What is a “day?” Ask this question and the answers will be as varied as the individuals. One may hear, “a time period of twenty-four hours,” or “eighty six thousand, four hundred seconds,” or “one revolution of the earth on its axis, or “a period of time given to enjoy life and prepare for tomorrow.” Many are bypassing the opportunities of today as they keep their eyes and hopes on tomorrow. It is always good to plan for tomorrow and set goals in life; however, it is so easy for us to live so far into the future that we forget what real life is all about. Some choose to live in a dream world as they look into the future rather than living a dream-life. A Scripture tells us, “Take therefore no thought for the morrow; for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself”. This does not mean that we should live a life of mediocrity and just sit around waiting for things to happen. It means that we should not have our eyes so fixed on something happening tomorrow that we fail to realize that, “tomorrow is just today in the waiting.”
So many people look back at their life and will often say, “I wish I had…” The regrets of the past and concentrating so much on the future often keeps us so occupied that we forget about today. However, each of us has an opportunity to start creating something special today and realize as David records, Ps 118:24 “This is the day the LORD has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.” We can draw a line in the sands of time and say that today is the first day of the rest of my life and live in the future with no regrets. Today is the day to make every day count; yesterday is gone but today we have an opportunity to live. Today is the day to appreciate every moment and take from it everything that is possibly, for one may never be able to relive the experience because today will never be duplicated.
One has stated that, “Each day is an opportunity to travel back into tomorrow's past and change it.”[1] We need to spend each day doing something good, enjoying something simple, making the most of relationships because we cannot take today with us when it is over. “Each day is a special gift from God, and while life may not always be fair, you must never allow the pains, hurdles, and handicaps of the moment to poison your attitude and plans for yourself and your future. You can never win when you wear the ugly cloak of self-pity, and the sour sound of whining will certainly frighten away any opportunity for success. Never again. There is a better way.”[2]
It would be great if each of us could start each day with a simple prayer, “Dear God, I accept your gift of today. I will try to live it in a way to benefit others as well as myself. I thank you for another day of opportunity. Help me to enjoy the beauties of your creation and be thankful!”
Ps 90:12 “Teach us to make the most of our time, so that we may grow in wisdom.” NLT
