Don't count on it

Speaking of wasting time.....the other day I was perusing Facebook :-)

I was 'encouraged' to 'reconnect' with an old friend. Curious, I clicked on that friend's name......curious, because sadly......that friend is no longer with us on this earth. Her Facebook page is frozen in time from the last day she was on it two years ago. Her 'wall' is filled with recent postings from friends and family who miss her terribly as time marches on. She left too early, suddenly and without warning, in her early twenties.

Reviewing the year 2010 in the newspapers is another poignant reminder that too many left early from this journey called life - many at a young age.

I don't say all this to be morbid. Quite the opposite.

I encourage you to give every day your utmost attention to live it to the fullest - every day you've been given.

For me personally, that means letting God be first and foremost in my life.....and focusing on what gives lasting results and makes a difference both during and after this life. Even though people will say, 'follow your heart - do what feels right to you', that statement always brings me back to the Bible's wisdom that says you can't trust your heart!!! Trusting our heart is what more often gets us in trouble!

Instead, we are directed to lay up what is most important to us - our treasures - in heaven where it lasts forever. If that which is most important to us is not eternal, it's time to evaluate why we consider it our 'treasure'. It leaves me needing to determine daily what is most important in my life in each decision I make, word I speak, and action I take. And those decisions, words, and actions impact many, many people - like ripples or waves across the water when a ship passes by.

Eternity is a whole lot longer than the 2 - 25 - 50 - 70 - 90 years we might be allotted. So start your savings account now, depositing daily where it matters, and you will be richer than you can ever imagine.

To remind me, this picture hangs in our bathroom:

This additional reminder now graces our corner kitchen nook:

I leave you with a song by Chris Rice, which the first time I heard it on his CD which I had purchased, I played it over continuously at least 25-30 times - and now at least a couple of times on my birthday or New Years Day. I'm weird like that when I want to infuse lyrics into my soul. Enjoy......and play it as many times as you like!

F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-..............

"Let them eat cake."

Today I turn f-f-f-f-f-f-... Today I turn f-f-f-f-f-fi...fi.....fi. Today I turn fi...fif....fif...fif..........fif.......ty. There. It's out. I am now fif....ty. Ow. That hurts. Fifty is what was really old when I was in my teens and twenties. In my mind, I'm still sort of back there....so I'm not making this leap too well. My husband must sense my discomfort over all this. The card he gave me this morning made no reference to my age, no snide remarks (which he is very good at) - just an adorable kitten on the card and the words, 'Another year older...another year cuter.' He obviously knew he'd be in the doghouse for anything less than kind. My friends are telling me, 'It's just a day'....but yah, it's the 'day' I turn fi....you know. I have now lived half a century! I'm not making this any easier on myself am I? And I really do remember when a wagon was pulled by a horse on our street to deliver our milk bottles. I thought I'd imagined it until I read the history of our city and saw the pictures. I even had the name of the horse right.

I would say to every young person, as was told to me so many times and I didn't get it....enjoy every day, live every day to its fullest because time will fly by and you'll be old before you know it. When you are young, you think you have all the time in the world and 'old age' is so distant it's not even a thought. But I'm telling you, every 10 years you'll look back and go 'Whoa! Where did those years go?' And after 5 times of saying that, you'll be here! Although I guess you wouldn't say that at age 5....or even age 10.... I am rambling. Old people do that. None of us are guaranteed our next breath. I have friends who died before fif....ty. So I guess that puts us all in the same boat. We all have this moment....period.

To live.

To make good choices. To run from bad choices.

To set our priorities and not waver from them.

To spend as many moments as possible with the One who loves us.

To avoid what distracts us from Him.

I really don't want any regrets at the end of my life.

"Don’t let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator. Honor him in your youth before you grow old..." Ecclesiastes 12:1 (New Living Translation Bible)

Here's a song to live your life by:

Life Means So Much by Chris Rice

Everyday is a journal page

Every man holds a quill and ink

And there’s plenty of room for writing in

All we do and believe and think

So will you compose a curse

Or will today bring the blessings

Fill the page with rhyming verse

Or some random sketchings

Teach us to count the days

Teach us to make the days count

Lead us in better ways

Somehow our souls forgot

Life means so much

Life means so much

Life means so much

Everyday is a bank account

And time is our currency

So no one’s rich, nobody’s poor

We get twenty-four hours each

So how are you gonna spend

Will you invest or squander

Try to get ahead

Or help someone who’s under

Teach us to count the days

Teach us to make the days count

Lead us in better ways

Somehow our souls forgot

Life means so much

Life means so much

Life means so much

Has anybody lived who knew the value of a life?

And don’t you think giving his own

Would prove the worth of yours and mine?

Teach us to count the days

Teach us to make the days count

Lead us in better ways

Somehow our souls forgot

Life means so much

Life means so much

Life means so much

Copyright 2000 Clumsy Fly Music (ASCAP)

Listen to a clip here.