A New Perspective on YOLO

If you are anything like me, you spend December 31st waiting on something to fall out of the sky. Not real festive, I know but tradition is tradition. I am a bit of a sentimental so I enjoy quietly reflecting on another year in the books and I certainly love giving my wife a smooch when the ball falls over Times Square. This year will most likely be no different; complete with all of the pomp and circumstance of a living room lit only by the dim light of television.

There is something about this tradition though. Every year we look for another opportunity to do something that we wish we had done in the past. We long for the endurance and perseverance to accomplish something great in the next year that we haven't completed or succeeded in before. Often times these things that we call resolutions don't even last more than a couple of weeks, if that. There's always next year, right? Well, as we all know, not necessarily. We have only been given right now. The past is in the history books and we are living in the present as God sees fit. This year I am challenging myself, my family, and my church to live in the moment. This is not to say that we can't have plans. Not only can we, but we absolutely should. I am only attempting to say that we should not let the opportunities presented in our routine lives pass us by.

A common phrase that is bantered about by my generation, (yes I am a millennial), is YOLO. I can almost see some of your eyes rolling. This phrase simply means that You Only Live Once. The underlying message behind it is that you should take every opportunity to do something meaningful because you may not get the chance again. The urges that you are encouraged not to resist by this phrase are typically fleeting, possibly even trivial things. This is most certainly not the sentiment behind what I am attempting to get across.

Jesus expects and deserves excellence. The Apostle Paul wrote to the Church at Corinth and said "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God" (1 Cor. 10:31). Whatever you do. Whether you are eating, drinking, working, playing, cleaning the car...whatever. Do it for the glory of God. Not all of us were called to be pastors. Not all of us were called to be doctors, nurses, teachers, janitors, farmers...but all of us are called to leverage our lives for the glory of God. You can do what you are already doing but change your perspective, change your outlook, change your motivations and align the things that you are already doing for God's glory. Do you go to the grocery store? Share your faith with the clerk. Do you eat out at restaurants? Glorify God with your your generosity to your server. Do you have coworkers? Invite them to church. It's just everyday life. Again Paul writes, "And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him" (Col. 3:17). Just be who God designed you to be, live according to His will, and live a meaningful and intentional life.

This year my encouragement to you is to leverage your everyday life (whatever you do, in word or deed), to do it in the name of Jesus and bring glory to God! Because YOLO!!! Am I right?!!!

Good Intentions

As a kid, I grew up in an area near an army base. Many of the people that I knew were military and I can remember hearing war-games being played even from miles away. My father was in the military and fought in Vietnam but that was before my time. I never really knew what it was like being in a military family but I had a lot of friends who were intimately acquainted with that life style.

One of the harder parts of having friends whose parents were in the military was the constant revolving door. Many people that I knew would come into our community and then seemingly just as quickly as they arrived, their parents would be stationed somewhere else or sent on a tour of duty. It was always hard to say goodbye to friends. Then came along Ben. Ben and I were inseparable. He was my very best friend and then he was gone. His dad was in the army and got stationed on a base in Germany.

Ben and I swore to each other that we would keep in touch. We decided that we would become pen-pals. I thought that was the coolest thing to send and receive letters from a friend in Germany. He would write me and tell me all about his new school, the town he lived in, and the new friends he was meeting. I would tell him about the adventures that I and our old buddies were getting into. Everyday, I would anxiously wait to see if I would receive a new letter from him in the mail. At first, I was getting them all the time. But, as you can imagine, the letters started slowing down. Then one day, I realized that they had stopped coming altogether. Unfortunately the friend that I had was so distant that we completely lost touch. We had good intentions but it just didn't last. I don't know where Ben is today or how he is doing but I think of him ever so often when reminiscing on childhood memories.

Painful as losing Ben was, I learned an important lesson that I carry with me even today. Communication is key...without it you will grow apart. Being a disciple of Christ is not all that different. Being in communication with the Father is vital to a sustainable relationship. When Christ chose His disciples, He intentionally invested in their lives. He was with them. He communicated with them. He spent time with them.

As a disciple of Christ, I am afforded the same luxury. I get to spend time with God. He communicates with me through His Word and I to Him through prayer. Unfortunately many do not prioritize this withness. To them it is enough to attend church sporadically and clear their conscious with their attendance. God desires a much closer relationship with us than that. He desires to speak into our lives on a daily basis. I would even argue that He desires constant contact with us. He desires to be with us.

One thing is for certain, if staying in touch with God isn't a priority, we will experience distance. But as my wife has asked me on more than one occasion, "Who moved?" It was always me.