Split Second Living

(Originally posted 1/7/2009)

I've heard that when someone is faced with impending danger, their life can flash before their eyes. In a split second. But how is it that an entire lifetime can be seen in a single second? Perhaps it's because all of life is lived in a split second. Not to say that a lifetime is lived in a single second. But every life is punctuated by split second moments of really living.

It's the living moments of life that come and go in the blink of an eye. And the reverberations from those moments are felt for a lifetime, and often beyond. To the uninterested party, those moments mean very little - until those moments happen to them.

Most of these split second moments are highlighted by a phrase, a string of just a few words that alone wouldn't have near the significance that they have together. They are the phrases that forever change the course of our lives, the phrases that echo in the canyon of existence and change the balance of who we are, where we're headed, and what we truly live for.

In my life, there have only been a few of those moments and phrases that truly stick out in my mind. And my life hasn't flashed before my eyes. But there are moments that God has allowed to happen in order to reveal much of who He is in my life and uncover many of the gifts that He has blessed me with. Now, these aren't necessarily in order of importance of occurence. But they are the moments that I thank God for. I hope they make you think of your own split second life...

"I do." (this one only happened once.)
"I love you." (this happens every day.)
"It's a boy." (this one happened twice!)
"In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." (again, only once.)
"She'll be fine." (this one is being reinforced by God every moment and through every prayer right now.)
"If you need anything, let me know." (thank you to all of you for repeating this one in my life...)