So if you knew when you were going to die, would you want to know? I know that I wouldn’t want to know. Please don’t tell me.
Although, there is a case to be made, what if you find out you only had one more year to live. My guess is your priorities would change. Things that seemed important the day before, would no longer be important.
Now, living with the end in mind doesn’t have to be morbid. In fact, it can truly help you live a great life now. I was recently reminded of this when listening to Erwin McManus give an interview about his book The Last Arrow.
Erwin actually had the book written and almost ready to publish; then he found out he had cancer. He found this out in early December of one year. He approached that next Christmas wondering if it would be his last with his family.
The book is about living a life that truly matters, a life where you get to the end of and looking back say, “I wouldn’t do anything different.”
He looked at what he wrote. He looked at his life. He liked what he saw. Fortunately, Erwin seems to be doing fine now. However, it gave him a perspective on his life and he would likely even say a gift.
This “gift” really is available for us all.
What is the story that you want your life to tell? Are the choices your making today all adding up to that story?
Ending well means living well today. The really great thing is that it’s true each and every day. This isn’t a burden to carry, it’s an opportunity. Every day we wake up with breath in our lungs is a day where we can love those around us as Jesus loves us.
Blessings,
Pastor Matt