“Man is like a breath; his days are like a fleeting shadow” (Psalm 144:4).

Recently, two dear brothers in Christ, Wayne Backman and Doug Van Meter, passed away suddenly, leaving many of us in a state of shock and reflection. With no prior health warnings, Wayne died peacefully in his sleep, leaving his wife, Jan, heartbroken upon finding him unresponsive in the morning. That same week, Doug Van Meter and his wife Barbara were enjoying an evening with friends when Doug abruptly slumped over mid-conversation and could not be revived.

Amid these events, I also learned that another friend, Don Ames, faces stark uncertainty about his future due to a recent brain tumor diagnosis and urgent surgery scheduled. Poignantly, a week before his diagnosis, Don and I reflected during breakfast how we both had been blessed with long-standing good health throughout our lives.

James 4:13-15 reminds us of the brevity and the uncertainty of life. “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. Instead, you ought to say, ‘If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.'”

THE BREVITY OF LIFE

The Bible compares the length of life to fleeting things—a speedy weaver’s shuttle, a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes, a ship that passes swiftly in the night. Psalm 144 describes life as “a breath” and “a fleeting shadow.” Billy Graham was asked if anything surprised him about life. He said, “Yes, the brevity of it. It passes so quickly.” And Billy Graham lived to be 99 years old!

The Bible teaches that the average life expectancy is 70 or 80 years (see Psalm 90:10). The Apostle Paul wrote, “Outwardly we waste away” (2 Corinthians 4:16). Having recently turned 80 years old, I can testify to that truth! Everything takes so much more physical effort these days – even getting out of the car! Wrinkles, arthritis, joint pain, diminished hearing, and eyesight remind us our earthly body is temporary—this world is not our home.

THE UNCERTAINTY OF LIFE

None of us are guaranteed 70 or 80 years of life. While our lives could be potentially long, they can also be unpredictably short. We have all felt the sting of a child’s tragic death or a vibrant friend’s life cut short in middle age. So we know the warning in James 4:14 to be true: “…you do not even know what will happen tomorrow.”

I once read a story about an old man fishing along the banks of the Ohio River. A young boy, a stranger, approached and began waving his arms and shouting at a tugboat chugging up the river. “Over here! Over here!” the boy kept yelling.

The experienced fisherman chuckled and mumbled, “Son, that boat isn’t going to pay any attention to you. That tugboat captain is a busy man.” But the boy kept waving, and surprisingly, the boat kept coming closer and closer to the shore.

Finally, the vessel stopped just a few feet from the bank, lowered the gangplank, and the young boy hopped on board. As the boat began moving upstream again, the boy leaned over the rail and called out to the old fisherman, “Mister, my father is the ship’s captain, and he’s taking me to my home on the other side of the river!”

The ship of death makes unexpected stops along the river of life. That’s why wise people like Wayne Backman, Doug Van Meter, and Don Ames make Jesus Christ the captain of their souls so that when that moment comes, the Lord will just take them to their eternal home on the other side.

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy, he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade—kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the salvation ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Peter 1:3-5).

In the meantime, God has given us today. Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow may never be. We have this moment in time, so let’s make it count! For “This is the day the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24).