Thought for the Month - November 2013
"You only live once " by Barry Adair
(YOLO)
If, like me, you are over 40, YOLO will probably mean very little to you. It may even remind you of one of those round and soft-centred chocolate sweets (ROLO)!
However, if you are younger or have teenage kids or grandkids, then you will know YOLO as "you only live once". The phrase has been about for a while now; let me quote from an on-line article…
YOLO is pretty much everywhere these days. It's on your Facebook feeds, on images of cupcakes in Instagram, it's hash-tagged all the time and it's even been tattooed on some girl's midriff (it's true!).
It has become a phrase championed by youth, describing them doing random things, enjoying life, living it up.
So why talk about it here? Well, it was on my mind this month for one main reason and I thought I would jot down the results of my musings.
When I came across the on-line article from where I used the quote above, I had to laugh. My daughter has just returned from a teaching assistant role in Thailand. And a tattoo on her midriff returned too! Yip, you guessed it, it does say YOLO - it just happens to be in the Thai language.
For the record, can I add that:
- I don't like tattoos but I love my daughter.
- My daughter loves me and her tattoo.
- Thailand is a Buddhist country with a strong belief in reincarnation - so to them you never only live once!
For some, like my daughter, YOLO is a reminder that we only pass this way once. Sure, we should enjoy life but also reach out to help others in need along the way.
For many others, the "live it up" philosophy is preeminent - a life lived without any consequences, or not worrying what the consequences might be.
The Bible is clear that we have just the one life on planet Earth - sorry to bash the Buddhists. Not only that, but it shows that there are consequences for how we live out our life here. I wrote, quite a few months ago, about the first moon landing back in the summer of 1969. I thought again about Neil and Buzz jumping about on the surface of the moon nearly 45 years ago. And do you know what? If you and I were able to go there we would see their footprints, just as if they had walked that path a couple of minutes before we got there.
We too all leave our footprints. God knows all the places we venture to. Nothing is hidden from Him. Let us be sure that we are on the right path. Let's ensure that the footprints we leave behind are honourable and upright. And if our footprints, so far, haven't all been honourable and upright? Then we only have to ask God for His forgiveness. Seek His path for our lives. The path Jesus took while on earth was solely for us. He died to pay for all our wrongdoings. The path to an eternal home with God is available to all. It may be a narrow and difficult path at times, but the end is Heaven itself!
"Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it." (Matt 7:13-14)
You only live once.
Which path will you chose?
You will make known to me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
In Your right hand there are pleasures forever. (Psalm 16:11)
(All Bible quotations are from the NASB)
Are you SURE that you have your place booked in Heaven? Read this if you're not!