We have a dear friend who we have known for years through our church. It is time, and has been for a while, for that friend to move into assisted living.
But that change for any of us is daunting. We hem, we haw, and we consider what it will take to actually start eliminating things from our lives that may once have been useful but now are holding us back from our future. And then we sit back down and hem and haw some more.
This happened with my own father. After my mother died, he still needed to eat three healthy meals a day and to socialize, as he had his entire life, but now that he was on his own, he did not. How frustrating.
He was limited because he was not driving any longer, but even so, he still did not want to move away from the only home he had known since he married, to one now more suited to his needs.
Finally, he no longer had the choice because of his health, and wouldn’t you know it, once he was in assisted living, enjoying three good meals a day and socializing, his mental and physical health improved dramatically.
So, why are we so daunted by making life-altering decisions, even when the correct decision most probably will actually fair well for us?
I’ve been pondering this for years after pleading with my father and because even we now have several older friends without close relatives nearby to assist them when needed.
Neil and I do not have children to sort things out for us when we no longer can, so this question also hits home. We know all of us need to make that plan for the future while we still have the minds and energy to do it. But…
Of course, this whole train of thought leads my heart to wonder the same question about why we delay seeking our Lord’s face until we are close to the end of life. I know many people who do not want to commit their lives to Jesus – yet.
They think they eventually will want to have assurance as to their final outcome, but not just yet.
The idea that our future can be beautiful right now, the minute we take ahold of this action to move ourselves into a better environment or to say yes to Jesus today, should move us into action without delay because God has such a beautiful plan for our lives.
He loves each of us so dearly that if we would only seek Him and His will for our lives, we would soon be enjoying the best our Father has to give us.
Why, then, do we choose to follow our earthly desires instead of God’s desires? It is a question each of us must answer for ourselves.
My first thought is that we are comfortable where we are. As for not giving our lives to Jesus, I believe we get hardened to our sin and although we know we aren’t living the ‘good’ life, we become tolerant of our sin-filled earthly pleasures. We get stuck in our sin and believe that surely, we will have time in the future to make that decision to step away from it.
Why, then, do we who have already committed our lives to Jesus not take full advantage of Jesus’ blessings and move out of our self-imposed ruts? I know I can see this in my own life when I’m afraid to go on a new adventure that Jesus has said will bless me and others in my life. I find I can be terrified. But not to take that step of faith – oh, I pray that will not happen.
Every step I have followed that Jesus has commanded has grown me and blessed me. I am not ever going to tell you it is all easy, but what wonderful blessings beyond my wildest dreams have I received for being obedient. Joy beyond measure is mine when I seek the will of my Savior and follow it.
Every one of us has decisions to make every day of our lives, but none is so life changing and life affirming as choosing to unhand our own soul and give it back over to Jesus to live at His direction.
No one on earth can know such love as we receive from the Father if they have not made that decision. Only once we have committed our lives back to our creator are our eyes and hearts opened to seeing and knowing the pure love of God.
After all, God tells us what obedience brings – “He will open for us the windows of heaven and pour out for us a blessing until there is no more room to receive it.”
Today is the first day of the rest of our lives. Let us not delay in making God-designed choices for our futures.
ED. NOTE: Amy Patsch writes from Ocean City. Email her at writerGoodGod@gmail.com.
