ITAF

"It Takes a Funeral".

Its a notion that has been swirling around in conversations between me and Brent for years...a reminder that it shouldn't take a funeral to get us to focus on what matters. A question we ask ourselves often - why does it take a funeral to get us to stop and admit we need hope and direction here on this earth? ITAF - a book someday maybe? Who knows...but today I'm struck by that very truth that often times, ITAF.

Yesterday was one of the best/worst days ever. Yep, another funeral. A great life lived well...and ended too early. I think we can all agree on that. But, it was also one of the best because I got to spend it with some of my favorite people. And we got to talk about more than just what our kids were up to or how work was going (although, we did squeeze all that in, too). But we got to talk about bigger stuff.

Sometimes ITAF to dig a lil deeper...to really move the unimportant stuff aside and examine what matters.

I had a great talk w/a friend who said something I'll never forget. He said, "sometimes I feel like I'm not making any difference...like I work and do and I'm not having a greater impact on this world right now". I think we all have that feeling at times...wondering how this day-to-day stuff can truly matter in the bigger picture.

I can't stop thinking about that statement.

Something we talk about often is legacy. What does that mean? What does it look like? What is mine? 

I think what I've come to decide is that we all have one - whether we like it or not. We all have an impact and a purpose...sometimes it just doesn't feel like it. And so, as I sat in the pew and thought about our friend Keith and his legacy, I couldn't help but wonder what do I want my legacy to be? And, if I get a handle on that, then what the heck am I doing to move toward that right now...right this minute...in the midst of the day-to-dayness of NOW.

As I ran today a theme kept repeating itself in the lyrics I heard in my earphones...

"This is your life, are you who you want to be?"

"...live like no tomorrow, every day is borrowed..."

"What are you waiting for? The day is gone."

"The tension is here - between who you are and who you could be; between how it is and how it should be. I dare you to move."

I could go on. For real. In my earphones. It just wouldn't stop. I don't believe in coincidences, y'all. 

Here's where I landed on this: why do we often wait for what should be the perfect circumstances before we take on life in the way we know we were intended to? OK...rephrase: why are we waiting? I want to live a life where I wake up every morning breathing in these words: "This is the day the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it." No matter what comes. 

What do I want everyone to be remembering about my life lived when its my turn to be the one being honored at the funeral? I want to live that now. Every minute. Every borrowed breath.