By Rae Lynn DeAngelis
Maybe it’s my age or season of life or perhaps it’s the ever increasing awareness of my true identity and knowing that I am so much more than a body, but I’ve been thinking about death a lot lately.
Death doesn’t really scare me. Actually, the opposite is true. Not that I have a death wish or that I’m sensing the end is near, but I can’t wait to meet Jesus face to face. I can’t wait to see the glory of heaven.
“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9)
The thought of spending eternity with Jesus fills me with so much hope, excitement, and wonder.
Although we, as believers, have the assurance of heaven, landing safely in paradise should not be our only objective.
You and I have been given this one life, this one opportunity, this one span of mortal existence to make an eternal impact for the kingdom of God. Friends, against the backdrop of eternity, our time of influence is fairly short.
Perhaps this is a good opportunity for us to inventory our impact thus far, as well as contemplate our future legacy. What has God called us to, and are we carrying that mission out? If not, what steps do we need so we can redirect our focus?
When we die and get to heaven, will we hear Jesus say, ‘”Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!” (Matthew 25:21)
Personally, I don’t want to get to heaven and see all the things God could have done with my life. I want to get to heaven and see all the things God did do with my life because my days on earth were surrendered to Him.
Our span of time (whether it is days, years, or decades) is not the important thing. What truly matters is what we do with the time we’ve been given.
Life is fragile and can be taken away in an instant. The influx of news alerts reporting terrorist attacks, shootings, and natural disasters gives evidence of this fact more and more.
We can become overwhelmed and depressed about the unsettling news, or we can get busy living the lives God’s called us to live, lives that reflect His Son Jesus, lives that put others before ourselves.
It’s time to live each day as if it’s our last day on earth.
“For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1:21)
“For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.” (Luke 9:24)
