Yes, the diet is going well; first time I've actually stuck one out this long - 17 pounds in 17 days. Anyway, the weight loss is not the big deal, it's really the lessons. I'm pretty convinced God can teach you anything in any experience if you are just open and attentive.
So, a few more lessons:
1. A few days ago, while running some errands, I passed by a restaurant that smelled particularly good. From the parking lot of another store, my senses were pleasantly assaulted. I mean I smelled something good, really good. What came to mind as that nasal temptation lingered is that sinful behavior or godly behavior work the same way. When we get near enough to smell something tempting, it is very likely to draw us in. The best thing to do is stay far away from the aroma of temptation. Now, that's probably no surprise, but think of the positive application of that same principle. When we have walked with God, when we have "tasted and seen that the Lord is good," His aroma, the aroma of godliness can draw us in. The more positive experiences we have in walking with the Lord, the more we experience His goodness and faithfulness, the greater our appetite for Him. I want the smell of godliness to become so appealing to me that the temptations this world assails me with have no pleasurable draw.
2. About mid-way through the diet (day 11 or so), I stalled. I stopped losing any weight. For four days I was stuck at the same weight. I panicked initially and then I remembered the book said it was common to stall about half-way through for 4-6 days. Sure enough, on day 5, I dropped 3 pounds which put me right back on track with my pound per day average. Now, I'll be honest, even though I knew the stall was normal, four days of no results was pretty disheartening. There were even a few brief moments of "I might as well quit." It was discouraging, but then came day 5 - more progress. I find the same is true in my spiritual life. There are times I stall out, make little progress, and get discouraged. As Chuck Swindoll said, it's three steps forward, two steps back. The two steps back aren't any fun, but it's still progress. We just have to hang on and press on. I have to focus on the positive God is working in my life. When I fall back I cannot allow satan to beat me down and convince me to give up. I need to look for the next forward step and focus on the success God gives me. Success breeds success.
3. Because I wasn't all that fat or unhealthy looking (I like to wear loose fitting clothes) when people would hear I was on a diet they would ask "WHY!" You know, how something looks on the outside doesn't tell everything. I didn't look bad, but my body fat % was quite high and despite working out almost daily I never lost weight (doesn't help that I eat like a pig - may surprise some of you, but food is one area where I have no self-control. Really, around my house they hide stuff from me - if I see a package of Oreos, I won't eat one or two, I'll eat the whole package). Well I digress (sounds like digest - wish I had something to digest right now). So, you see where I'm going here...spiritually, it's definitely not how we look on the outside but what's happening inside. Remember man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart (I Samuel 16:7). Jesus, in talking about the Pharisees (very religious people), said they were like "white washed tombs" - looking good on the outside, but filled with death, rotten, stinking. I want to be careful, when I look in the mirror spiritually, that I'm looking past the outward appearance and really letting the Spirit of God show me my heart. It may take some pretty strict dieting from the world, but I'd rather my heart be really healthy than just look good to others.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Diets and Sin
So I started this diet over the weekend. I'm not a big diet person, but I am a big person, hence the diet. I really haven't tried diets much before because I was too hungy. Without too much boring detail, one of the fascinating aspects of this particular diet is that to kick in the fat-burning process, the first two days of the diet you get to gorge on every fattening, sweet, non-healthy, high carb food you can imagine. (After those two days you drop to 500 calories a day, not the point of this post, just looking for a little sympathy).
This past Sunday and Monday were my gorge days. I was pretty excited leading up to it, but what I didn't know - gorging can make you absolutely sick of even your favorite foods. Sunday a.m. I had a HUGE breakfast. Between services, although I wasn't hungry, I had a hearty snack. At lunch I scarfed down a big serving of pasta and bread. Then I decided to have some cheesecake (one of my favs). After about two bites, it was all I could do to get the cheesecake down - definitely did not enjoy it! That afternoon I had a chocolate shake and cookies, followed by a feast at Mi Ranchito Sunday night. Even Mi Ranchito, which I absolutely love, was not very enjoyable. I was absolutely stuffed and wanted nothing. Monday was no better. Fat juicy burgers, shakes and fries, pizza and chocolate chip pie.
