February 18

You are waiting in the doctor’s office when he/she enters and delivers the news you really didn’t want to hear. “Unless you quit smoking/lose weight/quit drinking, etc., you will die.” You’ve known that certain habits were not good for you and news reports continually reminded you that a change in habits would be a good idea. But, now the doctor’s prognosis is to either change or die. Most of us make whatever changes are necessary, regardless of how difficult they may be, because we would rather live than die. Surprisingly, there are some people for whom change is so difficult, they choose death by default, because they can’t bring themselves to change their habits.
When Aaron and his sons were being consecrated to serve the Lord as priests, God com-manded them not to leave the Tabernacle entrance for seven whole days, as this was how long it would take for their ordination ceremony to be complete. They were to do “everything the Lord requires” (Leviticus 8:35). And then these words, “If you fail in this, you will die.” Those are powerfully motivating words, are they not? When our behavior determines our immediate dest-iny, it’s amazing how our behavior can change when necessary.
Is it any wonder then, why we should live each day as though it were our last? What if, we lived each day with the urgency that it might be the last chance we had to tell someone how much we loved them? What if, we knew that after today there would be no more opportunity to reconcile a relationship with someone from whom we’ve been estranged for a long time? How different would our attitude be if we knew that today was our last day on earth? How might we do things differently if we knew that today was the last day we would see those we really love, for a long time? “How do you know what will happen tomorrow? For your life is like a morning fog - - it’s here a little while, then it’s gone” (James 4:14). All too often, we make plans as if we are going to live forever in this life, or we fail to make plans for the same reason (Luke 12:16-20). As Christians we have nothing to fear about the life beyond. We have God’s promises that it will be far greater than anything our minds can imagine (I Corinthians 2:9; Romans 8:18; II Cor. 4:17&18; Revelation 21&22). But, as Christians we also want to make the biggest impact for our Lord in this life that we possibly can. As Christians, our desire is to be a vessel through whom people come in contact with Jesus Christ. For that reason, may we view each day and every day as though it were on last here on earth.