{"id":356,"date":"2018-12-30T11:05:00","date_gmt":"2018-12-30T17:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/what-if-this-were-our-last-day-or-year\/"},"modified":"2019-02-18T10:16:06","modified_gmt":"2019-02-18T16:16:06","slug":"what-if-this-were-our-last-day-or-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/?p=356","title":{"rendered":"What If This Were Our Last Day or Year?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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I have the fondest memories of the last Christmas we had with my husband. Our entire family was snowed in at our home in Tulsa and it made for some of the sweetest times \u2013 laughter, frolicking in the snow, and tender times of intimacy in sharing God\u2019s love with each other. Little did we know it would be his last year to celebrate Christmas with us. <\/p>\n

Now, I think a lot about \u201clast time\u201d possibilities. I want to be sure my \u201chouse\u201d is in order. I\u2019ll admit that I\u2019ll often leave on a trip and I think \u201cOh, I need to clean those drawers and closets out! I don\u2019t want my family to have to deal with them if I don\u2019t make it back home!\u201d I\u2019ve already got on my \u201cto do\u201d list, sooner than later, to get my will, important documents, bank, investments and other info up-to-date because I want my children to find everything they\u2019ll need if I should \u201cgo home\u201d any time soon. On one hand, it sounds silly because I\u2019ve still got a lot of \u201ctread on these tires\u201d, but on the other hand, today could be my last day on this earth. ?Breaking News Flash? It could also be the same for you!<\/p>\n

Whew! We’ve made it through another year. And, while I reminisce with gratitude about my accomplishments and successes, I wonder what could I have done better? What did I do that made a difference in this world this year? Who could I have influenced in a positive way? I\u2019m already thinking with an eternal perspective in mind when it comes to 2019. I\u2019m thinking about how I can influence others. I wonder if, when I see others in my life, it turned out to be the last encounter I might have with them. What is the lasting impression I would want to leave? How would I want him or her to remember me?<\/p>\n

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Several scenarios come to mind. If I walked out the door of my children’s homes and didn’t return, what would I want my family to remember as my last words and gestures? If I ran into someone at work or school or church and then never saw that person again, what kind of memory would I want them to retain? In each last encounter, what would I want to be sure to say to my family and friends or even someone I might meet on the street?<\/p>\n

None of us knows how much time is allotted to us. These questions have continued to roll around in my spirit. They are a constant reminder that we have to make the most of each moment God gives us to fulfill the two commandments Jesus said were most important: “loving God and loving people”. Nothing else matters. In fact, Paul says it makes no difference what we give; if we don’t have love, “it profits us nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:3).<\/p>\n

If our motives aren\u2019t loving, may we pray for a change of heart. If they are loving, may we take time to tell the person so. Being sure our \u201clast words\u201d with someone are words of healing and true love. That is bound to mean more to him or her than what’s inside any gift we might give them. And it’s the only thing either one of us can take with us into eternity. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I have the fondest memories of the last Christmas we had with my husband. Our entire family was snowed in at our home in Tulsa and it made for some of the sweetest times \u2013 laughter, frolicking in the snow, and tender times of intimacy in sharing God\u2019s love with each other. Little did we…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[440,441,442,251,443,38,444,445,446,447,448,449,450,451],"class_list":["post-356","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-1-corinthians-133","tag-accomplishment","tag-change-of-heart","tag-christmas","tag-give-out-of-love","tag-gratitude","tag-house-in-order","tag-last-day","tag-last-hug","tag-last-time","tag-last-words","tag-last-year","tag-light-of-eternity","tag-success"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/356","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=356"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/356\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8980,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/356\/revisions\/8980"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=356"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=356"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=356"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}