During the two days, several thoughts occured to me about how my gluttonous experience was a lot like sin:
1. I really thought I would enjoy having everything I wanted in excess; the reality was much more miserable than I anticipated. Sin is like that - Hebrews says it's pleasures last only for a season - looks like fun, but you end up totally miserable.
2. During the two days I was pigging out, I tried to sneak around as much as possible. I would look around and see if anyone I knew was in the restaurant because I didn't want anyone to see me shoveling all that food in my face. When a believer sins, they know what they are doing is wrong and they usually try to hide.
3. As I waddled from place to place (that's what it felt like) I imagined that everyone was watching me, that everyone knew what I'd been doing. We are all pretty adept at hiding our sin, but those closest to us, those who really care will probably notice something is up. Why do we play games and hide when confession and honesty will bring great relief? We need people to be accoutable to, people who care enough to confront when we are "fat with sin."
4. Sometimes in the middle of eating some massive amount of junk I would feel like I couldn't get through, but I would push on because it just seemed the thing to do - "I've gone this far, why stop now." With sin, as a believer, the Holy Spirit is speaking. Often we know in the middle of the sin that we need to stop but we carry on - "I've gone this far..." How much easier would it be to repent and change course if we listened early on before too much damage was done?
5. On Monday at lunchtime, I was excited about a big burger and fries at 5 Guys. Louanne didn't want to go in with me because she doesn't eat like that. So, I got out at 5 Guys and she went down the street to Quiznos. It's kind of lonely eating by yourself. Sin is lonely; it breaks fellowship with God and those around you.
6. During the two days of packing in the calories and fat, I felt like I was carrying a huge load. My actual weight probably only went up about five pounds, but I felt heavily burdened. Do I have to tell anyone how difficult the burden of sin is and how much better we feel when the load has been removed?
7. Monday night, after my second piece of chocolate chip pie, I was having difficulty just getting my breath. Anna Grace looked across the table at me and said, "Dad, you better be right about this diet; you have no hope if this doesn't work." Because I had been thinking for two days about all the analogies between the diet and sin, I immediately thought about my hope in Christ. If it were not for Him, I would have no hope. I would forever be bound to "waddle" through life, feeling miserable and burdened, with a trail of broken relationships, having no better plan than to keep on doing the same miserable thing.
I don't want to sin. I do want to please Him. Maybe the next time temptation comes I can remember all I learned about sin and misery from my diet.
This past Sunday and Monday were my gorge days. I was pretty excited leading up to it, but what I didn't know - gorging can make you absolutely sick of even your favorite foods. Sunday a.m. I had a HUGE breakfast. Between services, although I wasn't hungry, I had a hearty snack. At lunch I scarfed down a big serving of pasta and bread. Then I decided to have some cheesecake (one of my favs). After about two bites, it was all I could do to get the cheesecake down - definitely did not enjoy it! That afternoon I had a chocolate shake and cookies, followed by a feast at Mi Ranchito Sunday night. Even Mi Ranchito, which I absolutely love, was not very enjoyable. I was absolutely stuffed and wanted nothing. Monday was no better. Fat juicy burgers, shakes and fries, pizza and chocolate chip pie.
During the two days, several thoughts occured to me about how my gluttonous experience was a lot like sin:
1. I really thought I would enjoy having everything I wanted in excess; the reality was much more miserable than I anticipated. Sin is like that - Hebrews says it's pleasures last only for a season - looks like fun, but you end up totally miserable.
2. During the two days I was pigging out, I tried to sneak around as much as possible. I would look around and see if anyone I knew was in the restaurant because I didn't want anyone to see me shoveling all that food in my face. When a believer sins, they know what they are doing is wrong and they usually try to hide.
