David was having a moment with God as he penned Psalm 39. He was thinking about how he wanted to live his life. So, he asked God to remind him how fleeting life is… here today and gone tomorrow. As I pondered it, I was reminded of the poem Dash by Linda Ellis. Here are a few stanzas:
I read of a man who stood to speak at the funeral
of a friend. He referred to the dates on the tombstone
from beginning to end.
He noted that first came the date of birth and spoke
of the following date with tears, but he said what
mattered most of all was the dash between those years.
For that dash represents all the times they spent
alive on earth and now only those who loved them
know what that little line is worth.
For it matters not, how much we own, the cars…the house…
the cash. What matters is how we live and love
and how we spend our dash.
As I read this, I thought about my life. With seventy in the near future, I realize that I probably don’t have long left on this earth. Long in comparison to the life I’ve already lived. It’s true that life is but a vapor. None of us are guaranteed tomorrow. With that said, I had a moment with God too. I said, “Lord, I want the remainder of my days to really matter..” Here are four ways I will strive to live out the rest of my dash…
Live intentionally! Living intentionally means making conscious, deliberate choices to align your daily actions, habits, and resources with your core values and long-term goals. So instead of drifting through life on auto-pilot, I will try to live biblically. Every decision, every action, every habit I will think about before I move forward. This doesn’t mean I will always have success, but I will try.
Invest wisely! I will work at investing in relationships. I have been to all fifty states and to many countries, but if I knew I only had a year to live, would I want to go on another trip? No! I would choose to invest in relationships… first and foremost, my relationship with Jesus. And then with people in my life… family, friends, community. Seasoned believers, new believers, and unbelievers. People were valuable to Jesus – that’s why He came. People should be valuable to us as well.
Walk in boldness! It has been said that the late D. James Kennedy – pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Ft. Lauderdale, FL – never went anywhere without telling people about Jesus. I want to live the remainder of my days that way too. I will pray for stronger boldness.
Prepare for eternity! How do we do this? By remaining pure, living out the Great Commission, studying God’s Word more intently, praying for others, and by waiting with anticipation the return of Jesus. One day… and it could be sooner than later… we will be face-to-face with Jesus. I know I want to be ready for that day. I hope you do, too.