| Good morning everyone, Our theme for this month: “Fully Alive” Our Bible verse for today: “Watch out and be on guard against all greed, because one’s life is not in the abundance of his possessions.” Luke 12:15 (CSB) Our thought for today: “Don’t climb the wrong ladder” You’re probably familiar with the phrase “climbing the ladder of success”. It refers to the person who establishes a goal to succeed in some career field or endeavor, and then begins to “climb the ladder of success” to progressively advance higher and higher until finally, ideally, they reach the top of the ladder. That’s fine as long as the success being achieved turns out to have been worth it in the long run. Far too many people spend their lives climbing that ladder of success only to get to the top and discover that the ladder was leaning against the wrong wall. Now that they’re at the top and they have all the fame and fortune, the awards and accolades, the accumulated wealth and the luxury that comes with it, they discover that it’s hollow and unsatisfying. Often, as they were climbing that ladder, so focused on achieving their goals, they sacrificed friendships, marriages, children, health, and much more along the way. And now that they’ve achieved the “success” they longed for and worked so hard for, they realize it wasn’t the great thing they thought it would be. They end up regretting all they gave up in order to get where they are. The ladder was leaning against the wrong wall. That’s what Jesus was warning against in Luke 12:15. The most important things in life often aren’t things at all. People are more important. Loved ones matter more. Your health matters. Living for something bigger and beyond yourself matters. In his book “Fully Alive” author Tim Shriver calls it “believing in something that lives not in the head but rather in the soul.” This is living from your heart. It’s identifying what really matters and then structuring your life around that. It’s better to discover this early in life rather than later. You don’t want to look backwards and realize you’ve spent much of your life focused on the wrong things. But, better late than never. You can’t change the past but you can draw a line in the sand, leave the past in the past, and go forward from here doing it better, doing it right. Be careful you don’t spend your life climbing a ladder of success that’s leaning against the wrong wall. But if you have, for goodness sakes get down from there and start climbing a better ladder. Regardless of your age, it’s never too late to start something new, something better. You will be most fully alive when you have discovered the things in life that matter most, and then focus on pursuing them. God Bless, Pastor Jim |
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