3. As I waddled from place to place (that's what it felt like) I imagined that everyone was watching me, that everyone knew what I'd been doing. We are all pretty adept at hiding our sin, but those closest to us, those who really care will probably notice something is up. Why do we play games and hide when confession and honesty will bring great relief? We need people to be accoutable to, people who care enough to confront when we are "fat with sin."
4. Sometimes in the middle of eating some massive amount of junk I would feel like I couldn't get through, but I would push on because it just seemed the thing to do - "I've gone this far, why stop now." With sin, as a believer, the Holy Spirit is speaking. Often we know in the middle of the sin that we need to stop but we carry on - "I've gone this far..." How much easier would it be to repent and change course if we listened early on before too much damage was done?
5. On Monday at lunchtime, I was excited about a big burger and fries at 5 Guys. Louanne didn't want to go in with me because she doesn't eat like that. So, I got out at 5 Guys and she went down the street to Quiznos. It's kind of lonely eating by yourself. Sin is lonely; it breaks fellowship with God and those around you.
6. During the two days of packing in the calories and fat, I felt like I was carrying a huge load. My actual weight probably only went up about five pounds, but I felt heavily burdened. Do I have to tell anyone how difficult the burden of sin is and how much better we feel when the load has been removed?
7. Monday night, after my second piece of chocolate chip pie, I was having difficulty just getting my breath. Anna Grace looked across the table at me and said, "Dad, you better be right about this diet; you have no hope if this doesn't work." Because I had been thinking for two days about all the analogies between the diet and sin, I immediately thought about my hope in Christ. If it were not for Him, I would have no hope. I would forever be bound to "waddle" through life, feeling miserable and burdened, with a trail of broken relationships, having no better plan than to keep on doing the same miserable thing.
I don't want to sin. I do want to please Him. Maybe the next time temptation comes I can remember all I learned about sin and misery from my diet.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Don't Be A Stinker!!!
This morning on the way to the office I stopped at a Valero station to fill up (I always like to wait until gas goes up 10 cents OVERNIGHT before I buy).
As I exit my car, I catch the smell of what I think is bacon (McDonalds is in this station). After just a few seconds at the pump the initial fragrance has become quite flagrant, assaulting my senses. I don't know if it is the clouds on this overcast day that are pressing the odors down on us or what, but the "bacon" smell is really rancid, nothing that would make your mouth water (which is good for me since my mouth waters too much and my taste buds follow through waaaay too much).
The odor is nasty...by the time I've finished at the pump I'm trying to hold my breath until I can jump back into the car. It is absolutely sickening. (Now I'm thinking about going by there every morning as a way of suppressing my appetite).
As I got into the car, thinking about the smell, I thought of certain cities I have been in on mission trips that had a "distinctinve" (sickening) aroma. Some places have a smell you can never forget (especially small blue places - can I get an A-men from Elaine Hinson?).
Now I don't know why my mind goes these directions, but as I thought about some of the noxious cities I have been in, I wondered what the world must have smelled like to Christ. I don't mean the cities He was in and the smells that you can pick up with your physical sense. I wonder what it smelled like spiritually. Surely He had a spiritual sense of smell. He could see the spiritual condition of people (Matthew 9:35ff). Could He smell it? Could He smell the death around Him? Were there some areas/people that smelled worse than others? He did say the Pharisees were like white-washed tombs - looked good on the outside but filled with stinkin' death and decay inside.
My experience reminded me of the words penned by Paul in II Corinthians 2:14-16: "But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life..."
I wonder what I smell like to Him. I wonder how I smell (spiritually) to the people around me - those in the office, my neighbors, those I do business with (the waiters at Mi Ranchito). Am I stinkin' up the places I go or am I a fresh breeze, the fragrance of life? That Valero station could have used a fresh breeze this morning - that would have gotten my attention. No one wants to hang around a smelly place if they don't have to be there.
