(This week’s devotions are based on Sunday’s message: Win the Day…Wind the Clock – LISTEN HERE)
What does it mean to be alive?
Breathing? Heart pumping? Mind working?
The question isn’t intended just to spark the physiological evidence that determines if someone is alive or dead, it’s meant to be more of a philosophical question.
What does it mean to be alive?
Some may speak of being “present in the moment.” Others might speak of “conscious awareness” or similar concepts. Perhaps these have some practical value to get the most out of each day, but let me proposed this as what it means to be alive.
Always Living In View of Eternity = ALIVE!
While each day has tasks, activities, relationships and more to enjoy, each day is one step closer to your death and the end of your experience on earth.
So what are you doing today to be ready for that day?
The younger one is, perhaps the farther from one’s mind that question is. The older one is, the more real death becomes. However, while actuaries give averages of life spans, there is no guarantee for any age the number of days one has left.
So live ALIVE today!
What does that look like?
First, invest in things that last. The Prophet Isaiah wrote (40:8), The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever. The one reality that moves past this life is the One who created time and the One who spoke his Word into time. Investing in that eternal word of truth is so important to do on a daily basis. Your soul needs it!
Yesterday morning I was listening to a podcast my wife invited me to listen to. Honestly I didn’t get much of it, but toward the end the presenter was speaking about leadership and how leaders were to create the vision and direction for the future, but also create an environment of creativity and innovation to bring that vision to reality…not get caught in the weeds of the day to day operations, which is easy for leaders to do. The topic wasn’t as important as the question he posed, “What does the future need you to do today?” Great question! Especially as a Christian, the future needs you to invest in your relationship with the Lord today!
Second, be ready and keep watch. Vigilance is so important, but hard to maintain. Jesus taught in Matthew 24:42 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. 43 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him. 45 “Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? 46 It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns.”
Being ALIVE means spending today working, serving, learning, to the glory of God and the building up of your faith.
Enjoy your day. Invest in that which is eternal. Your future will thank you for it.
Apply: What can you do today that invests in your eternity?
Prayer: Lord keep my hearts and eyes focused on you…always living in view of eternity. AMEN.