Only One Life

Today, for whatever reason, two lines of a poem that my dad used to recite came into my mind. It went like this, " Only one life, twill soon be past, Only what's done for Christ will last"! I have very vivid memories of daddy reciting this again and again and a slightly blurry memory of it on a plaque that mom had hung somewhere in the house. Now that was an easy 50 or more years ago and here it is popping up in my head once more! When this happens I ALWAYS want to take a closer look! Upon some Internet investigation ( I am fondly called the "Google" queen by my children) I found the poem. The poem is called " Only One Life Twill Soon Be Passed" by C.T. Studd. It beautifully paints a picture in words of what our lives should look like! "Give me Father a purpose deep. . ." speaks volumns of why we live, depressed, defeated lives. We need a purpose! Most of us, if we were totally truthful, would say that our lives on a daily basis most probably revolve around some shallow, self-serving purpose that brings us to a place of emptiness in the end. We work long hours to earn more money to buy the things that we truly don't need! We rent storage buildings to store the excess of items that we just can't seem to part with! And we waste hours on our cell phones or "Facebooking" on our computers playing games that will only pull us back into wasting more time the next day! NO PURPOSE! That is an endless highway to nowhere that will only leave us craving to get to the " happily ever after" place that doesn't even exist on that road. Another line reads: "And from the world now let me turn". . . . .lovingly directs us to turn away from the shallow things that the world tempts us with or offers to us served on a silver platter! Just how do we lay all of those things down and turn our attentions toward the things that we need to do that DO matter? It won't happen overnight but it CAN happen. You didn't get to this place in one day but you can stop and turn around and go the other direction before its too late! First, you need to ask God to forgive you and then ask him to help lead you in the right direction, the direction he has been pulling you in all along but you have grown numb and resistant to. We truly have become a wicked people that have turned to our own ways, self-centered and selfish! This is our wake up call I believe!  I'll make this more personal if I may, " Only YOUR life, it will soon be past, ONLY what YOU do for Christ will last"! Lay it down (your own stuff and agenda) and make a difference in someone else's life from now on. It is NOT about us and the self gratification that we can experience ( the world will lie to you with that philosophy) it is about Christ and him working through you to change the lives of others. So, "thank you" daddy for reciting that poem and "thank you daddy God" for inspiring Mr. C.T. Studd to write it so that it could ring in my ears the heavenly tune of repentance and renewal! You revealed to a poet what truly was important and now I share it so that it can come full circle to you! The poem ends with these lines, " And when I am dying how happy I'll be, if the lamp of my life has been burned out for Thee"! 

insight insert: Have you found yourself caught up on the carousel of the mundane and self serving? I know I've been on that carnival ride and found that I grew more weary riding it! Get off!!! It's time to realize that this life that we have been given is short and comes to a halt way more quickly than we know. Examine your daily "doings" and ask yourself, "are these things being done for anyone else's good or for my own good? Are my daily tasks to bring joy and encouragement to others lives or is what I am doing just bringing joy and satisfaction to myself?" Don't get me wrong, we all need times of rest and relaxation to refuel and go on but that is not what I am speaking of. The daily majority of your time routines that eat away at your time and are of no earthly or Godly benefit whatsoever good is what I refer to! This week, look at your life through a much larger magnifying glass than you would normally use and allow the Spirit of the Living God to show you what mundane carousel to step off of. Now, tune in and hear what he has to tell you and move on it! You only have one life!

Scripture: Ephesians 5: 15-17. "Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of The Lord is".

Psalm 39:4-5 " O Lord, make me know my end and what is the measure of my days; let me know how fleeting I am! Behold, you have made my days a few hand breadths, and my lifetime is as nothing before you. Surely all of mankind stands as a mere breath!"