Lord, help me to carry the aroma of life, the freshness of Christ to the people and places I go. Assault my senses from time to time with stinking smells to remind me of the importance of being a pleasing aroma. Help me to not be a stinker!
As I exit my car, I catch the smell of what I think is bacon (McDonalds is in this station). After just a few seconds at the pump the initial fragrance has become quite flagrant, assaulting my senses. I don't know if it is the clouds on this overcast day that are pressing the odors down on us or what, but the "bacon" smell is really rancid, nothing that would make your mouth water (which is good for me since my mouth waters too much and my taste buds follow through waaaay too much).
The odor is nasty...by the time I've finished at the pump I'm trying to hold my breath until I can jump back into the car. It is absolutely sickening. (Now I'm thinking about going by there every morning as a way of suppressing my appetite).
As I got into the car, thinking about the smell, I thought of certain cities I have been in on mission trips that had a "distinctinve" (sickening) aroma. Some places have a smell you can never forget (especially small blue places - can I get an A-men from Elaine Hinson?).
Now I don't know why my mind goes these directions, but as I thought about some of the noxious cities I have been in, I wondered what the world must have smelled like to Christ. I don't mean the cities He was in and the smells that you can pick up with your physical sense. I wonder what it smelled like spiritually. Surely He had a spiritual sense of smell. He could see the spiritual condition of people (Matthew 9:35ff). Could He smell it? Could He smell the death around Him? Were there some areas/people that smelled worse than others? He did say the Pharisees were like white-washed tombs - looked good on the outside but filled with stinkin' death and decay inside.
My experience reminded me of the words penned by Paul in II Corinthians 2:14-16: "But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life..."
I wonder what I smell like to Him. I wonder how I smell (spiritually) to the people around me - those in the office, my neighbors, those I do business with (the waiters at Mi Ranchito). Am I stinkin' up the places I go or am I a fresh breeze, the fragrance of life? That Valero station could have used a fresh breeze this morning - that would have gotten my attention. No one wants to hang around a smelly place if they don't have to be there.
Lord, help me to carry the aroma of life, the freshness of Christ to the people and places I go. Assault my senses from time to time with stinking smells to remind me of the importance of being a pleasing aroma. Help me to not be a stinker!
Sunday, June 27, 2010
My Sweet Spot
I know, I know, I just get so busy I forget about this blog thing. I guess I haven't gotten serious enough to be disciplined about it, to make it priority. I really don't know that I often have that much worth saying.
But, a good lesson today. I am in Cajamarca with a team from GS. When I come here I try to just be like everyone else, just a servant. The Peruvians hold pastors in high regard so it's hard to be a nobody. Yesterday, the pastor at the main church mentioned that a little church up in the mountains was struggling. He wanted some of our group to go up to encourage them and asked if I would preach there (he said a "white man" in the pulpit would encourage them - guess that qualified me).
I agreed to do it, only to find out later that he also wanted someone from our group to speak in the main church this morning. My flesh immediately said, "Send someone else to this tiny mountain church and you speak at the bigger church." Fortunately, I have come to be pretty perceptive at recognizing the voice of my flesh. I have never spoken at the main church and was tempted to be jealous, but I knew without a doubt that God wanted me to go encourage these villagers.
The journey was difficult. I'm o.k. driving on mt. roads but riding in a van is altogether different. Long story short, we get there and there are six of us, eight Peruvians who went up from Cajamarca with us, and six people from this little church. They had once been 50 until there were some difficulties that caused them to close the doors months ago. My flesh began to rear it's ugly head again, "All this for six people? I don't feel like even being here. This won't work." I remembered this was the assignment God gave me today. We had a wonderful time together - the message was simply about the work God calls every church to do. It was incredible to worship and share the word with believers a world away from us (in distance and experience). At the end of the message we got to pray over two men who decided to step up and lead. We got to see the commitment of the people from the main church in Cajamarca who are going to go up weekly to help (that will mean getting on a bus at 2:00 a.m. every Sunday). It was an awesome and convicting moment to see such commitment by people who firmly believe God has called them to reach that village.
