Living in the Dash-Ash Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2010

Today, February 17, 2010 is Ash Wednesday the beginning of Lent. During this Lenten season I will be writing a daily email using the book: One Month To Live by Kerry and Chris Shook. We begin the journey of Lent with a smudge of ash and the words, “Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return.” We need to hear theses words, because they remind us that we are not going to live forever on this earth.
If a doctor told you today that you only had one month to live, would you live differently? How would you make each day really matter? What would you start or stop doing? How would you make sure that you lived without regrets?

Together we are going on a 40 day adventure called Lent. This journey will provide us with the tools we need to find life and to live abundantly.  Join me as we reflect together on One Month to Live.

Living the Dash

Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return

Death is more universal than life; everyone dies but not everyone lives.—Alan Sachs

I am convinced that it is not the fear of death, of our lives ending, that haunts our slep so much as the fear…that as far as the world is concerned, we might as well never have lived.–Harold Kushner

Your time on earth is limited. No matter how much that makes you squirm, it’s a fact. No matter who you are, how young or old, what measure of success you’ve attained, or where you live, mortality remains the great equalizer. Our days are numbered, and each one that passes is gone forever. This reality can liberate us.  Most of us if we had one month to live, would live differently. We would be more authentic about who we are and more deliberate about how we spent our time. The question is–What keeps us from living this way now?

You get to choose how to spend that little dash of time between the two dats of your earthly existence. What are you spending your on? Are you living the dash, knowing fully who you are and why you’re here? Or dashing to live, hurriedly spending precious time chasing things that really don’t matter to you? The Psalmist prayed, “Teach us to number our days and recognize how few they are; help us to spend them as we should.” (Psalm 90:12, TLB)

Just over three thousand years ago, a 120 year old man stood on a rocky hillside addressing a couple of million homeless men, women and children. They were the descendants of Israel, about to end a forty-year detour on their way to the Promised Land. His name was Moses, and he was about to die

Moses gave his farewell sermon that said, “I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction…Now choose life…that you may love the LORD your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the LORD is your life”. (Deuteronomy 30:15, 19-20).

We skip ahead a millennium or so and we hear Jesus saying to the people, “I have come that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” (John 10:10).

What will you choose today? Are you living intentionally aware of the dash? Jesus reminds us again and again that we find freedom in the truth (John 8:31-32). Read Psalm 90 and consider how short our lives really are lived.

If you had only one month to live…you wouldn’t hesitate to be spontaneous and risk your heart. What one or two risks do you sense you need to take? More specifically, what investments of time might you need to make despite the potential embarrassment, loss, pain or cost? What is one decision you can make now that will make this day count for eternity?

You can live with no regrets and embrace a life so abundant you’ll wonder why you ever settled for less.

Prayer: God, thanks for promising to be present with me as I explore a more abundant life. Every day, starting now, challenge me to take the initiative for each new step. Feed my spirit with glimpses of your heart for me and for others. Let me experience both the rewards you’ve promised as I keep my eyes on you and the victory over mediocrity that you’ve guaranteed. Amen.