[1st summer post: living life!]

"Therefore Jesus said again, “I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep.  All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." [John 10: 7-10]

Have you ever heard the phrase, "Live life to the fullest"? Or what about the quote, "Our days are like identical suitcases - all the same size, some people pack more in them than others"? For some reason, the first phrase has ran through my head more than once recently. And I find it funny because I try not to be concerned with paying attention to what cliches mean or emphasize. So, why's the phrase hit me recently? Maybe it's the stage of life I'm in, who knows... As for the second quote (above), there's a lot of truth in understanding the stewardship of how a person spends his or her day. We are all aging. No one can run from the process of life's varying stages. Some days, we get more done than others. And other days, we don't. It's all okay in the end though. Really, it is. Some days, the reminder of the aches and pains our failing bodies have are more apparent than ever before. Other days, we feel fit as a fiddle - just like "back in the day." Where does the time go? Recently, I asked a wiser, older friend of mine (yes, she's in the LWML) about life and if it ever slows down. She smiled and laughed, summing up that life presents a new kind of busy in each season you experience and endure.

Let me tell you, I'm absolutely thrilled for the current experiences (and what is to come) that God continues to reveal in my life.

I don't mean to disappoint but I am not going to begin to write up a list to tell you how to "Live life to the fullest." If you really care to, I'm sure you could do a Google search and find a list for yourself. But in the end I don't think one list you find on the internet will truly guide you on how to fully live out your life. Your life is yours. It is a gift from God! Thanks be to God for this! Your life looks different than your neighbor's. And praise the Lord for that! Continue pressing on in the race of life. Invest time in what you are passionate about and the current vocations God has blessed you to have. And in everything you do, pray and seek to share the love of Christ in all you do!

Just a few things (but for sure not an exhaustive list, nor in any particular order) about life that I pray God will continue to bless me with the rest of my life...
   
     -Interacting with God's people - yes, I'm talking about being with the youngest of young & the oldest of old. Cherish the moments God gives you when you spend time with the people He puts in your life. You may learn something you didn't anticipate learning from the unexpected teacher of a 6 year old!

     -Recognizing ministry moments - Ministry is such a beautiful thing. I pray that God doesn't ever allow me to see ministry as a boring experience in my life. He is at work in all moments of ministry! And I am along for the ride! It is in exciting ministry moments I always hear my good friend from Seward exclaim, "Heck yes, I'm church work!" :)

     -Living out the beauty of forgiveness - No one is perfect and forgiveness is one gift of God's we are able to use to help us in moments where we wrong others we care about in our lives. In my opinion there's no way to survive life without utilizing this beautiful gift of God's!

     -Sharing the Gospel - And this occurs in so many ways! Whether you are doing family devotions at home, teaching Sunday School at church, praying for missionaries, collecting mites for mission projects, or hopping a pond for an overseas mission trip - God enables all people of all ages to share about the work of Jesus! Praise the Lord for giving us the Holy Spirit who works faith in our hearts and gives us the ability to trust in Him!

     -Living life one day at a time - Life seems to be less stressful this way, and frankly, I'm all for decreasing the amount of stress in my life. This does not mean though, that I'd recommend not planning ahead for things you're responsible for. Planning ahead is super wise and makes the event/ responsibility that much more enjoyable when the time comes to implement something!

     -Realizing that learning doesn't stop - AND It never has to stop! I don't know about you but I thoroughly enjoy learning from others. Trust me, it makes life more interesting.

That's all, folks!

(...for now.)