The topic of last weekend's church sermon was "Living in the Kingdom of God." At one point during his sermon, the visiting pastor asked, "How many of you are living your lives to the fullest?" He asked for a show of hands and only a few people in the congregation raised their hands. I was not one of them.
I began to think about that question and I realized that I
am living life, every single day, to the fullest. For some people, "living life to the fullest" means experiencing life in the extremes, fearlessly. For others, it means participating and experiencing everything that the world has to offer, good or bad. For me, living life to the fullest means being present in the "now" and finding contentment in every day things as we go about our daily routines. After all, most if us must devote our time to a vocation that involves doing a lot of mundane things, over and over again, day in and day out. We get paid to be a "cog" in the machine that moves society forward in all spheres of commerce and community. So, in reality, there are few days out of the year during which we can experience "out of the ordinary things": the breathtaking views of exotic places; barreling toward the earth with a parachute from a plane; or being part of a historic event. The vast majority of our waking hours involve ordinary activities and interacting with the same people, day in and day out.
So how can I say that I am living life to the fullest, every single day? Because I find contentment in every little thing I do: from waking up each morning to feel my lungs fill up with air to tasting the mint in my toothpaste. I savour my first, second, third, or ninth cup of coffee. I let my heart feel with each note and lyric of the songs I listen to on my commute to and from work. I try to learn something new about every person I interact with each and every day. And I do my best to see the carefree, innocent child each adult client used to be before they walked into my office, heartbroken and jaded with the world. I enjoy the warmth of my favourite blanket as I sit in my living room after a long day at work. I take a moment, each day, to really listen to my girls even if they are talking about the most mundane things. Every night, I take time to look them in the eyes and really "see" the person they are. And when I feel that overwhelming feeling of maternal love fill my heart, I never hesitate to tell them how much I love them, even if that moment is in the midst of rushed errands or a "potty" break. I enjoy the heat of the sun on a warm, spring day or the beauty of the snow as it falls on a winter night. Every day brings a simple beauty that we can enjoy with all of our senses. Living life to the fullest is living each and every moment with the view of enjoying everything around you and being content with it all. It means having a heart filled with gratitude for everything God has been gracious enough to provide.
“In almost everything that touches our everyday life on earth, God is pleased when we’re pleased. He wills that we be as free as birds to soar and sing our maker’s praise without anxiety.”~A.W. Tozer
