"stayin' alive..."

three brothers who took a chance on music...what a wonderful legacy they have left behind!

Life. It tends to pass us by so quickly! When we are 18, we have all of life before us! Oh!the possibilities! Even at thirty, the future is some vast horizon that we can't seem to grasp, not just yet. But then comes 50. Our friends begin to pass on around us due to illness or accident. Summer ends much too soon, winters leave us more grumbly than usual and 75? It's just a quarter century away now.

Not too long ago, there was a TV music event giving tribute to the musical trio, the Bee Gees. How many of us danced to the tunes of "Saturday Night Fever?" Probably all of us! Barry Gibb is the last of the three brothers who is still alive. As the oldest brother, I am sure he is pondering on the meaning of life also. While I watched the show, tears clogged my throat and I cried. In a family that had four brothers, Andy Gibb being the youngest, who also passed on much too soon due to a drug overdose, I saw my own life sweep before me. From age 15 to the present, my life has changed so quickly before me through their music.  Is it really possible that it has been 40 years? Already? As I said, life goes by much too soon.

Someone whom I love dearly has health issues that have me wondering just how much longer he will be in my world. His thin frame and constant coughing from his nasty smoking habit, plus high blood pressure issues leave me with the knowledge that I must not take any day for granted! The happiness we have shared plus the sorrow that he may not live up to his promise that we'd have "forty years together" fill me with sadness. Those 40 years from age 15 to my current life ...as I mentioned, flipped by so fast and life seems to be passing even quicker.

Yet also I am at peace. Jesus promised his followers that one day, that too would be with him. John 14:1-3 says:

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God, believe in Me also.In My Father's house, there are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and welcome you in My presence, so that you may also be where I am."

And it is for that reason alone that I am at peace. Life isn't guaranteed to any one of us. Sure, life expectancy means that we can live up to 78 years, more or less, but it is not a given. For that reason I have always believed that we must never take a day for granted. Say those positive words, give hugs, show affection, be grateful for what you have and for who you have in your lives! Don't put it off "until tomorrow." Make that call or visit! And most important, always use those three words that are never said enough: "I love you!"

Lets all take the time to reflect on Jesus’ love for us, not just now, but daily. We need to remember that this love is the same love we are to be known for. It is our duty to share Jesus’ love with the world around us, more importantly, with actions, not just with words.