Untimely deaths. It seems the list is growing. I guess that’s normal when you are enjoying a long life yourself. According to statistics found on Wikipedia, the world-wide average life span did not exceed 40 years until the last 100 years. By that standard, I am ancient. Each time someone I know passes away before the age of 55 it feels untimely, and even more so when it’s before full-blown adulthood.

My precious grandson, George passed away at age five months from severe birth defects.

When I was a kid, a neighbor boy tragically lost his life when friends were horsing around a piece of construction equipment.

One of my son’s childhood best friends died of cancer at age 24.

Another friend was widowed at 30, losing her husband and father to their three preschoolers to cancer.

A church acquaintance was killed protecting his wife from a gunshot.

A college friend collapsed and died from a brain aneurysm a week before we were to go on a missions trip together.

The following year two friends from the same college died in a car accident caused by a drunk driver. One of them was to be married the next morning.

I woke up thinking about these college friends. I looked up their names and came across several others who have passed away before me.

I was so struck this morning that God has gifted me a long life. Each day that I wake up is a treasure to be valued. I have gotten to live on this earth and carry on with life - work, love, grandchildren, church activity, friendships - and those who have passed did not see these days. There is always this feeling of, “Am I making it count? Am I worthy?” But I don’t think I will ever get to the point of saying, “Yep, I’ll stop now. I’ve done it all. I’ve arrived.” All I know is that I have a daily opportunity to impact my little world, and when a person dies, that opportunity no longer exists.

I sat around a lunch table with three special teens yesterday and talked about some serious things. There was open conversation about dating relationships and physical intimacy. They are just discovering these things, and like we all did, they have lots of thoughts and questions. I dispensed my own hard-won life lessons, and offered ideas that I hope they could relate to. I could have sat silently and let the conversation between them and their parents unfold. But it was one of those opportunities that I wouldn’t have if I was gone. So I took it. Who knows how it impacted them? But our words have power, and when attached to a committed loving relationship, even more impact can exist.

Carpe diem! Seize the day! “Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life?” (James 4:14, NIV)