Seize the Decade

I turned 60 this month.

And by coincidence, for the first time ever, I made a decision using a cost to years-of-productive-ministry-left analysis. It was sobering to decide against spending the money because of the limited years (10? 15 max?) of ministry I am likely to be afforded.

I don’t mean to be morbid. I’m not. And 60 isn’t depressing me. I feel young and vibrant. I’m in better physical shape than I’ve been in at least 15 years thanks to losing 38 pounds over the last year. I love the work I do—the speaking, the writing, my editing and writing for corporate clients, and my sales work at Ten Thousand Villages. I love my husband and our marriage and the life we share together. I love the church and relationships we are privileged to be part of.

But I definitely have fewer years of work and ministry left than I’ve already enjoyed. And that means making each day—each decade lived as individual 24-hour days—count.

• I want to choose to be proactive, intentional, gutsy, if you will.
• I want to be bold to go after the opportunities I desire, to realize the dreams I’ve dreamed (and believe God implanted within me).
• I want to jettison the trivial, the material stuff that junks up my life (not to mention my house) and pursue joy and adventure and relationships.
• I want books and travel and laughter to be bigger parts of my days and weeks.
• I want to invest in people and ministries that will outlast me.
• I want to live for the Kingdom of God and allow my joy and love to draw others into it as well.

What do you really want? Even more important, what does God want for you?

You don’t need to wait until you’re 60 to go for it, to make those things, that life, a priority.

Seize your decade. Begin by seizing this day!