James 4:14

"Why you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are but a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes." James 4:14

I want this verse to be my very heartbeat. It's part of my blog header, I read it every now and then in the Bible, and it always comes to mind at the loss of a life, but on most days I forget that my every breath I take is a small, but significant part of the "little while" mentioned in the verse. I mean, what is a lifetime compared to eternity?

Nothing.

See, I am so silly. Like I said, I want to live by this verse, but day to day, hour to hour, I forget this verse. Until, I hear of someone passing away or my heart is broken, or someone I love is terminally ill. Then I remember. But only long enough to remind myself that life is short and I should make the most of it and go on my way, forgetting what I have learned as soon as money in the bank is low, I gain a couple of pounds, or I come down with a sore throat. But what if all of the little things served as a reminder that, as Peter writes, "All men are like grass and their glory like the flowers of the field. The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the Word of God stands forever." (1 Peter 1:24).

May we never take a single breath for granted, but instead use every fiber of our being to bring glory to the One who created us. If He put us here on this earth, even for a short time, it was for a specific purpose. So fulfill it.