Live Like You Are Dying

First of all I would like to just say Thank You to each of you, whether you are family, friends, bloggy friends or even someone I might not even know, for being such a blessing in my life in one way or another.

I had the opportunity to hear a great speaker this morning at my church. His name is Sammy Gilbreath and he is the Director of Evangelism for the Alabama State Board of Missions. He has an awesome story to tell and I wish each of you could have been there with me this morning to hear it.

I am going to try and retell his story so I hope that I have the facts correct. He found out some time back that he has the largest blood clot of anyone that the medical field has seen, sitting at the base of his heart and has an aneurysm also in one of the ventricles just waiting to burst. He was told that he could be apart of some research that involved surgery but to be warned that the other three patients that had been through the surgery had not made it. He decided to go ahead with the surgery and thankfully he made it through. He now has a defibrillator type of thing but that is only buying him some time. He was accepted to get on a heart transplant list but then told that a heart transplant wouldn't work for him (I don't remember him telling why the transplant wouldn't work), but anyway he had to go ahead and start making preparations for his family so that they would be taken care of when his time comes. His son wanted to make sure his dad would be there for his wedding and despite his doctors telling him he wouldn't make the trip to Louisiana for the wedding..he made it. He has gone skydiving, ridden bulls (real ones)as a way to tell others about Jesus and rides a harley into prison yards and tells those prisoners about Jesus. Now mind you, this man doesn't look like the typical man you would see doing those types of things. He is very clean cut. He talked about how he has changed his vocabulary to say " I get to do this and that" instead of saying "I've got to do this or that". That is how he lives now, knowing that at any minute and without any warning he could drop dead. You know, that is how all of us should think because God does not promise us tomorrow. Anyone of us could slip into eternity at any time.

He talked about valuing the promise of life. How we should value spiritual blessings rather than physical blessings.

He talked about how we can't stop living because of something that we can't control.

He talked about how we need to value the gift of grace. Every day is a gift of grace, every breath is a gift of grace and every life experience is a gift of grace. Grace is never given in advance...God gives us enough grace for that day.

He said that we need to learn the value of remembering.

We need to learn the value of a clear conscience. A clear conscience can only come from God. We shouldn't come to God and say "IF I have sinned I am sorry"..we should just say "I'M SORRY"...no if's. This also applies to anyone you have hurt or offended.

He also said something that hit home with me. If your loved ones were to slip out into eternity right now, what would you wish you had said to them? WOW!!! That is one reason why I stated at the beginning of this blog that I was thankful to each of you because I wanted you to know that even though I may not see you or talk to you often, you are a big blessing in my life..everyday!

I know I haven't done justice to his story, but maybe someone is reading this and thinking about their life and how they should live. Maybe someone is thinking how they would spend eternity because we are not promised tomorrow or even another minute. We are only here minute by minute because of God's grace to us.

He played the first verse of this song during church and I just wanted to share it with you....maybe it'll get you thinking (as it has me) to live like you were dying.

He said I was in my early forties, with a lot of life before me
And one moment came that stopped me on a dime
I spent most of the next days, looking at the x-rays
Talking bout' the options and talking bout' sweet times.
I asked him when it sank in, that this might really be the real end
How's it hit 'cha when you get that kind of news?
Man what did ya do?
He said

Chorus
I went skydiving
I went rocky mountain climbing
I went two point seven seconds on a bull named Fu Man Chu
And I loved deeper
And I spoke sweeter
And I gave forgiveness I'd been denyin'
And he said some day I hope you get the chance
To live like you were dyin'
(Lyrics by Tim Mcgraw)