Well yesterday I was picked up by my dad from my violin lesson and greeted by a yummy Dove Chocolate (it was this raspberry Carmel dark chocolate). In the Dove wrappers they always have a quote or saying on them. Well this is what mine said:
Own every moment of your life.
For some reason I was struck with the irony of that. This world tells us to “own our life” and to “take control of the future” and other messages like it, yet the Bible tells us the complete opposite.
I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20 ESV)
Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. (1 Cor. 6:19-20 ESV)
The Bible says that we are no longer our own. We were bought with the precious blood of Jesus, and we now have the holy spirit dwelling within us. We are no longer slaves to sin, but slaves to righteousness. (Romans 6:15-23) We don’t own anything any more. Jesus is totally Lord over us. Every part of our life should be focused on Christ, because he owns your life.
There are so many examples of radical living. Lives that were, and are, focused solely on Jesus. They are spent serving Christ, loving him (and worshiping him), spending time with him, and being him to the world. One of my favorite examples is Amy Carmichael. She lived a life of total devotion to Christ. She put herself in dangerous situations to share the gospel to others and to rescue girls.
Another of my favorites is Sabina and Richard Wurmbrand. She and her husband were watching pastor after pastor get up and proclaim that communism and Christianity were the same thing. She turned to her husband and asked him to “wipe the spit of the face of Jesus Christ”. He replied that if he did so he would be imprisoned, tortured, and maybe even killed. Her response was these amazing words, “I would rather be married to a dead man then to a coward”. With those words in his mind he got up on stage and proclaimed Jesus to the many people there and the many people listening over radio. Both her and her husband were thrown in prison in the following years, they spent 8 years of separation from each other. They had a little boy that was left to fend for himself while his parents were in jail. All for the sake of the gospel. They put Christ first and did not even “own” their little boy.
There are many other stories of those who put off all of themselves, and only had Christ. They knew nothing but to preach Christ crucified. They knew they were not their own, so they used their lives serving the one they belonged to. They lived their lives as slaves of righteousness. I pray that all of you, and me too, will decide to do the same. For our lives are not our own. Soli Deo Gloria
In Christ, ~Nobody~ <><
Nobody416 
I normally do NOT buy Dove chocolate because I disagree with most of the sayings in the wrappers, but it was on clearance! Nice redepmtion of the wrapper though.
Or, you could take another angle on it and discuss how we should redeem the time. To own the moments could be taken to make your time count. See Eph 5:15-16; Col. 4:5-6; 1 Peter 1:17-19. Just keeping you on your toes!
haha, I am so glad that there is now Bliss, it is just as good as Dove yet doesn’t have those stupid sayings (I think). I liked the one you got, “Close your eyes and enjoy the moment”, while you were driving!
Very good point. It can be taken either way. This was the first thing I thought of when I read it. I am actually making another post along these lines based on a book I am reading.
I read a book about Richard Wurmbrand entitled, “Tortured for His Faith”. It is a powerful and moving true story. It is amazing how these people felt so close to Jesus when they were shut away in a prison somewhere.
Great Post!
Erik B.