(James 4:14)
You only have 24 hours left. One of the biggest problems we have in this
life is taking each day for granted and assuming there is always going to
be tomorrow. This is a very common mindset for those under 30. The brevity
of this life, the fact that tomorrow is not promised to any of us, never
seem to be much of an issue. Every day when I read the paper and watch the
news, there are stories of people dying in all kinds of ways. I can't help
but wonder if they were ready to die. The answer, of course, is I don't think
any of us are really ready to die. But that doesn't change the fact that we
all one day will pass from this life into eternity. Therein lies the real
question. Are we ready for eternity? The Bible clearly teaches that
eternity is going to be spent either with God our creator or forever
separated from Him. Only through a personal faith in Jesus Christ will you
be with God. I would urge you right now, that if you have never accepted
Jesus Christ into your life as your personal Savior, accepted Him into your
heart by faith, then please go to my website, www.liveprayer.com and click on "Salvation".
For those who do know Jesus and know that when this life is over you will be
in Heaven, I go back to the point of today's Devotional...how we all forget
about the importance of today and live like tomorrow will always come. For
the sake of helping you focus, let's say that you actually knew that you
would die in 24 hours. Take a minute and think about what you would do with
that last 24 hours here on earth. Common sense says that you would probably
spend that time with those who God has given you to share this life with.
Family, of course, possibly some close friends. But in addition to that,
what would you do? I imagine that you would probably try to take care of
loose ends in regard to your will, finances. Additionally though, what
would you do with that time? No doubt there are people who you may have had
problems with, possibly even family members, and your relationship with them
has been broken. I am sure you would get hold of them and try to reconcile
with them. There are probably people in your life that at one time or
another you hurt a great deal. Contacting them to just say how sorry you
were is no doubt something you would want to accomplish. I am sure there
are many other things that you can think of that you would want to do in
those last precious hours.
For those of you who have been reading my Devotionals for a while, you know
me well enough by now to know that I am not into fear and intimidation.
That is not my objective today. I pray every day one specific prayer, that
in this time God gives me to share with you, He will allow me to take this
spiritual journey we are on and help me translate it into the very real day-
to-day life we live here on earth. Making our relationship with the Lord a
reality in our daily life is one of my main objectives. The reality of
daily life is that accidents happen. Tragedy strikes. Disease is part of
our human condition. TOMORROW IS NOT PROMISED TO ANY OF US. While we are
to plan for the future and set goals, we can never lose sight that we are here
to serve and glorify God with our lives. When our work here is finished,
and only God knows when that is, He will call us home. We are like
missionaries in this world, here to do a job, and we never really know when
our job is over and we get to go home. If we understand that, we will start
being more aware of how important it is to maintain our relationships with
other people, not to hurt others...and when we do, be quick to apologize, and
love those God has given us to share this life with each and every day. If
you hear nothing else today, hear this. Spend today getting a hold of your
parents, children, siblings, and friends you are close to...and simply tell them
how special they are and how you are thankful each day to have them in your
life. NOW is always the perfect time to tell someone you love how much they
mean to you.
I love you and deeply care about you. I pray that today you will take a few
minutes from your busy life to focus on the fact that we live each day by
the grace of God. It is truly a gift from above. Not only should that
motivate us in our service to Him, but in our relationships with those God
gives us to spend this time on earth with. In accordance with that message,
let me tell each of you how richly my life has been blessed these last 10
months. Sitting down each morning, asking for God's anointing, and allowing
the Holy Spirit to guide my fingers as I write these Devotionals has been
one of the greatest joys of my life. To be able to share the love of
Christ, encourage you in your daily relationship with Him, be here to pray
for you in your time of need, has been the greatest privilege God has given
me in almost a decade of ministry. You will never know how much I really do
love you and care about you. Even though we have never met, it is possible
because of Jesus. There is a spiritual bond that connects us tighter than
anything this world could ever produce. I just want you to know it is an
honor to do the little I can each day to help you in your journey. Know
that as long as the Lord sees fit, I will be here for you, so never hesitate
to email me and I will do my best to help.
