Now is the time of God’s favor; now is the day of salvation. (2 Corinthians 6:2)

If you found out right now that you had only sixty days left to live, what would you do? This was asked at a staff meeting of the Guidelines publishing staff. After a few minutes of thought, one enterprising person stated, “I would stop paying my bills!”

Mark Twain once stated that he wished he knew exactly where he was going to die because he would never set foot near that place. All of us would probably have similar reactions. Death is a subject we seem to avoid. We speak in terms of “passed on” or “dearly departed.” But one fact is for certain—we will not get out of this life alive.

Long ago, Moses sat around a campfire in the desert and said, “We live out our years like one long sigh. Each of us lives for 70 years, or even 80 if we are in good health. But the best of them bring trouble and misery. Indeed, they are soon gone and we all fly away.” Then he cried out, “Teach us to number each of our days so that we may grow in wisdom.”

How would you answer the question? I know that a great number of people would immediately strive to make peace with God, rectifying wrongs, returning things they had taken years before, and making amends with friends and enemies alike. But why is it that such priorities need to wait? Mark Twain also said that we should all live in such a way that the undertaker will also be sad when we die.

The wise person does not leave things like these undone until the last minute. If we each were to live with this kind of a plan day to day, there would be no worry or concern over when our time to be called home would be. We would be in a constant state of readiness.

God of wisdom and light, You know when we are coming home. Guide us to live as if it were only moments away!