Bottom line for me: I was exactly where God wanted me today. Much as I love preaching at GS, even that could not have been as fulfilling as being in a tiny little church with dirt floors challenging six simple people who simply love Jesus; I'm so glad I went where He sent - nothing like being in the sweet spot.
But, a good lesson today. I am in Cajamarca with a team from GS. When I come here I try to just be like everyone else, just a servant. The Peruvians hold pastors in high regard so it's hard to be a nobody. Yesterday, the pastor at the main church mentioned that a little church up in the mountains was struggling. He wanted some of our group to go up to encourage them and asked if I would preach there (he said a "white man" in the pulpit would encourage them - guess that qualified me).
I agreed to do it, only to find out later that he also wanted someone from our group to speak in the main church this morning. My flesh immediately said, "Send someone else to this tiny mountain church and you speak at the bigger church." Fortunately, I have come to be pretty perceptive at recognizing the voice of my flesh. I have never spoken at the main church and was tempted to be jealous, but I knew without a doubt that God wanted me to go encourage these villagers.
The journey was difficult. I'm o.k. driving on mt. roads but riding in a van is altogether different. Long story short, we get there and there are six of us, eight Peruvians who went up from Cajamarca with us, and six people from this little church. They had once been 50 until there were some difficulties that caused them to close the doors months ago. My flesh began to rear it's ugly head again, "All this for six people? I don't feel like even being here. This won't work." I remembered this was the assignment God gave me today. We had a wonderful time together - the message was simply about the work God calls every church to do. It was incredible to worship and share the word with believers a world away from us (in distance and experience). At the end of the message we got to pray over two men who decided to step up and lead. We got to see the commitment of the people from the main church in Cajamarca who are going to go up weekly to help (that will mean getting on a bus at 2:00 a.m. every Sunday). It was an awesome and convicting moment to see such commitment by people who firmly believe God has called them to reach that village.
Bottom line for me: I was exactly where God wanted me today. Much as I love preaching at GS, even that could not have been as fulfilling as being in a tiny little church with dirt floors challenging six simple people who simply love Jesus; I'm so glad I went where He sent - nothing like being in the sweet spot.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
The Cross
Been too busy to post much with preaching responsibilities on top of everything else. That is definitely not a complaint - getting to preach on the cross and resurrection the last four weeks has been awesome. I get a lot out of the study and proclamation of what Jesus did for me - weekly I am reminded of areas I need to work on, change, grow in, etc.
So, for what it's worth, here's one quick application that has stuck with me the past month. The Sunday before last (March 21 - message is on the web at www.gsfcb.org) I was preaching on the crucifixion, the actual hours Jesus was on the cross (9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.). It was a powerful day with the time in the Word and our experience in Worship. Many people responded that next week with how much the message meant to them. Several times I responded to a text or e-mail with the comment "I love to preach on the cross." Each time I said that, I thought about how sad it would be to be moving past Easter and my time in the pulpit and the opportunity to proclaim what Jesus did on the cross. As clearly as if He had spoken it audibly, God said to me, "You can preach the cross EVERY DAY."
You know, that's exactly what I should be doing. If I really love telling the story of the cross, I can tell it every day. Every day is Easter, every day the cross can be preached, every day there are people who need to hear about the cross. If the story is so meaningful to me and evidently to so many others, let's go tell it and let's keep telling it! Easter is not just a day or a season - it is a message that is timeless and unbounded.
God help me preach to one as enthusiastically as I preach to a crowd.
So, for what it's worth, here's one quick application that has stuck with me the past month. The Sunday before last (March 21 - message is on the web at www.gsfcb.org) I was preaching on the crucifixion, the actual hours Jesus was on the cross (9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.). It was a powerful day with the time in the Word and our experience in Worship. Many people responded that next week with how much the message meant to them. Several times I responded to a text or e-mail with the comment "I love to preach on the cross." Each time I said that, I thought about how sad it would be to be moving past Easter and my time in the pulpit and the opportunity to proclaim what Jesus did on the cross. As clearly as if He had spoken it audibly, God said to me, "You can preach the cross EVERY DAY."
