Cliché songs mutter out the lyrics of something to the extent of, "live like you were dying." But the idea is nothing new, though the thought is still cause for reflection. Even in the poem by Horace you embrace the term, "carpe diem," or "seize the day." Each day we are given is a blessing. However, when you stop to think about all of them in retrospect it makes you wonder. Me personally, I imagine myself one day being very old and I wonder, when I think back over my life what will I think of?
This year I turn 30, a milestone in its own respect. However, when I was 18 I honestly didn't think I'd live to make it to here. Perhaps my close mindedness couldn't see more than what was in front of me. However, looking back lends such an interesting perspective. I couldn't even begin to tell you what was important to me. I could tell you about the trivial things, girls, my popularity, which lunch table I got to sit with and how it reflected my status. That was about as rough as it got. I minimalize those events because, being almost 30, I honestly don't have those same priorities.
Say I make it to 90 years old. Awesome. Will I still say, "awesome?" Better yet, what will I think back on of my thirties? How was I worried about paying rent? or being worried about buying a house? or paying off a mortgage? Where is my next check coming from? How will I ever afford this? When's a good time to have kids? Am I too old for this? I wonder what the 90 year old experienced me what say to me now. What would his advice be? And what the heck are next week's winning lottery numbers?
Truth be told, I know the gravity of what that 90 year old will face. It's the same reality the 18 year old faced and even this 30 year old. Will the trivial things of this world keep me from experiencing what God has in store for me? Will I have spent my entire life spiritually chasing my tail or will I one day, sit back and experience what it is to fully understand what God meant by setting into motion the events that lead up to the cross? What will I ultimately see in my review mirror as God shows me my life?
I really think God is showing me something big. Something so big that it cannot be kept. I know that at the least, God will help me step out of this apathetic Christian pose and be more than someone who knows about the cross... but someone who truly knows what it is to experience what the cross has to offer.
Review mirrors are an amazing tool to know what's going on behind you so that you can know where you're going. I pray tonight, a very simple prayer for the both us. Tonight, I pray that God will crush these hardened hearts and that we can learn to be more like Jesus Christ in how we think, act and live. That when we do see our judgment day, we won't have to worry about our rearview mirrors but instead we'll get to focus on the God of eternity. No looking to the past because hopefully, we'll hear the words our souls cry out for, "WELL DONE, GOOD AND FAITHFUL SERVANT."
