Are You Missing Life?

Almost all the major news magazines put out an issue with special pictorial sections recalling people and events that made news in 2008. Many of the magazines include articles by experts predicting what they expect to see happening in the future. In 1977 some of those experts predicted that by the year 2000 technology would have taken over so much of the work load that the average American work week would be only 22 hours long and we would work only 27 weeks a year. As a result, one of our biggest problems would be in deciding what to do with all our leisure time.

I don't know about you, but I would say they blew that one! I believe I am busier than I have ever been. So I know what you are asking yourself right now, "So what is your point Jim?" My point is sometimes we get so busy that we miss life. We miss the blessings God gives us each and every day. And many times it is because we are wishing and hoping for something or somewhere we are not! We are like the proverbial cow with his head through a fence always thinking the grass is greener on the other side. In fact, many of us are engaged in the little game of, "I wish." One of my friends called me last Monday and the first thing out of his mouth was, "Man, I wish it was Friday."

Please understand that this is a global problem. In fact there was a girl who went to college and she absolutely hated it. But she told herself, "If I can ever get out of college, get married and have children, I know I'll finally be able to enjoy life." True enough, she graduated got married and had children. But along the way she discovered that children are a lot of work. So she told herself, "If I can just get these kids raised, then I'll be able to relax and really enjoy life." But about the time the kids were entering high school her husband said, "Guess what? We don't have enough money to send the kids to college you'll have to get a job." She went to work and she hated every minute. In fact she made a promise to herself. She told herself, "If I can just get these kids out of college, and get all the bills paid, then I can quit work and really enjoy life."

Finally, the last child graduated from college and all the bills were paid. So she walked into her employer's office and said, "I quit." He said, "Oh, you don't want to quit now. If you stay with us just another 8 years you'll have a pension for the rest of your life." She thought, "Well, I don't want to work another 8 years, but there's all that money and I really can't turn down the opportunity." So she worked for another 8 years and hated every minute of it. Finally, she and her husband retired they sold their home and bought a little retirement cottage. Then they sat on the swing on their new deck overlooking the ocean and looked at the family picture album and they dreamed about the good old days.

Isn't that the way most of us live our lives wishing and hoping for something other than what the Lord has given us. We need to understand that life is what happens to us while we are making plans to do something else. And when we realize that, we will not fritter away the precious time we have to live life on trifles! So quit wishing and hoping and enjoy the moment. God has you in this place and in this time for a reason.

A new year stretches before us Lord so help us to use the 8,760 hours of this year redeeming the time. Romans 13:11-12 says it better than I ever could, "The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light."

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Contact Dr. James Spinnati at j_spinnati@hotmail.com

Jim currently has two radio programs. One is on the 100,000 watt voice of Southern Ohio WPAY FM in Portsmouth, Ohio, which can be heard in Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. The other is a daily program called Gospel Minutes, which has been syndicated and is heard on 36 radio stations throughout the United States and Australia. Future plans include revival and evangelistic meetings in Australia, the Bahamas, Jamaica, Haiti, and Russia along with the release of the second half of his commentary on the book of Romans, "For I Am Not Ashamed of the Gospel" Part II and the release of his commentary on II Timothy and Titus entitled, "Letters To The Evangelist."

Visit our ministry websites: www.gospel-minutes.org, www.sonshineschoolofevangelism.org and www.tntministriesonline.org

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