Over the course of the last month or so, we have had the idea of death placed in front of us seemingly more frequently than usual. Together, we have witnessed the passing away of celebrity after celebrity. Many of us have had increased exposure as we have experienced the passing of loved ones connected to us either biologically or spiritually.
During these times we are often overcome with a sense of reflection. We often begin this process by reflecting over the life of that special someone who has passed on to the next. More often than not, this process culminates with a personal reflection. It is during this phase of the process that we begin to look back over our own lives. As we look back over our own lives, we begin to experience a wide range of emotions. At times the reflection brings happiness. At times the reflection brings sadness. At times the reflection brings laughter, while at other times the reflection brings tears. Whether your reflection brings mostly laughter or mostly tears, one thing is for sure. Your reflection brings a self evaluation with it. For this reason, I urge all of my brothers and sisters reading this article to make the decision today to start living life on purpose. When this life is over and a start date and ending date is attached to your life, the only thing that will matter is what you did during the dash separating the two dates. Did you just go through life nonchalantly and haphazardly accepting whatever life threw at you without much regard to whether it was making you a better or bitter person? Or did you establish the fact that you were here for a purpose and focus your entire life on walking in the mission and vision that you believed God had placed you here for? From this moment forward make the decision to do everything that you do on purpose. Know why you do what you do. Don’t ever let it be said that when someone asked you why you did something, you simply shrugged your shoulders and responded with a half-hearted “I don’t know.” Whatever you do, do it on purpose. Don’t just date someone, just to date them. Date on purpose with a purpose. Don’t attend places simply out of tradition. Attend with purpose. Don’t just say things without any thought. Say them with purpose. Don’t just participate in activities just because. Participate with purpose, when it is all said and done, it can be very proudly proclaimed on your behalf that the dash between your start date and end date on this side of life served a purpose.
For more information, please call 661-977-4100 or visit www.valenciachristiancenter.org .