Why Today Matters

Most likely, today is not going to be a very noteworthy day. It will probably be like most every other day. It might be easier, it might be harder – but it probably won’t stand out as particularly significant in your life. You probably won’t remember it ten years from now – or even one year from now.

But it is important. Today, you have the choice to live well, to obey Christ, and to learn and grow in what is before you. Perhaps life is going well, and you have much to enjoy. Or maybe it is challenging and difficult. No matter. God has you where he wants you, so that he can teach you the lessons that you need. Simply focus on seeking first the kingdom of God and his righteousness (Matthew 6:33).

If you learn today’s lessons well, then you will be better prepared for tomorrow. Tomorrow will come with its own lessons. And if you have learned today’s lessons well, then you will be better prepared to learn tomorrow’s lessons. It’s like learning math: first you need to learn the numbers, then later you will learn addition and subtraction, and eventually, multiplication and division. But you can’t learn the later subjects until you learn the former.

It’s true that tomorrow is also not likely to be very noteworthy. Tomorrow will come with it’s own lessons. And if you’ve learned today’s lessons well, you will be better prepared for the lessons of tomorrow. Then, the day after, you’ll be better prepared for the lessons of that day. And then the following day, with its lessons, and so on. Few of these days will be remembered. The progress will be so gradual and so slow that you might not even notice it.

But then, one day, the noteworthy day will arrive. You won’t know, when you wake up, that it has arrived. But suddenly, a single day, a single hour, perhaps a single minute will change everything. And if you have learned each of the lessons of each of the previous days well, then you will be prepared for that single moment when it matters supremely.

The present moment may not seem like it matters much now. But on that day, what you did today will matter more than you can imagine. If you give in to worry, or laziness, or other forms of disobedience, you won’t be as prepared for tomorrow. And then you won’t be as prepared for all the days that come after tomorrow. And ultimately, you won’t be ready for the big days when everything matters.

PS – After setting this aside and then re-reading it, I realized that I must add an addendum. We won’t all have that ‘climactic’ day when everything is on the line. Sometimes, life will resemble more of a steady stream than a river punctuated by waterfalls. But we should be prepared for big moments – and that way, whether they come or not, we will be prepared for the small moments as well. Remember, there are no ‘insignificant’ moments in God’s eyes. Each day and hour has its own eternal value.

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