There is a new book on the market titled, “30 Days to Live” and from what I see in the news, it seems there is a movement to live out the principles based on what you would do if you knew you only had 30 days to live. Upon seeing this latest 40 days to this, or 30 days to that…I started contemplating about what I would do with 30 days remaining on this earth.
My mind took me to very typical thoughts of hugging my grandchildren more, cleaning out my junk room or taking that cruise I have been talking about for years. Then my thoughts migrated to the recent devastation in Haiti and I imagined the importance of a simple bottle of water or worse case scenario – desperately searching for my grandchildren amongst the rubble.
If I lived in Haiti and I had known 30 days ago that this earth-shaking event would happen, what would I have done differently? Certainly I would have tried to leave the country with my family – that’s the simple answer, but what if…I had known the entire earth would collapse within the next 30 days? What would I have done differently?
Prayed more? Loved more? Hugged more? Laughed more? I wonder…
The junk room and the cruise would not have crossed my mind nor would I have thought about the bad hair day or bumper-to-bumper traffic or even the rising price of gas. I think that the external things of life would have suddenly become so insignificant there would be no room to occupy my mind or my emotions.
Wonder how different life would be if I knew, not that I only had 30 days to live, but that the people I loved so dearly only had 30 days to live? How would I view them? How would I respond to their wants and needs, their hopes and dreams? I imagine there are many things that would become hardly noticeable and instead their smiles and laughter would fill every moment.
Moments…that’s it!! Not hours, days or even years, but moments. We are not promised the hour much less days. So from now on I vow to do my best to cherish each and every moment. To be ever mindful that each moment is a gift from God for a special purpose that only He knows.
And when that final moment comes for me or my loved ones, I pray we will see the gates of Heaven open wide and hear HIM say; “Well done My good and faithful servant. Welcome Home!”
My mind took me to very typical thoughts of hugging my grandchildren more, cleaning out my junk room or taking that cruise I have been talking about for years. Then my thoughts migrated to the recent devastation in Haiti and I imagined the importance of a simple bottle of water or worse case scenario – desperately searching for my grandchildren amongst the rubble.
If I lived in Haiti and I had known 30 days ago that this earth-shaking event would happen, what would I have done differently? Certainly I would have tried to leave the country with my family – that’s the simple answer, but what if…I had known the entire earth would collapse within the next 30 days? What would I have done differently?
Prayed more? Loved more? Hugged more? Laughed more? I wonder…
The junk room and the cruise would not have crossed my mind nor would I have thought about the bad hair day or bumper-to-bumper traffic or even the rising price of gas. I think that the external things of life would have suddenly become so insignificant there would be no room to occupy my mind or my emotions.
Wonder how different life would be if I knew, not that I only had 30 days to live, but that the people I loved so dearly only had 30 days to live? How would I view them? How would I respond to their wants and needs, their hopes and dreams? I imagine there are many things that would become hardly noticeable and instead their smiles and laughter would fill every moment.
Moments…that’s it!! Not hours, days or even years, but moments. We are not promised the hour much less days. So from now on I vow to do my best to cherish each and every moment. To be ever mindful that each moment is a gift from God for a special purpose that only He knows.
And when that final moment comes for me or my loved ones, I pray we will see the gates of Heaven open wide and hear HIM say; “Well done My good and faithful servant. Welcome Home!”
Very well put. A friend was recently philosophizing on how we measure life - days, months, years - when it should instead be measured in moments, just like you say. If we viewed our lives with that perspective, how much richer our moments would be! Thanks for the insight, Sue!
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