What Will You Do With 37 Extra Days?

“Life Expectancy in US rises” blazed the headline. It’s true. According to US statistics our life expectancy rose from 77.8 in 2004 to 77.9 in 2005. That means you may get an extra 37 days on this earth. What are you going to do with your extra days?

Time management. The way we use our days is important. The Scriptures emphasize this again and again. Paul said, “See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” (Ephesians 5:15, 16) Once we wise up and begin following the Lord, there is much to do. We must redeem, or buy back, the time we wasted living for the world and its pleasures. Perhaps you’ll have an extra 37 days to live righteously instead of sinfully.

Evangelism. Jesus’ disciples were trying to get Him to eat some food they had brought. He replied, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work.” He was in the process of teaching a whole town about the salvation God was bringing them through His life. He referred to that effort as “my food,” meaning that what really energized and sustained Him was taking care of God’s business. Do we have that same appetite for the will of God? Will your extra 37 days be spent telling others about His saving grace?

Child rearing. Proverbs 22:6 says, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” The investment we make in our children’s lives, molding and shaping them into godly people, is worth every minute we spend. Placing other pursuits ahead of their spiritual well-being may insure that they will never follow after the Lord’s ways when they grow up. Your last 37 days may be spent contemplating the wonderful lives of your righteous children and their godly families. Neglecting your duty as a parent may mean that your extra 37 days will be spent wringing your hands in despair because your children will not listen to your pleas for their return to the Lord.

Eternity. We may eek out another 37 days in this life by eating right, exercising, etc. While there is nothing wrong with being healthy, we need to be certain that we put bulk of our effort on taking care of those things that lead to eternal life. “For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” Matthew 16:26