04 Aug Tick Tock. Your Clock is Ticking.

The average lifespan of an American male is 79 years and an American female is 81 years.  I am halfway through my 48th year on this earth.  There are approximately 260 working days in a year.  Assuming my health holds out and I am able to contribute to society until I am 75, I have approximately 6,890 working days to make a difference.  How many mornings do you have left to contribute?  (If you are 30, you have 11,700 days.  If you are 40, you have 9,100.  If your are 50, you have 6,500.  If you are 60 then 3,900, and if you are 70, you have 1,300.)

Our clocks are ticking!

James 4:14 says, “You do not know what your life will be tomorrow.  What is your life?  You are just a vapor that appears for a little while.”

In Dead Poets Society, Robin Williams made the Latin phrase Carpe Diem, Seize the day, a household battle cry.  The term was plastered throughout motivational books, articles, and speeches.  A generation later the phrase seems almost trite yet its truth is still as profound.

We all are placed on the this earth for a purpose, a task that only we can do.  As we muddle through life however, we often have trouble seeing our purpose.  We struggle just to provide for our families, meet our obligations, and pay our bills.  Who has time for purpose!

I met with a friend yesterday.  He described his life as a butterfly just floating along with no real direction or focus.  He, like many of us, pursues one interest then becomes bored and jumps to another task never asking the questions, “What am I accomplishing?” or  “What am I here to do?”

To make a difference you must believe that you are called to something.  Most people wander through life never really finding their purpose, wasting their precious days with insignificance.

How do you know what your purpose is?  Start by looking at your God-given gifts and pursue them.  Be willing to act on something.  Even committing to the wrong thing is better than doing nothing.  The point is just to take action and get moving.  Your initial step may not be in the correct direction, but your course of action will be progressively revealed to you.  You will find that action will give you clarity, and through small course corrections your purpose will come into focus.

I suspect if you are like me your calling will progressively change.  During seasons of life your focus will likely be different.  That is part of the joy of the journey.  Something different and engaging is always calling us.  Until we die the journey is never over and the process of revelation is always changing.  Seize every opportunity out of life and pursue your calling.

Here’s to the Journey!