Janet and I returned from Ft. Lauderdale this evening – we arrived home a little while ago. But we have been on the road since about 12:30 this afternoon. In the old days, we could fly directly from Indy to Ft. Lauderdale but that is no longer the case. We had to get to our destination by going through Atlanta on the way down and, of course on the way home, we had the same layover in Georgia. All in all, we had a great four days in one of our favorite cities. It was really quite eye opening. It’s been at least three or four years since we have been there – probably more like five years, and as I mentioned earlier in the week, things have changed quite a bit.
But one thing hasn’t changed – and that is one of Janet’s favorite lines – “when it’s over, it’s over…” Since we were headed home today, we didn’t see a reason to stick around waiting and so we booked a noon flight that allowed us to get up and leisurely check out of the hotel, drive to the airport, return the rental car, hop the shuttle to the terminal, get through security and finally arrive at the gate. Now I know that many of our friends would have checked out and then stayed to spend the rest of the day on the beach. But that’s not how we roll.
Many years ago, Janet and I realized that on travel days, either coming or going, we were best served to travel in the late morning and just figure that the day was going to be dedicated to getting from one place to another. We don’t do the 4:30 am drive to the airports anymore and since we know that we generally have a layover somewhere, we don’t like to leave so late that we are exhausted by the time we get wherever we are going. For us, it’s a good balance and that’s why we have adopted the posture of devoting a day to travel and not worrying about whether we could have been on the beach a few more hours.
And another thing – “when it’s over, it’s over” applies to a number of other things as well. For instance, when I was a boy, my parents left the Christmas tree up until January 1st. But Janet and I have come to the conclusion that when Christmas is over, the decorations come down by the 28th or so. Because, “when it’s over, it’s over…” The same is true with Halloween, Thanksgiving and every other day that is celebrated with decorations.
But there is one area that our saying doesn’t hold true – when it comes to the end of our physical lives. Because if you are a believer in Jesus, the end of your life here doesn’t really mean a thing in terms of eternity. In fact, the moment that you accept Jesus as Lord and Savior then your eternal life begins – you don’t have to wait until you die. Most people just don’t realize that, but it’s true. It is important to remember that the way to the Father is through His son. And that’s the essence of our verse for the evening.
The apostle John tells us in his 1st epistle, in 1 John 5:11, “And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.” That’s all there is to it – no gimmicks. Just pure and simple – eternal life is a gift from God. My encouragement this evening is that when it comes to your salvation, there’s really only one thing you can do – believe in the promises of God and commit your life to Christ. My prayer is that you you will consider the fact that you will have all eternity to worship God and with that in mind, you may not be in such a hurry during your time here on earth. Have a great day in the Lord, grace and peace…