Greg Ogden, in his excellent book Transforming Discipleship, throws out a concept that has stuck with me since I’ve read it: What if you were to live your life as if you only had three and a half years to live? He draws this idea from the life of Jesus, and shows how we would think differently, invest differently, etc, if we knew we only had a limited amount of time. What if you knew you only had 3 and a half years to live? What choices would you make day one? Who would you spend time with? Where would you invest your money? What things which seem so pressing today would merely fade into oblivion as the things of true importance are revealed? Here’s how it might look for me (this is by no means deeply thought out, these are just preliminary thoughts:
- I’d work my hardest to help my wife understand how much she means to Jesus. I’m not going to be around forever, but He will, and she needs to know she can depend completely on Him once I’m gone. I need to love my wife sacrificially, as Christ loved the Church.
- I’d pour into my boys like never before. I’d take them and do a bunch of crazy fun things. I’d work my way through the Dangerous Book for Boys. I’d model for them the unconditional love of the Father to the best of my abilities. I’d teach them what to look for in a wife and how to treat her when they find her. I’d talk to them about purity and being a great influence on the people around them. I’d stress the importance of giving beyond themselves to help others. Most importantly, I’d teach them to trust completely in Christ, to learn from His Word, and to stay close to the heart of God no matter what the cost.
- I’d manage my money better and work hard to get completely out of debt so that my family would not have that financial burden.
- I’d invest in a handful of people that I felt would carry on in the work of the ministry. I’d cherish my time with these people and give them everything I had. I’d share their burdens and encourage them to be the leader God created them to be. Jesus did this for 3.5 years in 12 men. He had an inner circle of 3. He gave everything He had to these men, depending on them and their obedience to the mission to spread the Gospel.
- I’d do everything I could to help my church fulfill it’s mission, Leading People Into a Growing Relationship With Jesus Christ.
- I wouldn’t give a rip about what kind of house I live in or what kind of car I drive or how many channels I have on Dish- none of those things have even a hint of eternal importance.
So here’s the big idea: why should we wait until we have news that we only have 3.5 years to live to do these things? What if you and I stepped back, looked at these things that rise to importance above all else, and did them now? How would our families be different? How would our jobs be different? How would our churches be different? How would the next generation be different?
For 2009 I’d love to take these things and treat them like I only have 3.5 years left to live. I’m sure I’d get a huge return on investment. I’d love to hear what you would do and your thoughts.
