530: Live Like You Were Dying

I had some time in my hotel room this week, and decided to listen to some music on iTunes. It was then that I listened to a song that I downloaded years ago and wrote about in a 2008 Monday Memo. It's sung by country western singer Tim McGraw, and it's called Live Like You Were Dying. I thought I would share the lyrics with you again and let you draw your own lessons from what they have to say. (If you would rather watch it performed, you can do so here.)

THE SONG

He said, "I was in my early forties
with a lot of life before me,
when a moment came that stopped me on a dime.
And I spent most of the next days
looking at the x-rays,
talking bout the options
and talking 'bout sweet time.
I asked him when it sank in
that this might really be the real end."
How's it hit you when you get that kinda news.
Man what would you do?

And he said,
"I went sky diving,
I went Rocky Mountain climbing.
I went 2.7 seconds on a bull named Fumanchu.
And I loved deeper and I spoke sweeter,
and I gave forgiveness I'd been denying.
And he said someday I hope you get the chance
to live like you were dying."

He said, "I was finally the husband
that most the time I wasn't.
And I became a friend a friend would like to have.
And all of a sudden going fishin
wasn't such an imposition,
and I went three times that year I lost my dad.
Well I finally read the good book
and I took a good long hard look
at what I'd do if I could do it all again."

"And then
I went sky diving,
I went Rocky Mountain climbing.
I went 2.7 seconds on a bull named Fumanchu.
And I loved deeper and I spoke sweeter,
and I gave forgiveness I'd been denying.
And he said someday I hope you get the chance
to live like you were dying."

"Like tomorrow was a gift and you got eternity to think about.
What would you do with it? What did you do with it?
What did I do with it?
what would I do with it?"

"Sky diving,
I went Rocky Mountain climbing,
I went 2.7 seconds on a bull named Fumanchu.
And then I loved deeper and I spoke sweeter,
and I watched an eagle as it was flying.
And he said someday I hope you get the chance
to live like you were dying."

ARE YOU READY?

Are you ready to live today and everyday like it was your last? If so, what changes do you need to make? Do you need some calamity to make those changes, or do you have the courage to make them today? I am ready to live today like I was dying. Will you join me?

    Feel free to add your comments to this entry on the site where it is posted.

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I NEED $500:  If I receive another $500 before I leave Kenya on December 10, I can give two of our orphan ministries $1,000 each to buy food. Can you help me out?  If you can, please do so through my website or by sending a check to PurposeQuest, PO Box 8882, Pittsburgh, PA 15221-0882.  Write and tell if me if you send a check and I will front the money until I get home. Thank you and God bless you.

 

 

KENYA TIME:  I will be in Kenya this coming week. I will be conducting a three-day seminar from December 5-7 for The Pacific Institute and then a one-day seminar on Saturday, December 10 for Royal and Rich.  I am attaching the Royal and Rich flier to this post (click on it to enlarge).  If you are interested in The Pacific Institute, I can send you plenty of material that describes exactly what that is - which is quite simply the best training for goal setting and change with which I have ever been involved!  Write me for more information and then invest in yourself at one or both of these outstanding seminars.

Comments

[Donna]

Love, Love that song!

[Sharon W]

That's really good, Dr John. For some reason, I've been thinking along those lines a lot lately, especially in relation to health. We hear about people who, perhaps because of their lifestyle or genetics, are now suffering from all kinds of diseases - cancer, heart problems, etc, things that are irreversible for the most part. And I think to myself, what if we acted now the way we would once we discovered that we were actually sick and dying? What if we ate as healthily as we often try to only after the disease has already set in? How about preventing it rather than now trying to manage it, or get rid of it, which is that much harder, or even impossible?
It's really sad that it takes death to remind us about life.