Saturday mornings in the summer – today I got up much like any other Saturday morning – made some coffee, prayed, surfed the internet, and contemplated life. I enjoy these times – free to linger and think, without having to rush off to a jobsite or manage a crisis. As I listen to the birds and bugs, the sounds of the Creation, I think it must of been something like that in the Garden of Eden. I see myself as communing with God, perhaps like Adam and Eve once did before the fall. Though I want God to answer my many questions about my life, my agenda, my unmet desires…I find it refreshing to stop asking Him for all of these things and just ‘be’ and listen.
My daughter came out to the porch to inform me that fire trucks and a paramedic truck were outside our house and just down the street at the neighbors’. I guess they turned the sirens off so as not to wake the whole neighborhood up. Someone apparently had an unexpected event this morning. As I ponder that, I realize it could have been me. Having just turned 50 I sure am sensitive to the whole getting older thing – I still see myself as in my 30’s or 40’s….but not 50’s!. If Jesus were to take me home this morning, I realize there are so many loose ends in my life – so many unfinished projects…. being a “Do-er”, I find my joy in checking off my To-Do List and completing projects.
Maybe I should spend alittle less time investing my mind in Netflix’s “B” movies in my off-work hours and lead my family in some meaningful interaction time? Maybe I should invest more time in just thanking the Lord and seeking His kingdom instead of wasting my free time away? I’m reminded of Jesus’ admonition to us in the book of John – basically that we should be always ready for his return, so that we are not caught unprepared as unprofitable servants. I definitely fall short of being ready daily – in fact, Jesus’ return is probably the furthest thing from my mind (to my shame).
It’s difficult to have a heavenly perspective, especially when the mundane surrounds us continually on this Earth. I believe it can be done through a daily re-focusing of our minds – perhaps in a morning time with God before we start the day. I so often want to grab my phone or computer when I first get up and start in on the things my flesh wants to do – work the numbers for my business, look for something to buy, plan my future, check out the news, read email, etc… but, I find when I go to God first, the day works out much better and I have a better chance of recognizing where He is in the day and seeing what He is doing in the world.
Life is short – our time is limited and none of us knows how much of it we will have. The best thing for us is to be connected to the One who has it all in His hands.
“The Lord is my shepherd;I shall not want.
2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
3 He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.”
Psalm 23:1-3 NKJV