We hear this cliche normally enough… that LIFE IS SHORT… but to be so young, and have God make it clear to you by shaking your very existence, is extremely frightening and eye opening.  I’ve been there.  You hear about friends of friends who have close calls, but these things have never happened to you or anyone you personally know.  I’ve been there…

It really sucks that many of us have certain epiphanies about the shortness of life, then don’t proceed to do the things we know we were meant to do… or FIGHT the demons we need to fight for ourselves and our relationships.  We spend time as if we have ALL the time in the world, and we wait to be the better person we could be, when we should always be striving to move upwards everyday.  

We say that life is short, but we so easily take time for granted.  

Recently, God called out to me in the loudest possible way and reminded me of the work I’ve put off to strengthen my soul and discover His blessings for me.  Before the New Year, I thought hard about my resolutions and decided that I’d be ready for whatever 2012 would teach me even if I would be hurt by it—like a kid being disciplined painfully by her stern and loving parents.  I’m ready to bear the pain, because I know too well that the struggles of our lives can be our biggest teachers if we keep our hearts in the right place.  I didn’t realize God would slap me with a lesson like that, but He (my most stern and loving parent) did.  

“To whom much is GIVEN, much is EXPECTED.”

As a result, I truly believe that we’re born with gifts, for a reason bigger than ourselves.  To be where you are is NO COINCIDENCE.  To go through what you’ve gone through is FOR A PURPOSE.  We should have the courage to LEARN… then LOVE through our pain and experiences.  I’m thankful that God has once again saved my life and soul.  I only hope to pay it forward, backward, left, right, and everywhere I turn, but most importantly upward to the One who created me.  

Wake UP.