A Kingdom Come

It’s been over ten days since I left, and I’m still trying to piece together what visiting Lake Tahoe  inspired in me.  The three days I spent at the lake were surprisingly, emotionally perplexing, due to the contrast of losing myself in the awe and wonder of the crystal shores and sapphire waters and being completely overcome by the realization of my youth as I stood among such an ancient formation of land and water.

Lake Tahoe is over two million years old, holds waters deeper than 1,600 feet, and is surrounded by mountains over 10,000 ft. tall.  And me, I'm 6’4”, twenty-three years old- only human. 

I remember driving through the mountains on our way to hike down to Emerald Bay and feeling unbearably small as I looked over the lake.  It was clear these mountains and waters had been here, together, for a very long time.

I hoped I wasn't intruding.

 

 

 

 

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That was also when the thought of leaving in a couple days became convicting.

I was bummed about going back to my normal “day-to-day” life so soon.  And even worse, I was troubled, because it felt as if the mountains were watching me and knew my next step before I did.  They knew it, because I’m human. And that's what us humans do: we come and we leave.  We take and take and take, and then soon pass away, without even realizing how fleeting we are. Rarely do we learn from what we’ve seen and rarely do we sow and invest in the places we go, and use our time on things that matterThe mountains know this of us.  They’ve watched us for a long time.  Thankfully, they still have sympathy.

As we drove under Mount Tallac and along the cliff sides that overlooked the lake, specifically Emerald Bay, that was when I knew that I too, like most of humanity, was guilty of thinking far too highly myself and the time I have been given.  That was when I saw, compared to these mountains, how fleeting both I and the rest of humanity is upon this earth; and how immature my ways of thinking were; and how quickly I would soon pass by. 

For the mountains, they’ve seen thousands, if not millions, of winters come and go. Their next winter is guaranteed, but for me, tomorrow is not even promised.

I wondered how well I was using my time and the life I’ve been given. 

 

 

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If I only have so much time here, I want it to matter.

Jesus said, "A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows…” We all have time and we’re all sowing it into something, night and day, week after week, month after month, whether we realize it or not. The question is, what are we sowing our time into and from an eternal standpoint, do these things even matter?

For me, I want every day to matter.  And in order to do so, I have to know what heaven values and adjust my lifestyle accordingly.  

Obviously, not everything passes into eternity with us.  But if I truly believed this wouldn’t I be prioritizing my time, money, and possessions differently?  

 

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Although Tahoe will see more days on this earth than me, I have an eternity before me that this land will never see.  

So I remind myself… 

My days are for a Kingdom come.

My days are nothing but seed.

 

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"the Kingdom of God is like... a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on the earth.  Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants…"

 

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-  “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth…but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

- "But whatever was to my profit, I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him...” - Philippians 3:7-8

- "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us… to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ; and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls." 1 Peter 1:3-