|
We should never rush through our days in anticipation of some event that
has yet to take place. We should also never place our joy on hold and
believe the lie that our happiness waits for us in the future after we
have accomplished a certain goal or reached a certain victory. What we
must remember is that we have today to enjoy to its fullest. The Bible
says take no thought for tomorrow. We are to do all that we can today to
be joyful, encouraged, motivated and inspired to be all that we can be.
If you have been finding yourself lackadaisical, remember that tomorrow is
not promised to us. (John 15:11-14) (Matthew 6:34) (James 4:13-14)
We should relish every moment we have with our friends and family and do
the best we can to create memories that will last their lifetime as well
as ours. Be encouraged to see the joy of today and do not let another
moment pass you by where you are waiting for the future. The future is
here right now waiting for us to enjoy it. Take your time today, see its
beauty, revel in its awesomeness and know that if you are lucky enough to
see tomorrow, you can do it all over again. (Psalm 103:1-5 )
I hope this message encourages and inspires your heart to not let these
precious moments of life pass you by. Enjoy them and be blessed by them.
GONE IN A FLASH
The sun dropped below the horizon. The sky turned dark. The first stars of
the night began to shine.
It was the peak night for the Perseids meteor shower. We gathered our
grandchildren in the backyard. Some sat in chairs and others stretched out
on blankets. No street lights were nearby to hinder our view.
“There's one!” Seth, the oldest yelled.
“I missed it!” I whined.
“There's another one!” Josh yelled.
“I saw it!” Ginny and I said together as a streak of dust burned across the
sky and faded into nothing. The youngest, Benny, sat in a chair beside me.
“Are you watching, Ben?” I asked.
“Yes.”
“Did you see that last one?”
“No!” He sighed. “I missed it.”
“Then you weren't watching, were you?”
We cheered and pointed each time a meteor lit the night sky.
Another meteor made a white slash in the night sky. “Wow! Did you see it, Ben?”
“No, I missed it again.”
A few weeks later, a lightning storm slowly crawled across the western sky.
We watched the bolts of lightning streak diagonally from north-to-south.
It was a spectacular display of nature, one we safely watched from a distance.
“Wow! Did you see that one boys?” I asked my grandsons.
“No! We missed it again.”
“Guys, you have to focus, these things happen fast. If you don't focus,
you'll miss them.”
Later that night, after the boys went to bed, I sat out on the deck while
Ginny, her daughter, Heather, and her son-in-law, Nathan, watched a show on
TV. They laughed each time I screamed, “Wow! That was a good one.”
Alone with my thoughts and the lightning, I remembered the meteor shower.
The lightning was the same. The flashes of light were gone in the blink of
an eye. I asked myself, “Mike, how many of life's meteors and lightning
bolts have you missed because you weren't paying attention?”
I had no answer to the question, for if I knew, then I wouldn't have
missed them. How many times have I come home from work too wrapped in my
own thoughts and missed those “Daddy's home” smiles of my children? Those
little smiles are lost forever, as I walked right by them. How many
opportunities did I miss to praise my wife or my children? How many chances
to say, “I love you” to my wife did I miss?
I made a pledge that night to pay more attention to those around me. When
I arrive home from work, work stays at work and my attention is on my
family, because those opportunities -- those streaks of light -- don't
last long.
They're gone in a flash.
By Michael T. Smith
Read and meditate on these scriptures:
Galatians 6:1-4 “Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are
spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering
thyself, lest thou also be tempted. Bear ye one another's burdens, and so
fulfill the law of Christ. For if a man think himself to be something,
when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself. But let every man prove his own
work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another.”
Galatians 5:22-26 “...the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.
Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ's have crucified the
flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also
walk in the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another,
envying one another.”
Hebrews 13:1-3 “Let brotherly love continue. Be not forgetful to entertain
strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. Remember them
that are in bonds, as bound with them; and them which suffer adversity, as
being yourselves also in the body.”
Philippians 2:3-7 “Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in
lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not
every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.
Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the
form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made Himself
of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in
the likeness of men.”
All of these scriptures can be found in the King James Version Bible.
Today's Selected Poem: GOOD THINGS TO REMEMBER
Click here to read --- http://www.Godswork.org/enpoem129.htm
Today's Selected Testimony: GOD'S GRACE AND MERCY
Click here to read --- http://www.Godswork.org/testimony1.htm
In Christ’s Service,
Dwayne Savaya
God’s Work Ministry |
