When I retired from the principalship almost five years ago, some parents gave me a canvas painting. It has tropical green plants painted on a white background with three words written in gold in the center—Enjoy every moment. On the back they handwrote, “Thank you for your leadership in bringing up our children in a great learning environment.” It hangs on the wall in my office. Tonight, the words, “Enjoy every moment,” seemed to leap off the painting and into my psyche as I sat down to write this message.

I have attended two funerals this week and will attend a third on Saturday for which I have been asked to do the eulogy. There is nothing quite like attending funerals almost every other day in one week to remind you of the fragility of life. It also serves as a reminder of the urgency to live life to the full and enjoy every moment.   

“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 10:10 NIV)

Jesus Wants You to Live!

The earliest family reunions that I remember took place in early July in the Crowell’s community of Halifax, N. C. In the heat of summer, during the season when we worked hardest in the fields every day except Sunday, we paused for a day and gathered at Grandpa Freeland’s house to enjoy, hotdogs, hamburgers, North Carolina barbecue, cold lemonade, soft drinks, and a variety of vegetables and desserts. In addition to our family of eight at the time, my dad’s five sisters, two brothers, spouses, and children flooded in from around the corner and as far away as Pittsburgh and Washington, D. C. Grandpa always started preparing for the celebration several days early each year.

On July 2, 1962, when he was 67 years old, Grandpa got into his little pickup truck and headed to Enfield to get some of the necessities for the reunion. We were working in the tobacco field at our home in Enfield. Grandpa never returned home that day. A large tractor-trailer truck loaded with watermelons struck my grandfather’s little pickup as he entered an intersection two miles from Enfield.

My mother shared with me that some years earlier when Grandpa was sick and confined in the hospital, he told his family that he was visited in a vision by two angels who told him he could either go home to be with the Lord at that time or he could recover from the illness and continue his work here.

He said they told him to give it some thought, and that they would return later for his decision. Grandpa said it was an enticing offer for him as he would be free of pain and suffering and at home with the Lord. But as he thought of his family, he decided it would be better for them if he remained here. By the way, every time things got rough for Grandpa, he would say, “I didn’t have to go through this. I could have been in heaven.”

God really, really, really loves us! He wants us to live life to the full. That does not mean frolicking in sinful activities. Nor does it means making up sins and burdening people with Pharisaic legalism. It means living, loving, serving God and His people, and taking care of ourselves so that we can prosper and be healthy during our time here.  

Yes, we will have pain and suffering. The enemy comes to steal, kill, and destroy our joy. But we can resist the devil by following and placing our full trust and confidence in Jesus. He will help us to live life more abundantly and enjoy every moment. Look up now! He’s smiling down on you! Jesus genuinely loves you, and He wants you to live!  Oh, and THANK YOU for taking the time to read this message!

Focus Quote: “And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is” [for you].

–Ephesians 3:18 NLT