What is your life?  You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. - James 4:14

We are given but a short time on this earth with which we are to live with purpose knowing what matters most.  We cannot take anything from this life with us to the next, not the possessions we accumulate, not those we love, not even the clothes on our back.  We leave everything behind including the words we spoke and the memories we shared with others.

This week my Uncle Bobby, 58 years of age, passed away.  He contracted swine flu, and it ravaged his body, shutting down his kidneys and filling his lungs with fluid.  His body could no longer oxygenate itself, and it tooks his life.  He left behind a wife, two daughters, and four grandsons.

I was in the room as the doctors and nurses performed CPR trying to revive him.  I witnessed about 15 people working frantically to save his life for about 30 minutes to no avail.  He remained on life support long enough for his wife, daughters and grandchildren to say their goodbyes.  I witnesses this life end and his eternity begin.  Everything from this life was left behind.

Two lessons I have learned from this experience are that you are not promised tomorrow and because of this make sure your time with those you love is lived in love to its fullest.

When I got home from the hospital that night I kissed my husband and went in and kissed my children as they slept.  I thanked God for the blessings they are to me and for the time I have been given with them.  I prayed for wisdom and grace to love them and to make the greatest impact I can in their lives so that they might be certain of the love of Christ through their memories of me.

Despite being to imperfect beings, my husband and I love each other very much, and make it a point to show the other each and every day.  I want to make sure that if something unexpected happened, and I was unable to take my next breathe, he would know beyond a shadow of a doubt what he meant to me.  I want him to know how much God has used him in my life.  I want the things I leave behind in this life such as the words I spoke and the memories I made with him to continue to bless his life.

I ask you to think about the words and memories you are leaving behind.  Are they words to build your spouse up? Are they memories that make them laugh out loud?  Do they speak the love of Christ?

Sarah Brown

My name is Kayla and I work for Compassion Canada. My husband’s name is Mike and he is a Music Producer/Engineer; Together we are Mr. and Mrs. Tompkins!

Mike and I travel quite often for our jobs, which separates us for short periods of time. Some jaded older couples tell us that it is a “Blessing in disguise” to have jobs that let you travel separately. Mike and I have been married for almost 2 years and couldn’t disagree more!

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We often hear this phrase when we tell people about our travels.  People go on to explain how once you have children you have to settle down, and how they stopped doing things when they had kids. This way of thinking always rubbed us the wrong way.  And yesterday we had the privilege of meeting a couple from the States that has been an inspiration to us.

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