Your Life is Not Your Own

    My good friend Mary Owen was injured and lost on Mt. Hood for six nights, after deciding to hike alone on Palm Sunday. Her family (who was down here for a speech tournament) heard she was missing on the fifth day. Thursday it was all over Facebook. Tons of people were praying hard for her safe return. Rescue workers finally found her on the Friday before Easter. What a wonderful Easter for her family!

    Her story was all over the media, TV channels and news sites. (Here's a good article.) Some of them scolded her for climbing the mountain alone or not taking a working cell phone. In my experience, Mary was always the fearless, adventurous, leave-without-telling-anyone type. She is also an experienced hiker and knows how to survive out there. But when she wrote out her story in her words, she admitted that was no excuse for making dumb decisions: for going alone, for not letting anyone know.

    Two things struck me while reading her testimony, and they're kind of connected.

    First, my life is not just about me. Or even just me and God. Christians are encouraged to not fear death. Because I know I'm going to Heaven to be with Jesus when I die, I know death will be a happy thing... For me. Christians are told that the most important thing in life is your relationship with God. That's true. But it's not just you and Him in this world. There are so many other people that you see, talk to, love and (even unknowingly) bless every day. God taught Mary that her life mattered. If she died, others would be deeply effected, and the world wouldn't be the same.

    She writes, "Sitting out there with nothing else to do, I began to realize how very carelessly I have carried my own life, treating death as though it was just between myself and God. The immenseness of this foolishness hit me on Monday. You may think that your life doesn't count, that it's not a big deal if you disappear - or like myself - that you know where you're going when you die - life security - Jesus and I are buddies. You are wrong. I was wrong. Your life is inextricably tied to the lives of millions of other people. There is no one-person who can be removed from the tapestry without leaving a gaping hole behind; and such a momentous decision  - to remove a life - does and must belong solely to God."

    The second thing that I loved from her testimony is something she hints at at the end of that quote - God's Sovereignty. Your life is not your own. God is using you to further His purposes every day until your "leaving day" when your race is finished. Sometimes God will use your life to bring much glory to Him, like the story of Mary's survival on Mt. Hood. Sometimes He may use just a kind word or a hug from you to brighten someone's day. Either way, your life is not your own. God taught Mary that He was in control. He "scolded her" and taught her a lesson by allowing her to be hurt and lost all those days and nights. But He also showed His power and care, keeping her alive and well, and answering the multitude of prayers being lifted up on her behalf. God is good. All the time. What better person is there to have running your life? :)

    "If you claim the title "Christian" but live as though your life belonged to you, STOP. You have no idea what you are messing with. This is the Holy One, the God of the Universe, and if you give your Life to Him, you had better be prepared for Him to take it - ALL OF IT." -Mary Owen