Life is Precious

With the death of Kobe Bryant, his daughter, and the seven others in the tragic helicopter crash last week, we are reminded that life is too precious to waste on frivolous things. We are reminded that we can exercise, eat healthy, live with strong morals, be careful in every way, and yet, life can end. For me, it was a reminder that I must live every day with purpose and serve others in order to make an impact and a difference in the life of someone else.

It’s easy to just live life and fall into a routine to just exist. I know because I’ve done for far too long. Once I decided to pursue dreams in order to pursue others, I realized that I had time in my life and time should not be wasted. Ironically, Kobe Bryant lived his life with a motto not to waste time, but to live every moment with purpose and pursue greatness. He did not always succeed at that because no one does, but to have it as a motto and a daily goal helps us all to remember that we cannot take life for granted.

It’s easy to hold a grudge and not forgive. It takes strength and maturity to forgive someone. It releases us from being chained to our past and to bitterness, which is not a fun way to live, but it is the easy route because so many people live in this manner. If forgiveness was easy, everyone would do it. No one would reprimand people for sharing stories of forgiveness if it were so easy. Anything in life that is easy is not worth keeping. Doing what is difficult in life is worth it and it creates an urgency in us to realize that the preciousness of life must be protected.

It’s easy to give up on what we love or what we want in life. So many times, we work hard at what we want to accomplish or receive in life and because it gets arduous, we give up because we feel like it is too much for us to reach. Having been disappointed with many areas in life, I have reminded myself not to give up because the process will teach us so much while we endure all the trials and the end goal will be so much more rewarding.

Whatever we do in life, we must remember that we are given a life and that life is precious. What we do with that life is up to us. We cannot sit back and blame others for the situation that we are currently living. Others may have had an impact on us, but how we respond to that impact depends on us. It does not depend on what others have done to us. When we take ownership of our lives and create lives that are valuable with purpose. Life is precious. We do not know when life will end, but we can make the most of every day that we are alive and live it to the fullest.

It took me a long time to discover that wasting time is a sin and it’s one of which I struggle, but I attempt every day to make something purposeful. If we start with one area in our lives, it can grow into other areas. I grew up in the church and I understand that I need to be ready for the afterlife for when I die. With Jesus in my life, I know that I will see him face to face when this life on earth is complete. What I didn’t know was that every day on earth was valuable and important. I took most days for granted and as if I had all the time in the world, but we don’t. Let’s all work to make every day precious and influence the lives of others around us so that they can see Jesus in us. The most important part of our lives is that others see Jesus in us. It’s not that they see our politics or our thoughts or even our favorite parts of life, but that when they see us, they see Jesus. I want to live my life that others see Jesus. It is within that goal that I must live every day with purpose. May 2020 be the year of purpose and no day taken for granted.