Hashtag You Only Live Once
How many of your friends say this? How popular has it become to utter this phrase? How frequently do you see this hashtag on social media? #yolo is quite prominent, isn’t it? I don’t have a fundamental problem with the energy behind those people we see using this hashtag. I often envy some of the enthusiasm I see from passionate and motivated people I witness dropping their version of a truth bomb such as “yolo” on everyone. However, there is no small irony associated with the facts.
If you’re truly a Christian, you live more than once.
I truly find myself someplace between thinking they’re just silly and immature, to absolutely sick to the very pit of my stomach, knowing they don’t seem likely to join others in Heaven. You know who I’m referring to don’t you? These people’s lives look nothing short of perfect on social media. Each picture is full of smiles, celebrations, all kinds of activities, and nothing ever appears to be out of place. My brother has routinely said, “They look like they’re living a beer commercial.” …And he’s right. They do.
Now, before you get all twisted up, you should hear me out on this. Don’t for one minute put upon me some silliness that I wish to be unhappy, or that I’m envious somehow. That’s not at all what this is. Rather, I’m finding a tremendous irony with the YOLO crowd. Here I see a person or persons offering me this portrayal of energy, passion, and a true zeal for life. They get involved. What they get involved with is truly an oxymoron. Instead of grasping the Truth, they cling to the false premise that surrounds vanity.
Let me cut right to it. This isn’t your only life. There is one after this. There are only two paths when you cross over. One is the best. The other is the worst. Imagine what things will be like for those who choose poorly? The silly idea that circles around “live your best life now” is laughable to me now. I never used to give it much thought. But, I sure do these days. There are fantastic aspects of human existence. There is also a tremendous amount of suffering we inhabit. No doubt.
It may sound odd, but I’m beginning to embrace my suffering more and more all the time. Life on this Earth is many things. Suffering, and love, and pain, and pleasure, and delight, and disappointment, and loss, and gain are all among our experiences. What other thing on this planet is afforded those? We’re self-conscious. We can anticipate the future in a way that has us concerned for what may become of us and others. That isn’t a design flaw in the machine… That ability is meant to hone us into understanding why we’re all here. And it sure isn’t to frolic around like a 35yr old child with no care as to what happens next. No.
Are there moments for tossing care to the wind? Yes. Is that the daily posture we’re commanded to take? No.
I submit to you. If the folks out there dropping YOLO bombs as if they held value were able to harness that enthusiasm and glorify God with it? Oh, what a world we’d be living in! You do live twice – what choices you make with the first dictates the second.
Choose wisely. Choose CHRIST. Be salt and light my friends…
