Don't Wait Too Long

How do you look at life? What do you expect from life? I’m not talking about life after death–I’m talking about the “here and now.”
 
Are you just drifting along–day after day? Or are you concentrating on making each day “special” in some way? This may be a difficult challenge in times of trials, but it is not impossible to do.
 
It’s really a matter of setting right priorities. We can work ourselves to death, without realizing perhaps, that “our riches may make themselves wings and fly away,” before we know it (Proverbs 23:5). Or, we can concentrate on being content and enjoying the good things in life (Ecclesiastes 2:22-24; 3:12-13, 22; 9:7).
 
When we are confronted with the death of a loved one, we may stop to think what all we could have done for him or her, when we had opportunity, but we were just “too busy” and “occupied” with seemingly more important matters. We just waited too long and missed opportunities to “give flowers to the living.”
 
A word of kindness, fitly spoken at the right time (Proverbs 25:11), or an act of love and mercy, expressing our appreciation and concern for another dear person, will not only brighten his or her days, but ours as well (Proverbs 11:17). If misunderstandings have severed friendly relationships, we ought to try to restore them now. Don’t wait too long–until it is too late (Ecclesiastes 9:5-6, 10).
 
We can concentrate so much on comparatively smaller things, that we overlook and neglect the weightier and more important matters of God’s law (Matthew 23:2; Luke 11:42). Jesus emphasizes its greatness by stressing love for God and for our neighbor (Matthew 22:36-40). Paul encourages us to love one another by refraining from inflicting any harm on our neighbor (Romans 13:8-10). Husbands and wives are admonished to love each other (Ephesians 5:25; Titus 2:4).
 
When we really love someone, we will show him or her our appreciation. True love is much more than just saying, “I love you,” while neglecting to prove it through our conduct (1 John 3:18).
 
We must constantly manifest true Christian love to our fellow man–whenever the opportunity arises (Galatians 6:10). Never be too busy to do this–and don’t wait too long.