“Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money. Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” James 4:13-14 (NIV)
It’s so easy to get caught up in jobs, family time, and ministry commitments. Busy can be a bad thing when you are focusing more on what’s coming tomorrow and not living in the moment of today. After I was married, I moved away from my immediate family and the budget didn’t allow for many visits back home. We saw each other briefly at major events like a wedding or a funeral. Trust me a funeral is not when you want to finally get together and connect with your family. Add in the fact my family had a tendency to be workaholics, and it was extremely difficult to coordinate a time to get together.
Three years ago my husband and I took the first EVER vacation with my family that included both of my brothers. We enjoyed the time together and promised to not let too much time slip away before the next vacation. Again it took two years before we got together as a family last summer. The time together was great but over too soon. If I knew what was to come I would have planned a longer time together. Within hours of celebrating my birthday last October, my middle brother passed away suddenly from a massive heart attack. In a blink time stopped and our lives were forever changed.
Sadly we have gone out of our way since then to plan times together as family. Gone is the focus on working to make money and in return, we focus on making memories together. God has our life planned from the moment we are conceived; every person, place, and event has a purpose. Seeking God daily will ensure we are in the right place with the right people to live life abundantly as God intended it.
“Dear God Thank You for the family, friends, and coworkers You place in our lives. May we learn to interact with others according to Your will and not waste precious time with the wrong people in the wrong place.
For His Glory,
Katrina Redman
TRBC Coffee Break
trbccoffeebreak 
how true gone to soon never to be repeated is time spent with family and friends
By: amylou10 on August 13, 2015
at 8:02 am
So sorry for the loss of your brother, Katrina. I, too, moved away from family and haven’t been able to visit often. To make it even harder, after 31 years of marriage, my spouse chose to leave and I ended up alone in a place away from all my family. But if we keep God first in our lives, He sustains us each and every day. Family is a treasure and we must enjoy it while we can. Thank you for sharing with us. ❤️
By: Luska Suzano on August 17, 2015
at 6:24 am