One of the many lessons I’ve learned in my years as a pastor is that life is short and fast. As a pastor I am often invited to participate in the celebrations of life’s beginning, when a person is born, and also at life’s end, when a person has died. It has made me keenly aware of the fragility and fleeting nature of my own life. We are, each of us, only here for a matter of moments, and then we are gone. The psalmist, King David, clearly communicates this sentiment in Psalm 39:4-5:
“Show me, Lord, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting my life is. You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Everyone is but a breath, even those who seem secure.”
Life is a series of moments. Every moment holds infinite potential. What we choose to do in those moments plays a large role in determining whether that potential will be realized or wasted. When our moments are finally spent and we are laid to rest, what will remain is the memory our moments have produced. But as the saying goes, “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” No one moment tells the entire story of a person’s life. One moment may have greater or less impact on those around us, but it fails to paint the entire picture.
Last week, I was given the distinct honor of remembering the life of a fine young man from our community. As I was speaking to his mother days before his passing, I was struggling to find words to bring some light in the darkness of that moment. Then I remembered, as dark as the moment felt, it was only a moment. And while the reality of that moment will not be forgotten, it did not tell the true story of who that young man was.
Over the next several days, hundreds of people came together to honor the memory of their student, friend, cousin, nephew, grandson, and son. As they made their way through the line to greet the parents and pay their respects, each person was asked to place a white marble in a large vase as they came to the front of the room. Those same people were asked to write a memory of a moment they shared with this young man. In the end, close to 800 white marbles were placed in that jar representing 800 moments of light shared. Dozens took the time to put their memories to paper. The result was a beautiful picture of a young man whose smile could light up a room, brought laughter and joy wherever he went, and loved others well. He was given a handful of moments that ended all too soon. But, they were a handful of moments that were exceptionally well lived.
One moment outshined them all, though. When this young man was in 4th grade he surrendered his life to Christ. He came to understand and accept the gift of eternal life that is found in the shed blood of Jesus. The Bible tells us that because of this truth his moments have not come to an end. They have simply changed venues. When the light of Christ shines in the darkness, the darkness CANNOT overcome it (John 1:5)!
We must be careful not to allow the darkness of one moment to overshadow the light of a lifetime. We are tempted to focus on the dark moments, the moments of failure and loss. This is particularly true in our culture of constant communication in which all of our failures are stored on the internet for all to see for all of time. We must remember that the whole of a life is greater than the sum of its parts. The dark moments will come and we will carry them with us, but the light will shine through and overcome them. Let’s be people who look for and dwell on the moments of light.
We must be careful not to allow the darkness of one moment to overshadow the light of a lifetime.
