Living Life as an Exclamation Point!

In the spur of the moment, I hit the road to Austin on Sunday for just a 24-hour stay. What is that about? It's about living with no regrets and seizing the moments to living my life as an "exclamation point". I had the opportunity to see my 14-year old grandson pitch nearly his entire baseball game, followed by surprising my sweet grandson's wife (my granddaughter, Ruth Hays Wuerch) by getting to celebrate her birthday. Ruth is a triplet and it's so beautiful that her sister lives and works in Austin and we were able to celebrate both girls, while the 3rd triplet is a Navy Officer stationed in Corpus Christi. It was especially exciting to be in Austin to celebrate their upcoming move from Atlanta to Austin. Yay! My "Wuerch" men will all be living in Austin in just a couple of weeks. Lots more opportunity for exclamation points!

James 4:14 "You do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes." James gave us a "spoiler alert"! He said our lives would be like a vapor that appears and then, just as quickly, vanishes! That's a reality check -- especially for those of us who, in our 20s -- looked at the old folks (in their 50s) and thought, "They are so old!" Now, we are past our 50s and "old folks"don't seem so old anymore! LOL!

The fact is -- the length of our lives isn't based at all on quantity, but it's based on quality. This gift of life, however brief, should be spent living in such a way that the very One who created us will always look upon His investment as a "creation....well done"! Rather than looking at how fast time goes by, wouldn't it be more productive to think....."How can I make the most of the time that I have?" What if we put an exclamation point on every day we have? An exclamation point is reserved for the accomplishments that excite our spirits and set our hearts on fire. Living a humdrum life doesn't get an exclamation point. Spending precious time complaining, whining, worrying, being cranky and cynical doesn't get an exclamation point.

Getting an exclamation point has everything to do with how we wake up each day. Getting an exclamation point has something to do with "hitting-the-ground-running" each day. There's just no time to be thinking about the good old days. I love my memories. I love all of my old photos. But if I want an exclamation point at the end of each and every day, I need to wake up saying "What can I do TODAY to leave a mark and a legacy?" Here's what "Exclamation Point" recipients look like:
They have a life to live so they live it… exclamation point!
They have an assignment to complete…exclaimation point!
They have work to be done….exclamation point!
They have a victory to achieve….exclamation point!
They have a devil to defeat….exclamation point!
They have a storm to calm….exclamation point!
They have a prayer to pray…exclamation point!
They have a promise to claim… exclamation point!
They have a habit to conquer…. exclamation point!
They have a temptation to overcome….exclamation point!
They have an enemy to love…. exclamation point!
They have a burden to lift…. exclamation point!
They have a friend to help….exclamation point!
They have a race to be won...exclamation point!

On a gravestone, it shows a date born, then a hyphen, then the date of death. The hyphen represents all the in between birth and death -- what that person accomplished in their lifetime. Quite frankly.....I'd like for mine to have on it:
"DONNA LIVED.... EXCLAMATION POINT!!"

Carpe Momentum -- Seize the Moment

Often I blog about making moments count. There's a Latin phrase for it: Carpe Momentum which means "Seize the Moment". I’m thrilled to be alive HERE on planet earth today in this generation. Even though I live in a 55+ community, I sure don’t want to hang with anyone who thinks “old”. I love hanging with those who live in the moment and in that moment they find so much to be grateful and joyful about.

This is MY own definition of a MOMENT: "an instant, that almost imperceptible amount of time that barely registers measurement, but when being present and given full thought and attention to it, miracles can happen, inventions and innovations can be created, lives are transformed and heaven touches earth -- because the MOMENT was noticed.” – Donna Wuerch

The older I get the more I understand the importance and value of seizing the moment. Life’s “stuff” happens to all of us. "Stuff" happened to my husband and I. I remember a season of major challenges in our lives. Important life-altering decisions needed to be made. But, rather than sitting around worrying, we spontaneously decided to take a trip to Branson, Missouri on November 1st – the first day of Christmas at Silver Dollar City. It turned out to be one of the best decisions we could have made. It was not only therapeutic to get-away-from-it-all, but it refreshed us and took our perspective and attitudes to a whole new place.

When I placed this figurine on my kitchen counter this Christmas, I couldn’t help but remember that weekend, because underneath the items we purchased (as a keepsake of times of sweetness), I would always write the occasion and the date on the bottom. We SEIZED the MOMENT on that weekend.

Seizing the moment is engaging in intentional thinking. At church, when the priest, rabbi or pastor is speaking, do you find your mind wandering or even falling asleep? And all the while, that speaker may have given wisdom for the answer you needed to help you get out of your difficult situation. I’m one of those “note takers” in church or meetings because I want my valuable time to be worthwhile and I want to give honor to the speaker’s valuable time that he/she spent preparing.

I’m the camera/photo opt “junkie” in our family. I'm always seizing the moment to take a photo of precious times. I'm taking a lot of photos while I'm with my two younger grandsons in Austin. Every moment of nurturing them, seizing the moment to cuddle them, and when typical sibling rivalry or some act of disobedience happens, I get the opportunity to talk about God's way being the best way. I want them to remember Nana as one who was always pointing to Jesus. I know these two young boys will soon no longer be needing for Nana to see after them -- like their two older brothers who are now on their own. So every moment seized is every moment remembered.

Seize the moment. It works like this. In the midst of the craziness of life, seize a few quiet minutes to rest, reflect, recharge. Maybe take a mini mental vacation to enjoy life’s blessings. Instead of working through your lunch hour (or just 20 minutes), turn off your phone and computer to truly enjoy the daily bread you have been given. Go out for dinner…at some place that serves your meal on a plate, not in a bag. Stop by to see your parents, older kids and/or especially your grandkids. If you can’t get there physically, then call them, skype them, or just sit quietly and send up a prayer for them. Reflect on life and give thanks that you can see, move or even just breathe.