The Time or The Hour

As I sit here typing, my mind's a lot of kilometers away in my home town. My friend and his family and their friends are preparing to say goodbye to their daughter, sister, aunt, friend and everything else she was. See I knew his sister...my sister worked with her. We had just recently found each other on Facebook...this online avenue which has become a huge way of reconnection for me with people from the past. A week ago today, she came home, said hello to her family and died.

This event rocked me. Drove home the point of concentrating on what's important, not living with regret or withholding things until tomorrow, because you never know what lies ahead in the future. So as I sit and type, this family is heavy on my heart.

I began the day out reading Chapter 39: Balancing Your Life and Chapter 40: Living With Purpose out of the Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren. There have been a lot of changes already made in my life and our house, in order to try and achieve a better sense of balance and time together. I believe there will always continue to be things that need tweaked and changed, but the important thing is being aware of the fact that will probably have to happen.

I've been thinking a lot about many things read this morning. This passage was one of many which has been at the forefront..."How do you know when God is at the centre of your life? When God's at the centre, you worship. When he's not, you worry. Worry is the warning light that God has been shoved to the sideline. The moment you put him back at the centre, you will have peace again." I shared with friends earlier this week that despite the illness which has been plaguing our family and the busyness of work and life, I'm very much at peace and that's really all that matters.

This week was the first week absent of my previous leadership responsibility and I simply stayed home with my family and it was truly awesome to just be. "If you are a parent, part of your mission is to raise your children to know Christ, to help them understand his purposes for their lives, and to send them out on their mission in the world." I am so thankful for the grace that is offered to me through His amazing love and through the love and devotion of my family. I lost sight of my mission for a bit, but am working to balance things back where they need to be.

For the fact that this life is a continual work in progress...I am very thankful. We learn from the experiences of the past and they build into us, to mold changed thinking towards the future. But at the end of day, it simply matters that you loved and embraced the people He's brought into your life. It simply matters that you tried your best to shine for Him in all circumstances, no matter what they were. We don't know how long our time is here. There's not time to take a second of it for granted.