Whenever I hear that my life is only a breath, it generally goes in one ear and out the other. Today, we are on psalm 39 and this is part of what David is talking about here. There is a lot that we can learn by reflecting on the finite nature of our lives. I tend to think that I’m going to live forever, but the death rate in Columbia, SC is hovering right around 100% and I’m sure it’s about the same where you are, too (-;

When I think about this, it reinforces my drive to invest my life in eternal matters. People will last forever. As Pastor Craig Groeschel says, “We are souls that have a body.” We are not bodies that have souls. This is one of the things I love about living for God. My primary ambition is to daily surrender my life to God and thus allow him to use me in the lives of many others. My highest aim is that my time, my talents and my treasures would be used completely to further God’s purposes on this earth and into eternity.

I have some people in my life that don’t focus their lives this way. They seem almost completely focused on stockpiling riches this side of heaven. They want the people around them to be happy, but they don’t seem to care all that much about eternal matters. This grieves my heart and it frustrates me deeply. There is a bigger story at play all around us. It involves the eternal destinies of people that God cares deeply about. He cares so much about them that he died on the cross for their sins. He is now actively pursuing them, but evil forces beyond comprehension are actively trying to circumvent God’s efforts to redeem them. We are supposed to be warriors, but what good is a warrior if he doesn’t know that he is at war? It’d be like somebody storming the beach in Normandy with a beach towel and a lawn chair!! There is so much more that could be said about what God is up to in this world. I want to live in that dimension. I want to be an active player in that world. God gives us that opportunity as we surrender our lives to him, but we have to have the eyes to see it.

What about you? Where are your highest ambitions? What do you dream about? What do you want said about your life at the end? Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to be one of those people who is too heavenly minded to be of any earthly good. I try diligently to take care of my family and be responsible with all of the normal practical concerns. All I’m saying is that there is so much more to life than that…we just have to open our eyes.