In The Blink of an Eye

We are like weeds that Sprout in the morning,

that grow and burst into bloom,

then dry up and die in the evening.

~ Psalm 90: 5b, 6

The Psalmist sang to the Lord saying “Teach us how short our life is, so that we may become wise” and this is the basis upon which I am reflecting on the title “In the Blink of an Eye.”  How should I use the ephemeral nature of my life here on earth to promote the tenet of justice, peace and love and thereby become an extension of the Kingdom of Heaven?

The story was told of the foolish rich man, who experienced a bountiful harvest and decided to neither acknowledge God nor share his talents with the people around him, by planning to build a larger storage facility to accommodate his produce in anticipation of living a life of luxury, laziness and self-indulgent! Unfortunately, that very night God demanded of his life and behold his plan came to naught. In conclusion Jesus Christ said “Thus will it be for all who store up treasure for themselves but are not rich in what matters to God.”

When man failed to acknowledge God and by extension the limitation of his earthly existence, the tendencies are the perpetuation of actions that does not in any way manifest the divine will that was fashioned for humanity from the beginning of the world!

WHY AM I HERE?

Due to the very busy nature of our contemporary society and the availability of technological advancement and all sorts of teachings, some which fundamentally challenges the existence of God, man is caught up and at a crossroad as to the importance of spirituality in his life. We at times blatantly refused to accept the fact that we even have a spiritual nature to our humanity, choosing to only believe in science and technology, and by that I mean anything that cannot be proven by mathematics or science is a fairy tale.

However and notwithstanding this inimical trend, the reality of humanity is that man is made up of a physical and a spiritual part and the two natures complement one another, and failure to accept such reality makes man one dimensional and therefore a great threat to justice, peace and love.

Man was created for the glory of God, and on earth is given the task of propagating the Kingdom of God, which is light and eternal life to the world that has fallen as a result of the sins of disobedience by our first parent Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.

Our God have certain expectations of all of us; firstly we must believe in him as the almighty, omnipotent and omnipresent, the alpha and the omega and the creator of the entire universe and all that is contained within and secondly we must through our faith in God love him and love our neighbors as ourselves. It is upon these expectations that man can find the true meaning of life on earth, while anticipating the glorious eternal life in heaven.

SEEK WHAT IS ABOVE

We live in a world that is driven largely in part by our insatiable quest for material comfort and under certain circumstances even to the detriment of our spiritual well being. When the quality of life become secondary to the quantity of life, the repercussions are too numerous to count and often are manifested as features of what St. Paul referred to as our earthly part or body. These are; immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and the greed that is idolatry, lying to one another and discrimination on the basis of status, race and culture.

In order for us to seek what is above, it is contingent upon us to first and foremost acknowledge the fact that we have been raised by Christ Jesus and the same Christ is now seated at the right hand of God in heaven. Furthermore we have also died to the body by virtue of receiving Jesus Christ as our Lord and savior and therefore our life is hidden with the same Christ in God.

So what are the things that are of above? These are the righteousness and the Kingdom of God!

The simple way that the righteousness and Kingdom of God can be evident in our lives is if we practice through our words and actions and treat others with justice, peace and love.

If you see a hungry man and you help to feed him, you are seeking the things of heaven

If you refuse others to be unjustly condemn, you are seeking the things of heaven

If you love others irrespective of their race, culture or lifestyle, you are seeking things of heaven

If you share your talents, faith and hope to bring good to others, the same applies too.

If you are a peacemaker, you are seeking the things of heaven

If you build humanity rather than denigrate life, you are seeking the things of heaven.

WISDOM

The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom and this kind of fear is not the one commonly associated with punitive punishment, but rather a sacred one which is fundamentally rooted in love so infinite and steadfast that, knowing how much you are loved by God will make you to be fearful to go against his plans for your life.

Wisdom enables man to choose life over death, love instead of hate, peace over war and hope over despair, because when you become wise in God, you no longer see your circumstances through the prism of your eyes, but rather through the eyes of God’s grace, mercy and compassion. As a result no matter how seemingly challenging the situations you are inside may be, because you trust in God’s infinite love and faithfulness, you can deal with them.

FOOLISHNESS

On the contrary, the foolish man does not see the need for God, since he has calculated that his destiny is in his own hand and therefore his actions or inaction determines his fate! This kind of philosophy are informed and perpetuated as a result of the imbalance that exists when man becomes one dimensional. The foolish rich man did nothing wrong in building wealth for himself! His foolishness arose as a result of his selfishness, idolatry and lack of acknowledging the fact that his life was made by God and his understanding is limited by his human nature- you cannot play God, simply because you are the “richest” or the most “powerful” man on earth!

SHORTNESS OF LIFE

In the Blink of an Eye, we may be no more and then what?

The Psalmist hymn to the almighty God to please, “teach us how short our life is, so that we may be wise” is recognition of the ephemeral nature of our lives on earth.

We are given a unique opportunity by God to bear witness to the glory of his name, show compassion, mercy and become an instrument of peace, joy and consolation to those who are at the receiving end of life’s struggles, challenges and distressing circumstances that are almost making them to question the existence of God.

How you respond to this calling to be the kingdom of God to your neighbor is very fundamental to our God and the awareness of the shortness of our lives here on earth can greatly help.

I may be rich today, but tomorrow is not a guarantee that my riches will abide.

I may also be poor today, but can become rich tomorrow.

Either way, the emphasis about the shortness of life in relation to the “In the Blink of an Eye” is about the unpredictability of life and how we can best prepare when the curtain of life finally fall and we are no more physically present.

How will the almighty God feel about you and what will people say about you? Were you a generous, loving and compassionate person, that love God and man, a peacemaker, humble and kind to all irrespective of what they were?

The curtain may fall today or tomorrow or years from now, some of us may go at a young age and others may have the opportunity to live longer. How was the quality of life that you live compared to the expectations that you were assigned by the almighty God?

PRAYER

Dear heavenly Father,

You turn man back to dust, saying, “Return, O children of men.”

For a thousand years in your sight are as yesterday, now that it is past, or as a watch of the night.

Help us that if today we hear your voice, let us not harden our hearts!

Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain wisdom of heart.

Do not allow us to take our life on earth for granted, instead help us through the gift of the Holy Spirit to see you in all the situations that we encountered and therefore be encouraged to face them all by your grace.

Thank you O Lord my God for by faith we believe that during the “In the Blink of an Eye” moment you will receive us into your kingdom of eternal glory through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen!

Ref: Colossians 3, Luke 12, Psalm 90, Genesis 3

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