Ryan,

I don't think there is a reason for our existence.  I think we just are, and in some way we always will be.

When the leaf uncurls toward the sun it doesn't ask why.   When the leaf blows off the tree it doesn't ask why.

But we do.  Why?

blink

Accept these premises for the explanation that follows: 1) first there is infinite space, littered with universes separated by immense (not infinite) distance not spanned by light due to the various young ages of the respective universes.  2) in this space (we'll name "all that is") there is interconnectedness from being made of the same basic stuff (elements + higher dimensional stuff).

Life on earth is a simple manifestation of direction to consciousness of the "all that is", which began with simple interconnectedness.  When we were all just part of a big floaty thing like star and planet material, we had no direction or purpose but to be static, or at least slowly changing at best.  If any direction or purpose was to become of consciousness derived from connectedness, the elements around us ("matter") had to be utilized in a way to forward our interest - thus god is born and creation.  This is why we learn, why we fight, why we're competitive, etc. ("we" being all living things here).  To not ask "why" is to not learn, to not learn is to revert back to a static gas cloud status and cease using what we have to satisfy our natural hunger originating from existing in the first place.  Nothing wrong being a static gas cloud, but consciousness implies direction and purpose, or how else would one distinguish it from nothingness?  Consciousness, therefore, can never die, because it is in the fabric of all that is and in fact is the fabric itself.  Had we never utilized matter such as earth and all that happens here in space and time, the consciousness born of the simple existance of interconnected everything would be very hungry and unsatisfied, and end up with some other direction using some other way to progress.  It's simple and inevitable.  anyhoo that's how I think about it.