Only one life

“Two little lines I heard one day,
Traveling along life’s busy way;
Bringing conviction to my heart,
And from my mind would not depart;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, yes only one,
Soon will its fleeting hours be done;
Then, in ‘that day’ my Lord to meet,
And stand before His Judgement seat;
Only one life,’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, the still small voice,
Gently pleads for a better choice
Bidding me selfish aims to leave,
And to God’s holy will to cleave;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, a few brief years,
Each with its burdens, hopes, and fears;
Each with its clays I must fulfill,
living for self or in His will;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

When this bright world would tempt me sore,
When Satan would a victory score;
When self would seek to have its way,
Then help me Lord with joy to say;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Give me Father, a purpose deep,
In joy or sorrow Thy word to keep;
Faithful and true what e’er the strife,
Pleasing Thee in my daily life;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Oh let my love with fervor burn,
And from the world now let me turn;
Living for Thee, and Thee alone,
Bringing Thee pleasure on Thy throne;
Only one life, “twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, yes only one,
Now let me say,”Thy will be done”;
And when at last I’ll hear the call,
I know I’ll say “twas worth it all”;
Only one life,’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last. ”

— extra stanza —

Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.
And when I am dying, how happy I’ll be,
If the lamp of my life has been burned out for Thee.”

C.T Studd

I have been thinking of this poem a lot lately. Pastor Chuck Smith passed away earlier this month as I have mentioned before. This poem had a great impact on his life. I have heard it before, but only part of it "Only one life, 'twill soon be past, only what's done for Christ will last". After being reminded of it when watching Pastor Chuck's memorial service, I decided to look up the poem and I read the whole thing this time. 

What an encouragement! What a challenge! Only one life. That is all we are given, and even then we are not guaranteed a full life, and none of us can say how many years we will have. 

I want so much for this to describe my life, that I spent it all for my Savior! That everything I did was for Him. I cannot say that every moment of my life was for Him, I have lived too many moments for myself. 

Listening to Adventures in Odyssey this morning I heard Mr. Whittikar say "There are two warring sides inside of you. The flesh and the spirit. The side that will be strongest is the side you feed the most". This really got me. Which part of myself am I feeding the most? Do I give in to what *I* want, rather than feeding my spirit with the Word of God? Do I seek to satisfy my own flesh? Or do I seek to live rightly before the Lord and seek His Kingdom, and His righteousness? 

To be honest, I do both, which only makes things more difficult. I strive to nourish my spirit with the Word of God daily along with praise and worship and fellowship with other believers. Then I go and feed my flesh with meaningless, selfish things. How long, O Lord? My desire is for You! 

The longer I live, (though I am not old), the more I realized how selfish and sinful I am. The more I long for the day when I will be face to face with my Lord and sin will be no more.  

Sin will be no more, what a wonderful thing to look forward to!

I am here now, on this Earth. The Lord has allowed me to continue on this journey here for now. My true desire is that while I am here, all that I am be poured out for Him. That I would turn away from the world and towards Him. There are many things to be regretted in this life, but one will never regret giving all to the glory of God. And in the end, how happy I will be, 

"If the lamp of my life has been burned out for Thee."