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I am told that most people die having never drawn up a will.  Therefore, the  distribution of their property must be decided by the state or by the courts.  Those people did not intend to let that happen.  That wasn’t the way they wanted to do it.  But it just happened because they were pretending that this life would last forever. 

All of us ought to go on with our daily routine of life, but each of us ought not to deceive ourselves into thinking it will last forever.  I am not suggesting, however, that we should spend our time morbidly contemplating death, not that at all.  I am simply saying that we should face the fact and deal with it accordingly.

Let me now ask you this question:  If you were going to die tomorrow and you knew it, what would you do with the rest of this day?  One person might say, “I would draw up my will.”  Another might say, “I would spend time playing with my children.” And another might answer, “I would put my arms around my wife and tell her that I love her.”

Well, I am saying to you that you should do some of those things today.  Who knows?  Today could be the last opportunity that you might have to do it.  If today isn’t, then some other day will be.  For every one of us, some day will be the last day of our lives.  We should face that fact and reorder our priorities accordingly.  Certainly, on December 3 – the first Sunday of Advent – we ought to recognize that this earthly life will not last forever.

All of Jesus’ teachings presupposes a life of moral responsibility that continues on beyond time.  If we take that seriously, and we should, it means that what we are doing today is eternally important.  In our home, office, school, factory, store, we have the opportunity to make some daily contribution to the everlasting Kingdom of God.

Once that idea soaks into our thinking, it will alter our attitudes toward everything. Material possessions and work success will mean less and less, and values and principles and a loving relationship with God and one another will mean more and more. 

Most of us are not suffering from a terminal disease – thank God!  But we are all dying.  Little by little, day by day, we are moving closer and closer toward eternity.  What a marvelous difference it would make, if we are allowed that truth to take root in our hearts and minds.  Jesus once said, “Stay awake, therefore, you cannot know the day your Lord is coming.”  Every day of our lives should be lived as if it will be our last because one day it will be!