RETIRE OR REFIRE?

As the years advance, most of us hopefully think more seriously about making the rest of our earthly journey productive and meaningful. For me, that means in part that I should "put my house in order" and hone my goals more sharply. It is time to thank God for blessings of the past, celebrate the present, and anticipate the future. I spelled it out for myself in the following four ways:

Focus on keeping the main thing the main thing--to seek God and His Kingdom first.
Simplify my material "stuff"--generously give much of it away or decisively throw it away.
Prioritize my goals and time and efforts as if I had little time left to accomplish them.
Anticipate that God will still give me generous time to serve and glorify Him.

That means that I will try to:

Eliminate or limit pursuits that no longer contribute to life goals God has given me.
Surrender any cares of this world that hinder me from an ever-closer relationship with God.
Seek wisdom from God to know where and how I should press forward harder.
Discern where I should lighten up, cut myself some slack, and smell those roses.
Obey fully by doing promptly whatever God reveals as His will and purpose for me.

God requires different things of us in different seasons of our lives. Let's live fully in the present at whatever season or stage of life we find ourselves. God gives each of us abilities and opportunities that He expects us to use responsibly. We are accountable to be faithful stewards only of what we have been given, not for what someone else has received.

I am a goal setter and deadline pusher by temperament. I'll probably never consider myself "finished" when earthly life is over. There will always be more that I want to do, to become, to write, to express, to learn, to enjoy, to experience, and to reach for. When God's allotted time for my life is over, I'll undoubtedly still have exciting projects on the back burner. But God, who planned my life in detail and prepared my days before the foundation of the world, (Ephesians 2:10) will count my work and life "complete."

Until then, I invite you to join me to push the horizons of our minds and our spirits further, attempt more, learn more, create more, pray more, take up new challenges and opportunities and live on the cutting edge of life. "Ya gotta use it or you'll lose it!" The more we stretch, the higher we can reach. We want everything God planned for us, don't we? Let's especially enjoy to the full all our relationships with families and friends; they are special treasures.

(Excerpt from my book in progress, "FINISHING IT UP--With a Flourish," a sequel to my published book "LIVING IT UP! Meditations for 'Seasoned Saints'")

#END