… just another day

Fall out of bed at 5:30 a.m. Brush teeth. COFFEE! MORE COFFEE! Feed the animals/read the paper. COFFEE & breakfast. Rural—to the fields to tend the crops, drop off the grain, hay, etc. Urban—rush hour/traffic jams, subways, daily commute. College—what’s 5:30 a.m.?!? Late to class, forget teeth, pull on yesterday’s clothes (now where are they?). Grab a Pop Tart. Whoops. Wrong class— it’s Monday.

Every phase of life creates its own pattern, its own routine. To a very large extent we are governed by the commitments we have made to the farm, our families, our jobs, or our education. Very few of us wake up at 10:00 a.m. and wonder what day it is and ponder what do I want to do today? We need to earn a living—work, to bring income into our bank accounts to meet our needs and some of our wants. [It is odd, though, that as we age, what we once considered a need we later realize was actually a want; and our wants grow less and less, falling under the perspective of time, wisdom and things that are truly important.]

Eventually, our routine, our life-pattern fades to become the backdrop for all we do. We become governed by the unconscious regularity of our daily schedule. We define ourselves by what we do, and lose track of any idea of who we are. Character development gives way to business savvy and the desire to get ahead; then we live for the weekends. In farming, we define ourselves by working sunrise to sunset, seven days a week. We are what we do, in North America; this is the way it has been since before the industrial revolution, more than a century ago.

Still, in those fleeting quiet moments, on the tractor or on the commuter train, even with the world swirling all around you, have you ever wondered if you might do just one thing that is significant? Have you ever wanted to make a difference on a grander scale, a national platform, a worldwide stage? In war, ordinary people find themselves heroes, merely by rising to the occasion. In ordinary life we rarely have to rise to the occasion. Or do we?

Try this—  For no other reason than to make a difference, give some money away to a worthwhile cause…, or to someone you know is going through hard times. Anonymously. Volunteer in a Mission soup kitchen, hire someone who needs a job and train them, join a short term mission trip to Haiti, Ghana, southern India, Appalachia, New York City, East LA. Do not do it to feel good about yourself. Sacrifice is about sacrifice, not calculated comfort or feel-good. It is about serving, loving, caring, giving—expecting nothing in return. [Example— read The Gospel of Matthew, The Bible.]

Can you really go on living just another day? Do something to make a difference!

Have a nice week.

Gary