You know, that's exactly what I should be doing. If I really love telling the story of the cross, I can tell it every day. Every day is Easter, every day the cross can be preached, every day there are people who need to hear about the cross. If the story is so meaningful to me and evidently to so many others, let's go tell it and let's keep telling it! Easter is not just a day or a season - it is a message that is timeless and unbounded.
God help me preach to one as enthusiastically as I preach to a crowd.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Desperate to Preach
Following is an update written by my son Jordan, regarding a mission trip to China in December and January. I needed to be reminded of these truths and I thought his explanation was profound (not just because he's my boy!).
(Jordan) "Every time I come back from a trip overseas I find myself desiring more and more to give away whatever money the Lord blesses me with to help the poor. I know that his heart is soft for the orphans and widows, the poor and the down and out. However, in China it was a bit different. It wasn't just the physical need that moved my heart to want to give more of my money and material possessions away, I was so broken over the spiritual need. Many mornings I stood behind the big glass windows on the 6th floor of our hotel, staring down at the busy intersection below, my heart staggered at the thought that the majority of these people will never hear the name Jesus. That scene still lives in my head. It drives me to desire to give whatever I can that the Gospel might be preached. There are people who are desperate to hear his name and that greatly surpasses all my temporary wants. This is something that I need to continually be reminded of. But not only does that view drive me toward giving more, it also presses upon my heart the need of people to go. If for a month, or a week or a day, if across the world, or across town, or across the street, we must never ignore our calling to go to all the nations. First for the sake of the Gospel and second for the sake of ourselves. It's when we really get out of our comfort zone that the Lord can teach us. I pray God breaks all of our hearts to go."
"God also showed me a lot about the Gospel and how we should chase it here at home. Because of the language barrier there obviously weren't abundant opportunities to talk to anyone we wanted. This caused us to recognize the value of those opportunities that we had. So throughout every conversation the constant thought in the front of our minds was how do I turn this conversation back toward Christ? We could even be talking about chicken and the thought would be, ok, now how do I get from chicken to Christ? And this thought wasn't resting in the back of our minds waiting for something to trigger it, it was an active thought because we knew that our time was short and our opportunities would be numbered. But here's where the Lord really stopped me in my tracks: nothing is different here at home. People are desperate. Our time is short. Our opportunities are few. And if that's the case then the obvious conclusion is that we should be acting the same way here. Every conversation we enter should be entered with the thought of how might I turn this conversation back to Christ, because if He really is important and I realize how lost we are without Him then context doesn't matter, all that matters is that the name of Christ be preached."
(Dave) God, help me be as desperate to share the Name as people are to hear it.
(Jordan) "Every time I come back from a trip overseas I find myself desiring more and more to give away whatever money the Lord blesses me with to help the poor. I know that his heart is soft for the orphans and widows, the poor and the down and out. However, in China it was a bit different. It wasn't just the physical need that moved my heart to want to give more of my money and material possessions away, I was so broken over the spiritual need. Many mornings I stood behind the big glass windows on the 6th floor of our hotel, staring down at the busy intersection below, my heart staggered at the thought that the majority of these people will never hear the name Jesus. That scene still lives in my head. It drives me to desire to give whatever I can that the Gospel might be preached. There are people who are desperate to hear his name and that greatly surpasses all my temporary wants. This is something that I need to continually be reminded of. But not only does that view drive me toward giving more, it also presses upon my heart the need of people to go. If for a month, or a week or a day, if across the world, or across town, or across the street, we must never ignore our calling to go to all the nations. First for the sake of the Gospel and second for the sake of ourselves. It's when we really get out of our comfort zone that the Lord can teach us. I pray God breaks all of our hearts to go."
