Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say, “I find no pleasure in them”— Ecclesiates 12:1

I remember visiting my friend and mentor Chuck, just days before his passing. I knew that he was in a transitional phase, and I realized as well, so was I. Things were changing and, as much as I wanted to halt or slow down the change, I couldn’t. Life does that. It changes, sometimes slowly and sometimes quickly, without warning. Embracing those changes, finding them worthwhile and remaining attentive is not something I can’t do alone. I need, and have needed, help to discover the value of those moments of change.

As I watched and listened to my friend I was struck with the joy he was experiencing in his final days. He was looking forward to his transition from this temporal experience of life into the eternal experience of life realized in the presence of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Chuck’s arms were lifted, even with diminished strength, in praise to his loving Father in heaven. His word in that moment was “Glory!” I watched the excitement of my friend to enter the presence of His King, Jesus Christ.

As I read the final chapter of Ecclesiates, I realized that what I had experienced with my friend Chuck was not just a random experience, but the result of the cultivation of a long, deep and loving relationship with Jesus. From His youth and on into adulthood Chuck had remembered His Creator and cultivated intimacy with Him. As death approached it was not feared as a terminal experience, but welcomed as a transition into the presence of God. Each day Chuck had spent time enjoying the presence of Christ whether the circumstances of life were pleasant or unpleasant. Like the apostle Paul, Chuck had learned to be content with the present circumstances because he enjoyed those circumstances in the loving presence and infinite strength of Jesus.

There is a reason for establishing a relationship with the Creator that transcends this present temporal existence. There is an opportunity to cultivate an intimacy with God that is filled with joy and a sense of well being not dependent upon the pleasures of this world. Instead, when this relationship with our Creator is nurtured and appreciated we discover things of value, a life of value, beyond the few years we have on this earth. Though the ability to appreciate the pleasures of this world may fade with age, there is the possibility of something far more pleasurable in the presence of God, which we can begin to discover and experience now.

Everyday we awaken to the possibility of something more than life in this world can offer. Everyday we have the possibility of engaging in this life while remembering our Creator and the presence, power and love He offers us on this journey. So today “Remember your Creator” and be nourished by time in His gracious and loving presence. Be still and know that He is God. Allow His life to fill you and prepare you to experience the life to come.

My friend Chuck is enjoying a life that is far beyond what I can imagine here. He is forever enjoying the presence of the One who continues to care for and love him perfectly. He is in the presence and basking in the glory of His kind and joyful Creator. He is fully illuminated and warmed by that light and love. It is the fulfillment for which he, as well as each one of us, was created. May you discover again this day your Creator and the life of love and joy found in His presence.