Category Archives: Today: Make it Count

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February 27, 2014

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Money & Wealth, Today: Make it Count, Wisdom & Guidance

What Will We Leave?

tombstonesHuman life is as short-lived as grass. It blossoms like a flower in the field. When the wind blows over the flower, it disappears, and there is no longer any sign of it. [Psalm 103:15-16 (GW)]

In reality, all a tombstone marks is a somewhat useless piece of real estate. What will we really leave behind when our days here end? What gift will we bequeath to the living? Lord, help us remember that what really matters won’t be how well we were liked but how much we loved. The number of people we knew won’t be as important as the number of people to whom we offered friendship. The amount of money we had won’t be of consequence, but how much we gave will. The extent of our knowledge will be forgotten, but what we taught will be remembered. What we owned will be of no significance, but how well we shared it will. Our memories will be gone, but others’ memories of us will remain. Guide us, O Lord, in our remaining days.

Epitaph, tombstone inscription in Shrewsbury, England

“For the Lord Jesus Christ’s sake,
Do all the good you can,
To all the people you can,
In all the ways you can,
As long as ever you can.”

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February 13, 2014

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Attitudes & Behavior, Joy, Today: Make it Count

Our Days Are Numbered

Show me, Lord, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting my life is. You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Everyone is but a breath, even those who seem secure. [Psalm 39:4-5 (NIV)]

Within a few days’ time, I met one woman who recently lost her husband to cancer and another who would soon lose her husband to cancer, not because he is ill but because of her terminal illness. Both women were fully aware of the fragility of life and how quickly one’s life can change. Rather than complain about the unfairness, sorrow and pain of their circumstances, both women said they count their blessings daily and thank God for every one of them. People of faith, these women have come to terms with God’s plan and a sense of peace radiated from them both.

Lord, our time here is brief. Guide us so we make the most of every day. Don’t let us squander time and energy on petty complaints, in self-pity, anger or resentment. Show us how to savor each minute and squeeze every moment of joy out of life that is humanly possible. Help us to find your love in all circumstances and enable us to see and appreciate each day’s blessings.

Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. [Psalm 90:12 (NIV)]

It’s only when we truly know and understand that we have a limited time on earth – and that we have no way of knowing when our time is up – that we will begin to live each day to the fullest, as if it was the only one we had. [Elizabeth Kübler Ross]

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February 2, 2014

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Holidays & Holy Days, Salvation: A New You, Today: Make it Count

Are We Ready for the Big Day? (Super Bowl Sunday)

I don’t think, friends, that I need to deal with the question of when all this is going to happen. You know as well as I that the day of the Master’s coming can’t be posted on our calendars. He won’t call ahead and make an appointment any more than a burglar would. About the time everybody’s walking around complacently, congratulating each other – “We’ve sure got it made! Now we can take it easy!” – suddenly everything will fall apart. It’s going to come as suddenly and inescapably as birth pangs to a pregnant woman. [1 Thessalonians 5:1-3 (MSG)]

It’s Super Bowl Sunday and the past few weeks have been filled with hype about this event. We’ve heard from coaches, players, sports analysts, bookmakers and weather forecasters; we’ve even seen previews of the ads that will be shown during the game. People have stocked up at the grocery and liquor stores, donned their favorite team’s colors, and planned their parties and menus. With ticket prices so high, many made sacrifices to attend the game; some even sold even their cars to purchase tickets. All of this planning and excitement are for the earthly rewards of a championship trophy, money, fame, a few hours of entertainment and bragging rights.

I couldn’t help but compare the elaborate preparations for this yearly event with our preparations for the day we will meet with God. In football there is a clock that tells us when time is running out; life isn’t that way. We’ll never know when the final whistle will blow. Unlike the Super Bowl trophy, God’s reward will be eternal; there won’t be another opportunity to play again the following year. Some day we will all give an accounting of our lives to our Father in Heaven. What kind of preparations are we making for that special day?

You’ve all been to the stadium and seen the athletes race. Everyone runs; one wins. Run to win. All good athletes train hard. They do it for a gold medal that tarnishes and fades. You’re after one that’s gold eternally. [1 Corinthians 9:24-25 (MSG)]

There is no escape for the man who squanders his opportunity to prepare to meet God. [From “Hope for Each Day” by Billy Graham]

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January 21, 2014

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Faith & Hope, Sorrow, Grief & Regrets, Today: Make it Count

Looking Forward

They will come home and sing songs of joy on the heights of Jerusalem. They will be radiant because of the Lord’s good gifts — the abundant crops of grain, new wine, and olive oil, and the healthy flocks and herds. Their life will be like a watered garden, and all their sorrows will be gone. The young women will dance for joy, and the men—old and young—will join in the celebration. I will turn their mourning into joy. I will comfort them and exchange their sorrow for rejoicing. [Jeremiah 31:12-13 (NLT)]

Lord, don’t let me spend a lifetime mourning what might have been; open my eyes to what is yet to come.

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January 15, 2014

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Joy, Thanks & Praise, Today: Make it Count

Good Morning

2014-1-15Hallelujah! Praise the Lord, my soul! I want to praise the Lord throughout my life. I want to make music to praise my God as long as I live. [Psalm 145:1-2 (GW)]

Thank you, God, for this new day and your many gifts that are hidden in it. Open our eyes so that any discontent becomes delight. Let any grumbling turn into gratitude and any complaints become praise. May we see your glory in everything; fill us with joy in your presence.

Shout happily to the Lord, all the earth. Serve the Lord cheerfully. Come into his presence with a joyful song. [Psalm 100:1-2 (GW)]