The clock is ticking for all of us!

I am one year closer to heaven.

Last week I celebrated another birthday. My first words to God when I woke up were, “God, if you don’t use my life for your glory, I will spend all of eternity sobbing.” I know the truth to combat those emotions. The truth is that God will most certainly show up strong for anyone who has a heart to glorify Him with their life.

The clock is ticking.

I have aged out of many opportunities. I can’t go back now and have a different career, get a different degree, marry a different man, or undo any decisions I have made. My husband and I have updated our wills. Discussions are being had with my parents about how to handle their estate when they pass. My husband’s parents have already passed. My daughter’s boss just died unexpectedly a few weeks ago  from a heart attack.

Life careens along at breakneck speed.

The bible says that when we understand the brevity of life, we can become wiser.

Teach us to realize the brevity of life, so that we may grow in wisdom. (Psalm 90:12, NLT)

Life is “One Gritty Blink.”

Here’s the truth for all of us. We only get one life. It is difficult. And it is short. It is gritty. And it is a blink.

I use this space for pondering biblical principles not for personal gain or marketing. I hope you enjoy that! But something significant occurred recently! I have published a bible study entitled, One Gritty Blink: Contemplating the Brevity of Life Compared to Eternity.

There are some online groups forming in the fall.

One is forming Wednesday mornings starting August 10-September 14. Another is planned to form on a weeknight September 21-October 26 (day to be determined). This study is published under Oaks Ministries, which I founded in 2002 to help people better display God’s nature to a watching world (starting with me).

Click on the Oaks Ministries purple link that appears in the copyright statement at the bottom of the post each week and check out the One Gritty Blink tab! After listening to the trailer, email me in the Contact tab if you are interested in hearing the details about the Wednesday morning study starting August 10 or want to be informed about the evening study starting in September.

Other ways to do the study.

Consider gathering a group of friends and facilitating the study yourself after purchasing the Leader Bundle, or present One Gritty Blink as an idea for your church bible study groups. It is also possible to do the study alone, though I imagine that discussions with others would make the study richer and less expensive.

Contemplate these five key questions.

After the first week, group members do a one-page reflection each day and then gather to watch a video and discuss the week’s reflections around these questions (one each week).

• What do I do with all this suffering?
• How does God view me?
• How does God grow me?
• How do I love people well?
• Am I living authentically?

Life is over “tomorrow.” Really!

I know life feels long, but life is not long. Our difficulties are short-lived and our short life can have eternal purpose. Take the time to grapple with these concepts. How are we going to live this extremely short life well?

Join me in the journey.

Picture Explanation: Aging isn’t my favorite thing, but I rest in the truth that God selected my birth date and did not make a mistake with me…or you. As our bodies become increasingly frail, our inward selves can continue to thrive and shine.

That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! (2 Corinthians 4:16-17)

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