What if it were your last day?

I had a very interesting conversation with a friend today. She told me how, upon the very strange and unexpected deaths of two young women in their twenties, she had descended into a very dark place spiritually. These two young women were not related or connected in any way (other than my friend and I happen to know both of their parents) but, in the space of just a couple of months, both of these very healthy, vital women contracted very mysterious illnesses and were dead within a matter of days.

Oh, it was a dark and painful time for many of us who mourned along with the parents and families. These two young women were very close to my friend's own age and the effect upon her was profound. She didn't say this in our conversation, but I think that perhaps this was the first time she had been truly, blatantly confronted with the fact of her own mortality. Oh sure, we're all going to die someday, but we really expect that it won't be until we're old and gray, after having lived a full and fruitful life. But young? vital? healthy? Unexplained, unexpected, unmerciful death in the prime of life? How can hearts be guarded against the uncertainty and fear of that?

She told me how she had become consumed with fear. Almost every moment she thought of death and wondered what she would do if suddenly she were to discover that today would be her last day on earth. She said that the fear almost literally paralysed her, making it difficult for her to even function. Her husband could certainly tell that something dreadful was wrong with her, but she found it extremely difficult to articulate what she felt. How does one explain the feelings and dread when it seems as though a dark battle for the soul is occurring in the depths of the heart?

She said that she had to come to point where she was able to say, "Lord, if today is the last day of my life, that's okay. You are in control." And that is the point we all must come to. Just saying it doesn't change any of the facts. The fact is, God is already in control. He is in control of our every breath--we just forget that. By admitting it to Him and to ourselves, it frees us from the fear of our lives--and our deaths--being out of our own control. It also frees us to live!

Tim McGraw sings a country song called "live Like You Were Dying." It starts off with a friend asking his buddy what he did, how he reacted, when he got a diagnosis of cancer. His answer?

I went sky divin',
I went Rocky Mountain climbin',
I went 2.7 seconds on a bull name Fumanchu.
And I loved deeper,
And I spoke sweeter,
And I gave forgiveness I've been denying,
And he said someday I hope you get the chance,
To live like you were dyin'.

He said I was finally the husband,
That most the time I wasn't.
And I became a friend a friend would like to have.
And all a sudden goin' fishing,
Wasn't such an imposition.
And I went three times that year I lost my dad.
Well I finally read the Good Book,
And I took a good long hard look at what I'd do
If I could do it all again.
And then....

I went sky divin',
I went rocky mountain climbin',
I went 2.7 seconds on a bull name Fumanchu.
And I loved deeper,
And I spoke sweeter,
And I gave forgiveness I've been denying,
And he said someday I hope you get the chance,
To live like you were dyin'.

I hope you get the chance to live like you were dying? We all have that chance. We're all dying, we just don't like to think about it, and it gets pushed back to the dark corners of our minds where we think we can ignore it. It takes something like a diagnosis of cancer or the sudden, unexplained death of someone to refocus us on the preciousness of life and the value of limited time.

So, what if you knew today was your last day? Would it affect the things you were planning to do? Would it cause you to reorganize some priorities? Would it make you look at things differently? I'm sure that every one of us would live that day very differently and with much greater attention and purpose.

Death IS coming, but God is in control. Let's all live like we are dying with purpose, focus, and intentionality during every day of life that God grants us.