"God also showed me a lot about the Gospel and how we should chase it here at home. Because of the language barrier there obviously weren't abundant opportunities to talk to anyone we wanted. This caused us to recognize the value of those opportunities that we had. So throughout every conversation the constant thought in the front of our minds was how do I turn this conversation back toward Christ? We could even be talking about chicken and the thought would be, ok, now how do I get from chicken to Christ? And this thought wasn't resting in the back of our minds waiting for something to trigger it, it was an active thought because we knew that our time was short and our opportunities would be numbered. But here's where the Lord really stopped me in my tracks: nothing is different here at home. People are desperate. Our time is short. Our opportunities are few. And if that's the case then the obvious conclusion is that we should be acting the same way here. Every conversation we enter should be entered with the thought of how might I turn this conversation back to Christ, because if He really is important and I realize how lost we are without Him then context doesn't matter, all that matters is that the name of Christ be preached."
(Dave) God, help me be as desperate to share the Name as people are to hear it.
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Numbering My Days
So, turning 49 this past week was really no big deal. Just another day, but also another opportunity to think about death. Not death in a morbid, depressive kind of way, just in the sense of being realistic about what is coming and what I want to have accomplished. Hopefully I think about what I'm doing often, but at least once a year I have opportunity to be reminded that there is an end.
Even at 49, it is a little hard to remember your mortality: I haven't really slowed down much at this point (o.k., maybe a little mentally), I don't feel significantly older than I did in my 30's. But, you know, at any age we need to remember that we have a limited amount of time to make our impact for Christ, to establish a legacy worth living and leaving.
Several years ago I was speaking at a discipleship conference. Before my session I sat in and listened to another speaker that was in his 60's. He got up, pulled out his daytimer, looked at the top corner and said, "If the Lord gives me my three-score and ten, I have ____ days left." I don't remember the number of days he said but I was impressed that this guy lives daily thinking about how many days he has and what he'll do with them.
The reality is we don't know, but in practice, it's probably good to focus on a set number. I may die in an accident or from an illness long before my three-score and ten, but if I'm not putting some end time out there I'll live like there is none and will accomplish nothing.
We need an end date. We need to remember our mortality. We need to remember while we are young that we won't have as much energy and opportunity when we are older. Now is my time to make a real difference, to leave a mark, to make a significant impact. I don't want to miss it.
Lord, "Teach us to number our days aright that we may gain a heart of wisdom." (Psalm 90:12)
P.S. If the Lord gives me my three-score and ten, as of today, I have 7666 left. Seems like a lot unless you factor that I started with 25,567 (including leap years). Do the math for yourself - may help you use what's left wisely.
Even at 49, it is a little hard to remember your mortality: I haven't really slowed down much at this point (o.k., maybe a little mentally), I don't feel significantly older than I did in my 30's. But, you know, at any age we need to remember that we have a limited amount of time to make our impact for Christ, to establish a legacy worth living and leaving.
Several years ago I was speaking at a discipleship conference. Before my session I sat in and listened to another speaker that was in his 60's. He got up, pulled out his daytimer, looked at the top corner and said, "If the Lord gives me my three-score and ten, I have ____ days left." I don't remember the number of days he said but I was impressed that this guy lives daily thinking about how many days he has and what he'll do with them.
The reality is we don't know, but in practice, it's probably good to focus on a set number. I may die in an accident or from an illness long before my three-score and ten, but if I'm not putting some end time out there I'll live like there is none and will accomplish nothing.
We need an end date. We need to remember our mortality. We need to remember while we are young that we won't have as much energy and opportunity when we are older. Now is my time to make a real difference, to leave a mark, to make a significant impact. I don't want to miss it.
Lord, "Teach us to number our days aright that we may gain a heart of wisdom." (Psalm 90:12)
P.S. If the Lord gives me my three-score and ten, as of today, I have 7666 left. Seems like a lot unless you factor that I started with 25,567 (including leap years). Do the math for yourself - may help you use what's left wisely.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
