What is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time (temporary) and then vanishes away. (James 4:14)
While walking around my neighborhood, a neighbor waved me down to tell me her mom passed into eternity last month. She would usually sit in a lawn chair near her garage and wave each time I’d pass by. Her daughter wanted me to know as I would probably miss her from her usual cheery spot.
That got me thinking about the temporariness of this life. It has a beginning, but it also has a definite end. Death is a sobering reality we all will face one day.
Temporary Things
To put life’s temporariness into perspective, what are some other non-permanent things? The waiting room in a hospital is temporary. Our time at an airport terminal is also temporary. Although, depending on cancelations, that form of temporary might be a little longer than expected, but it’s still a temporary stay. Trips to the DMV are temporary. Vacations are also temporary. Although we enjoy them, we don’t expect to stay on vacation our entire earthly existence. We realize that at some point we have to go home.
What do we do while at these temporary places? When we’re in the waiting room at the hospital, we listen for our names. When the doctor or nurse arrives, we don’t want to miss them when they call for us. When we’re at the airport, we also listen for our boarding and departure information. We listen to avoid missing the flight. At the DMV we listen for them to call our name or assigned number. While on vacation, we may not be actively listening for someone to call us. But we are available to family and friends in case of an emergency. During all these temporary states, we walk, sit, worry, maybe sleep, and sometimes have an occasional snack. Of course, while on vacation, we eat too much but that’s another story. The point is, our focus is temporary, not a long-term investment of our time.
Life is Temporary
Just like all these temporary situations, this earthly life is temporary. We realize that sooner or later we must face death. But quite often we act like this earth is permanent. We act like we’re going to be here forever. We accumulate things, we put down deep roots, and we fix up our surroundings. And yet we would never do that in a waiting room, an airport terminal, at the DMV, or while on vacation.
As proof of this life’s temporary status, sooner or later, our bodies will stop functioning and life as we know it will cease to exist. But instead of thinking of them as temporary, we pamper them and set our hearts on anything and everything we desire like it is a permanent situation. That is like fixing up a rental.
The Bible tells us we are to number our days (Psalm 90:12). It says our earthly life is like vanishing vapor (James 4:14), dissipating smoke (Psalm 102:3), a passing shadow (Psalm 144:4). Hebrews 9:27 says death is every person’s unavoidable appointment.
Focus Shift from Temporary to Eternal
When we realize that this life and our bodies are not permanent, it seems wise to change our expectations. Instead of fixating so much time, attention, and wealth on the temporary things of this world, how much better to invest in the world to come. In things of eternal significance. Things that matter. The apostle Paul confirmed that we brought nothing into this world when we were born, and we can take nothing with us when we die (1 Timothy 6:7).
When we stand before Jesus in the hereafter, what will the setting be? Will we look back with regret on lives spent investing in temporary and insignificant things? Or will we hear Jesus applaud lives focused on worthy things of eternal and significant value? In eternity, we can no longer make choices. That outcome depends on the choices we make now. The only choices we can make are today, now. Oh, may we shift our focus from the temporary to the eternal, from the insignificant to the valuable wealth of heaven.
Concepts taken from Nate’s new book, Called to Christlikeness, not Christianity. Purchase here.
This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Nate Stevens.
Featured Image by imanol avila from Pixabay
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