A close family friend, as healthy as you’d ever imagine, suffered a heart-attack on Thanksgiving morning. He went to bed on November 21st, but did not awake on the 22nd. Survived by his wife and two kids.
My neighbor is in his 40’s and was recently diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer. I played basketball with him just a few months before. His diagnosis surprised everybody—including him.
I recently received a phone call on an otherwise normal Tuesday morning that a friend of mine had lost his teenage daughter in an automobile accident the night before. As awful a news as anyone could ever receive.
Then there is the story of my relative, who showed up to work last summer, only to find her workplace being searched by the authorities as they investigated fraud. By the end of the week, she was without work.
And my parents, just yesterday, were in a car accident. Everybody is fine, fortunately. But their automobile was totaled.
Life changes fast. This season of life you are in could end at any time. Everything could change tomorrow.
Of course, tomorrow isn’t necessarily worse than today. It may change for the better.
In early December 2001, my wife walked into our living room to share important news with me, she was pregnant with our first child. My life forever changed that day.
Our best friends down the street received a job promotion that took them back home to Texas. My cousin, simply hanging out with friends one evening was introduced to a girl, who quickly became his girlfriend, and soon became his wife.
And my life changed dramatically for the better on a Saturday morning 10 years ago when my neighbor unexpectedly introduced me to minimalism—a conversation that changed my passion and eventually, my career.
They say the only constant in life is change. They are right.
Sometimes we plan out our lives—our days, our weeks, our years—and everything falls into place. But other times, we make our plans, only to have them upended by circumstances outside of our control.
Either way, the only constant is change. Life never remains the same. Sometimes it changes for the better, sometimes it changes for the worse, but always for something different than today.
I find myself reflecting on that fact this morning as I sit alone at this empty table. My life is good, and peaceful in this moment. My family is happy, and we are all healthy. I have friends I can rely on, extended family I enjoy being with, and our financial needs are being met doing work that I love.
lt is easy, I suppose, to think life will stay this way forever. But that is not the case. Everything could change as early as tomorrow.
This may cause some to worry. But I do not think the best response is to worry about the future. I mean, the change that is coming could be a positive one. Besides, worrying won’t change the future anyway. Change is going to happen whether you worry about it or not.
Instead, I think the best response is to fully appreciate this very moment, because it could change at any time.
If life is good, count your blessings, be thankful, and enjoy the moments—every single one of them. Slow down, take a deep breath, and savor this season as best you can.
If, on the other hand, your life is not in a good place, take heart, because change is coming. As the seasons change, so does life. Value love, faith, and hope. Find peace to accept the things you cannot change and courage to change the things you can. But through it all, remember, this is only a season. Things will change, they always do.
If you can only live one moment at a time, you might as well make it the present. After all, we have no idea how long “today” will last… everything could change as soon as tomorrow.
Jack says
The older I get the more precious each moment becomes. In spite of ongoing difficulties, life can be so beautiful…I love breathing, seeing, hearing, tasting, feeling, imagining, hoping, reading, recovering, celebrating, working, doing nothing, reading, cooking, doing the dishes, doing the laundry, calling my mother, visiting with my mother, dancing, visiting with friends, listening to music!
The gratitude list goes on, including even suffering.
Pam B says
Like this!
Sharon says
Thankyou I worry too much about what ifs. You reminded me of my brother who stuck at a job for 20 years, that he hated. We would go every sunday for tea and he would say when I retired I will have enough money to do this….. Well he died the day before his retirement age.
My friend Cythia was a shining example of living in the moment, having survived a difficult operation, she knew she was borrowed time and lived each moment. Many times I would try to approach the subject when she was planning a trip or an adventure. She would reply I will get home some how even in a bin liner. She didnt care and was an absolute joy x
Marsha Donaldson says
As I woke up this morning, this very thought was on my mind. Especially after 3 cardiac tests came back abnormal last week!
But more importantly, it reminded me of how my life changed forever 18 months ago. One Saturday in July, my husband and I were working in the yard, then met friends for dinner that evening. We had recently moved back to our hometown after being gone for 27 years, and had just celebrated our 32nd anniversary three days prior. The next morning, thinking he was still sleeping, I got up with the dogs and sat outside on the patio. When he didn’t get up, I went to check on him. That’s when I realized he had never moved—he had passed away peacefully in his sleep. He had had heart problems, and was almost 75, but losing him was definitely the most devastating event of my life!
Connie R. says
So true, Joshua. Many years ago, a co-worker shared a quote with me. “Nothing is permanent. Everything changes”. It changed my whole way of looking at life.
Brenda says
Joshua, this was a beautiful article that reminded me of a phrase the Lord dropped into my spirit about 10 years ago. I was at work, not thinking of anything similar to this, when the thought came strongly to my mind, “LIFE AS WE KNOW IT CAN CHANGE AT ANY MINUTE”. It ran through my head for months and still comes to me.
It makes me try to be mentally ready for anything and know with the help of God, I can make it.
David says
Thanks Joshua.
I have learned a couple of lessons from the unexpected changes in my own life, and from seeing people who have lost their homes in natural disasters.
We should hold our possessions lightly, and hold family and friends closely.
Connie R. says
You are so right. After Hurricane Katrina, I decided to start collecting friends instead of things.
Mildred M Thomas says
Wow. This article is so totally correct. Thanks for sharing your writing. I am sharing it with my family and friends.
Nichol Hardy says
This article came at just the right moment for me. My sister just passed away from cancer on January 20 and it makes me think of the times we spent together just talking over the passed year and a half. She never worried about the future, just the now. She was inspiring and even though things didn’t go as we all hoped and planned, life has a plan and god had one for us too. I’ve been on this minimalist journey now for only two months but it is changing my life and my family’s life. Thank you for helping me do it!
MaryLynne Arterberry says
Very beautifully said. Your words just added to my morning Bible study. Thank you for another wonderful reminder that we are all in this world together. We can either be a comfort or a pain to others. It is what we do with each day, joy, concern, that determines our happiness.
Zina VB says
An Excellent perspective, thanks for this reminder!