What about Now?
Lately I've been running across both articles and TV interviews that all seem to be asking the same question: If you knew that you only had a few months to live, what would you do with that time? Of course, the logical question that follows is this: If you would do it with a few months to live, why not do it now?
These are questions that ask us to focus in on what's really important in life. These are questions that prod us to think now about what's important, for we cannot assume that we've got a long life ahead of us.
Biblically speaking, we are warned to be alert, and to be ready at all times. This is true whether we are talking about the end of this world and the coming of Christ or about our own impending death. We are told that Jesus will reappear at an unexpected hour and like a thief in the night (Lk. 12:40; 1 Th. 5:2). We are told: "No one can anticipate the time of disaster" (Eccl. 9:12). Truthfully, none of us knows when our time here on this earth will be up.
Now, all of this is not to be morbid, but to encourage us to focus on life in the present. One article which I came across recently points out that most of popular Christianity these days focuses on either the afterlife or on prophecies about the Last Days. Does our faith only have relevance for the future? Isn't Christ alive now? Doesn't eternal life begin now?
There seems to be a popular notion that says that there is really no need to live out your faith in Jesus Christ until you're getting older and you know that death might be approaching. It is viewed as "fire insurance" of sorts - making sure that one repents and does all of the proper things before getting too close to death.
Yet, the eternal life that is ours through faith in Jesus Christ is so much more than that. It is an ongoing, life-giving relationship that nurtures and sustains us from day to day. It is like "rivers of living water" flowing from a believer's heart (Jn. 7:38). It is an intimate connection with the Eternal Now which begins now and lasts into eternity.
This connection with God in Christ is nurtured through prayer, through worship, through reading the Scriptures, through Christian community, and through the Lord's Supper. These are the means given to us through which the Holy Spirit works. These are the ways in which we grow in faith and in love. These are the ways in which we meet and connect with the Eternal Now.
When we neglect these things, we are absolutely missing out on eternal life. We also do not get to know the Saviour who loves us and who gave his life for ours.
So… what would you do with only a few months to live? Would you walk humbly with your God? Would you spend time with the people who matter to you the most? Would you drink in the beauty of creation? Would you spend time in worship and in prayer?
If you would do it then, why not now? "See, now is the acceptable time; see, now is the day of salvation!" (2 Cor. 6:2). "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing" (Rom. 15:13) - now and forever!

In Christ,

Pastor Lynne Hutchison Moore