The Power of Today

For the past few weeks, my pastor's messages have been about the stressful lives we lead. One of the things he talked about was how often we "live for the weekend." It's been sort of bouncing around in my mind since then, particularly because I've been pondering what basic values I want my son to grow up incorporating into his life. I think it's worth giving some thought to, this "living for the weekend" thing. While I don't believe there is anything wrong with looking forward to relaxing on the weekends, I do see his point. When we are so intensely focused on getting to the next weekend, the next vacation, the next job, the next new car, the next house, the next phase of our life, the next whatever...we miss today. We miss out on the possibilities of today, the opportunities, the relationships, the miracles of each day. When we are so focused on what comes next, we don't live each moment. We miss out on the people God has sent into our lives to bless us, or those people whose lives we are supposed to touch.

A friend recently told me how much he dreads Mondays. I can relate, because in the past, I really have dreaded Mondays, particularly when I was in a job I no longer enjoyed. I remember getting that feeling on Sunday afternoons, that dread of what was coming the next morning. Right now? I don't dread Mondays. Partly that's because I love what I'm doing right now, but more than that, it's because I am trying to consciously live in the here and now. I don't want to miss out on life because I'm so busy looking forward to whatever comes next. I see how fast the past 18 months have gone; my son is no longer a baby, he's a little boy now. It has gone incredibly fast, and I don't want to miss a moment because I'm too busy waiting for something else.

I'm not saying we shouldn't plan ahead, or that we can't look forward to things. I just think we need to focus more on being present in the right here, right now. I think we will find much more to be grateful for, experience many more blessings, witness more miracles, and experience a tremendous amount of peace if we can live each moment, right here, right now.