May 27 (Psalm 144:4)
Man is like a
breath; his days are like a
passing shadow. (ESV)
John Cougar Mellencamp recorded a song called “Paper In Fire,” and the
second verse goes like this.
He wanted love
With no involvement
So he chased the wind
That's all his silly life required
And the days of vanity
Went on forever
And he saw his days burn up
Like paper in fire
Ask any adult and he or she will tell you. Life goes by more quickly with each passing
year, and before you know it your whole life can seem as insubstantial and
fleeting as a breath or a shadow. Whether
your life is indeed insubstantial, however, is up to you. If your pursuit is of nothing more than pleasure
without the entanglements of responsibility, then life can become quite silly
and vain, and your days will certainly burn up like paper in fire.
Yet if you realize that your life is a gift and choose to
make of it a life of purpose, that is a different matter entirely. A life lived full tilt, passionately, and
with the greatest use and development of its God-given talents, a life lived in
pursuit of something greater than itself, will pass just as quickly as the one
spent in vanity, but it will be rich and full.
It will carry the weight of deep satisfaction along with magnificent
joys and unspeakable tragedies. In
short, it will be a life well lived.
Father, may my eyes ever be focused on the deep calling of my life. May I not be sidetracked with silly and vain temptations. And when I come to the end of my days, may I not realize that they have been wasted, but rather that they have spent in work that is pleasing and acceptable to You, o Lord, my strength and my redeemer. In the name of Christ Jesus, I pray. Amen.
Copyright © 2018 by Steven R. Perkins
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