Say Anything But Say What You Mean

Patty V and I were talking last night about how the world is filled with people who spend their lives just waiting until retirement. Stuck in jobs that they hate, working without purpose and motivation, and looking for the next paycheck, they look forward to the day they will be set free.

I'm not talking about the millions of people who are forced to work multiple backbreaking jobs in order to provide for their families, but instead those people who are just waiting to build up their IRA's so that they can live the "good life" for a while. I do not mean to assert that it is not good to take a break once in a while to relax. That is a healthy thing to do and without it most people would go insane. Instead, I am talking about never retiring in the sense that we never step outside the vocation of making an impact on other people.

In 45-50 years, I hope that I have lived a life full of love and purpose, but I don't want that to be the point where I step away from the world to play on the links for the rest of my life. Patrick said that he doesn't want to walk up to the pearly gates to tell Peter that the only thing he had been doing towards the end of his life was drawing on his IRA.

One day when they lay me in the ground, I want them to say that even up to my last day I was blessing people because I had been blessed by God. Instead of deciding that it would be best for me to walk away from the world for awhile because I have "earned" it, I hope that I will remember that each day is a blessing and I would be foolish to take it for granted. Eternity is going to be plenty of time to catch up on our rest.