sin's eventual result was physical death. And death opened the door into sin's final outcome, eternal death, separation forever from God. And from their day to ours human history can be summed up this way: "Although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. The wages of sin is death" (Romans 1:21; 3:23; 6:23). Unfortunately, we have all followed the ways of our forefathers. Disobedience. Deceit. Lies. Using others. Loving money. No time for God in our lives. But God had a solution to the disastrous problems of sin. His plan: Have someone who had never done wrong take the place of everyone who had ever done wrong. An innocent substitute for guilty wrongdoers. THE ORIGINAL PLAN RESTORED Two thousand years ago the plan went into action. Jesus Christ, God's Son, became one of us. In his 33-year lifetime as the God-Man, he fulfilled every requirement and expectation God ever hoped for us. He never once sinned against his Father or those around him. In other words, Jesus quali