Lifetime.

The ‘best thing in my lifetime’ is often a saying we hear when people describe fantastic events they experience. How often do we consider our ‘lifetime?’

We may consider the last few years or dreams of the future but what about the entire lifetime. A quick definition search for lifetime yields two results:

1. The duration of a person’s life.

2. The duration of a thing’s existence or usefulness.

 

It is interesting in our day and age we have the ability to associate lifetime with quality of life.

On the most basic level, quality of life affects the first definition of lifetime. Due to the medical achievements and increase in lifespan most of us have an advantage over many in the world and have the opportunity to live a longer lifetime: the “duration” of the person’s life is extended.

It is then further interesting to me if we consider the use of the second definition and how even though the definition describes a ‘thing’ those in affluent societies have the ability to describe themselves “thing like.”

Since many of us are less concerned with duration, having the ability to aid our varying ailments before they occur and while they occur, we’ve fixated on this concept of “existence or usefulness.”

Often people associate lifetime with usefulness. It is easy to do in our society. We all do it. We culminate our existence to make a packaged product. We compare our life package with other life packages to see essentially how we are doing with the time that we have been given. We ask ourselves “how useful am I?”

What a scary question.

We all ask it though. We turn ourselves into a product on a shelf. We tell ourselves “in my next model I’m going to have <insert travel, food, wealth, weight, popularity, beauty etc etc here> in order to sell our lifetime to ourselves (and sometimes others).

So where am I going with this you may ask. I want to encourage all of us (including myself) to consider our lifetime as the first definition: the duration. Stop considering the “arrival” point. Quit trying to improve your usefulness and enjoy. Consider the timeline you have been given now (write it down if you need to) and know the timeline is still developing for the future. Move forward without being paralyzed by what you will “turn into.”

Life is a melody, not a product. Understand composition of your life by reflecting on all of it – not just the good points. Make a timeline of your life and enjoy it in its’ full duration.

Then like a melody move forward unknowing how your song will sound. Let the notes unfold.

What about the usefulness you might ask? There are things I just want in my life. Consider why you want those things. Then remember, the product must be purchased.  

 

When bought at a price by the king, it does not matter what model you are or improvements that need done, once you are in his hands he will love you like a child (never setting you down) and mold you into what He wants.