GLAD TO BE ALIVE
GLAD TO BE ALIVE
Today, I am overcome with a sudden urge to be grateful… for everything!
I remember a hymn we used to sing as children at school. The words by Lizette W. Reese, go like this:
“Glad that I live am I;
That the sky is blue;
Glad for the country lanes,
And the fall of dew.
After the sun, the rain,
After the rain the sun;
This is the way of life,
Till the work be done.
All that we need to do,
Be we low or high,
Is to see that we grow,
Nearer to God on high.” Lizette W. Reese 1856-1935
I am just so glad to be alive.
I once wrote that “Life is a journey” – (please see the article of 5th September, 2017). Then if it is indeed so we should never lose sight of our destination. However we should also know that all kinds of things are going to be happening on the way to our final destination. Things planned and things not planned. Some days we will travel fast and other days we will be slow coaches. There are days we will have to make “pit stops” to get one part or another tuned to fine or near perfection. (My Formula One fans know how important that is if you must make it in one piece to the finish line). Some days will be bright and sunny, other days could be dull and cloudy. Yet we must keep moving closer to our destination. Then why not enjoy every step of the journey? There is no point in being downcast today waiting for a better day when we might cheer up. We have no idea what tomorrow will bring. “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” Matthew 6:34 NLT
Nobody has the template for the way life should be lived except our Heavenly Father. So let us stay close to Him and let Him guide us. We are all dealt different packages like in a game of cards. Therefore we must stop stretching or peeping to see what someone else has got. That will only get us into trouble. While we are leaning back and trying to see what is in someone else’s hands, we just might lose our balance and fall. We never know what others are really going through. So let us learn to manage our own packages and be grateful. Be glad for the gift of life always remembering that; “There is hope only for the living. As they say, “its better to be a live dog than a dead lion!” Ecclesiastes 9: 4 NLT
The third stanza of the above hymn encourages us to keep our relationship with God come what may. Regardless of anything that is going on in our lives we should guard our relationship with God. It is a relationship that should not be dependent on anything else. Being alive today is a real privilege and an honour and I am so glad.
“Shout with joy to the Lord, all the earth!
Worship the Lord with gladness.
Come before him, singing with joy.
Acknowledge that the Lord is God!
He made us, and we are his.
We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving;
go into his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the Lord is good.
His unfailing love continues forever,
and his faithfulness continues to each generation.” Psalm 100: 1-5 NLT
I am glad to be alive today. Are you?
OLUYINKA EGO-MARTINS ©