I'm Terminal

January 23, 2015 | By Chuck

I have a list in my mind. It's kind of like a "to do" list but not entirely. It consists of several names of individuals that I know and some that I don't know. It's my personal prayer list. Every day it is my goal to mention those names to our heavenly Father at least once. As I think about the names on that list, I realize that many of them are sick with different diseases and illnesses. Just the mere mention of a few of those illnesses would cause many to think, terminal. I'll be honest, while in my personal prayer time with our Father the thought of "terminal" has crossed my mind, but probably not in the way you might think. I realize the harsh reality that I AM TERMINAL! To my knowledge, I don't have a physical illness or disease but I'm terminal. You are terminal. We all are terminal. "Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day."(II Cor.4:16) "So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."(II Cor.4:18) Our physical bodies were created to be temporary and they are wasting away more and more each day. We are terminal. Some might feel this is completely depressing but it really shouldn't be. Understanding we are terminal should help us to focus on the unseen eternal things. Realizing that no matter if we have a disease or not, that we all are terminal should help us to be more conscientious of our faith walk. "We live by faith, not by sight."(II Cor.5:7) When we grasp our terminal existence and we take serious our relationship with God, we then can view death the way the apostle Paul did and the way all Christians should. "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain."(Phil.1:21) I am terminal and it's not a bad thing.