6. Carpe Diem

So, how is your journey going so far?

Whatever your answer, whether positive or not, the wonderful thing is that, as children of God, we have the assurance that our journey is leading us to the most wonderful destination; a place called heaven where there is absolute beauty and not a trace of evil of any description; no tears, frustration, pain or sadness, only peace, joy and fulfilment. That’s where we’re headed!

However, as wonderful as the promise of heaven is, I don’t want to wish away my life here on earth for the joy of going to be with Him in heaven. There is too much to do now - so much to discover, so much of heaven to experience on earth, so many people who need to meet Him and join us on this incredible journey. I don’t want to waste a day. I want to live each day that He has given me, fully.

This sentiment is so well captured in one of my favourite movies, “Dead Poets Society”, in which Robin Williams plays a rather eccentric English teacher in a prestigious boarding school for boys. Robin’s character, John Keating, sees with alarming clarity the effect which the strict totalitarian culture of the school was having on its students. Their paths were already mapped out for them, their careers chosen and their lives all planned out before they had even had time to discover who they were, let alone what they wanted to do with the rest of their lives. These boys were told from an early age what their ‘destination’, or future career, was and their lives revolved around striving to get the best results, the best university placements and jobs and, ultimately, being “the best” in order to reach that destination.

In the movie, John Keating took a group of students and turned their lives upside down. He taught them that life was not about the destination, but about living every day with a passion for discovery and authenticity. The boys found a quote that Keating had written in a poetry book when he was a student at the same school many years before: ‘I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life. To put to rout all that was not life; and not, when I had come to die, discover that I had not lived.’ The phrase he challenged them with and which, in time, became their mantra, was “Carpe diem”, and John told them “Seize the day, boys. Make your lives extraordinary.”

Make your lives extraordinary! Wow, what a powerful phrase! Every time I watch this movie I find myself being inspired and challenged once more to ‘make my life extraordinary.’ I don’t want to trudge through life just waiting to see what’s going to happen.

I want to be intentional.

I want to seize the day with both hands.

I want to walk hand in hand and step by step with Holy Spirit, as He leads me on this grand adventure, even when the road I’m on leads me through a wilderness. Father God has placed in each one of us the desire to live extraordinary lives, to matter! Our journey should not be a mindless regurgitation of the previous day’s trudging through the wilderness, but an extraordinary journey of courage and daring into the unknown! We can do it, not because of who we are, but because He is with us.

So join me, and let’s pray together, “Father, please help me to seize the day!”

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Until next time ….

Are you ‘seizing the day’?  Does your life feel extraordinary?

If it doesn’t, think about the different areas of your life (for instance, marriage/ relationships, family, work, health and wellbeing) and ask Him what you need to do, to make that area extraordinary.

Think about where you can ‘break the box’ and take risks, and what practical changes you might need to make in order to do this.

Ask the Lord for a fresh touch, for a fresh infilling.

Ask Him to make you brave!

Nicky Heymans is an author of historical fiction who is known for drawing fresh life and inspiration out of familiar Bible stories. She would love to hear from you! Please feel free to share your thoughts or ask questions by scrolling down to the bottom of this page and clicking on the 'contact' link, and she will get back to you.