I recently heard on a podcast that the only two moments that we have guaranteed in life are the ones that we have right Now in the present, and our final moment in this life, or our death. We may have future plans, dreams, and goals that we desire to accomplish, but no matter how close we are to achieving them, there is no promise they will be actualized until we are actually achieving them in the moment. Now and Death are the only certain events, and it is because of this guarantee that these are the moments in this life that we are meant to meet and be with God.
We cannot avoid the Now and Death, so we must live or die them well – with and in God. While we are often very aware that we cannot escape death, it can be strange for us to consider that we cannot escape the present either. Yet, in a world that is increasingly pleasure driven, resulting in dissatisfaction and even depression, more and more people resonate with the idea of trying to escape the present as well. This may cause them to choose from a multitude of distractions to leave the real world behind.
Yet, distractions do not cause us to escape the present. They just turn the present into a different reality. This can be helpful in some cases when we are in need of some leisure to complement our busy lives. However, if we reside in a state of distraction without God, we lose sight of the purpose of the Now and Death, and we become immensely dissatisfied.
Satan and his demons know this, and their goal is to help us not understand the importance of the Now and Death as a place to meet our Heavenly Father. They use various forms of temptation to distract us away from God. Fears, anxieties, pleasures, and empty promises are all in the demon tool kit. They can inspire us to think that our dreams and plans are more important than God’s will. They can introduce selfishness into our lives. Yet, despite their persistence, we must not be disheartened! They cannot stop us from drawing close to God if that is what we want.
Jesus gives us the simple formula on how to defeat their temptation: Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat [or drink], or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds in the sky; they do not sow or reap, they gather nothing into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are not you more important than they? Can any of you by worrying add a single moment to your life-span? Why are you anxious about clothes? Learn from the way the wild flowers grow. They do not work or spin. But I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was clothed like one of them. If God so clothes the grass of the field, which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith? So do not worry and say, ‘What are we to eat?’ or ‘What are we to drink?’ or ‘What are we to wear?’ All these things the pagans seek. Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom [of God] and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides. Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself. Sufficient for a day is its own evil. – Matthew 6:25-34
For Jesus, the solution is simple: Just focus on the Kingdom of God in the Now. We do not need to worry about any other thing including our Death. God will take care of everything if we focus on loving Him and His creation. Satan cannot stop Him. And if we do, the most certain moment of our lives, Death, becomes the greatest moment that we have ever been given.
