“We are little butterflies flying around for a day, thinking that we will make it forever.” – Carl Sagan
This from a brilliant man and scientist who died at Fred Hutchinson in Seattle at the age of 62.
On April 12, 1912, William John Rogers sent a postcard from the Titanic to his friend James Day. “Dear Friends, just a line to show that I’m alive & kicking and going grand. It’s a treat.”
The next day Rogers would lose his life, slipping into the cold waters of the North Atlantic with the Titanic. His body would never be identified.
Carl Sagan and his wife Ann Druyan kept a copy of the Rogers postcard on the bathroom mirror; it would greet Carl every morning as he shaved. He said, “My wife and I display the postcard for a reason; we know that ‘GOING GRAND’ can be the most temporary and illusory state.”
A contemporary of Jesus, the stoic philosopher Seneca wrote, “Moments are torn from us. The whole future lies in uncertainty.” He then concluded that we should “LIVE IMMEDIATELY.”
As people of faith, the uncertainty of the future is tempered by the fact that we know who holds the future. We live into a mystery, but we know that if we live or die, we are not alone; we are safe in God’s hands.
We do not live as people without hope. We need not be threatened by our frail humanity. But the advice of the philosopher is still worth heeding, “LIVE IMMEDIATELY.”
We should live with intention. Plan as though you will live forever and live as though you will die tomorrow. Don’t put off that trip, make that phone call, write that letter, speak kind words, be charitable and generous. We just never know when “GOING GRAND” is going to end.
Do not let your worry about tomorrow keep you from living and loving today. Jesus said, “Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.” Matthew 6:34.
Come to TLC tomorrow and join us as we “LIVE IMMEDIATELY!”
Pastor Jim
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