Live while you’re alive

Today, a terrible disaster occurred about an hour from my home in Central Florida. A bus carrying migrant workers crashed and flipped over. Eight workers who were on their way to harvest fields were killed, and many others were injured.

This is a harsh reminder that tomorrow is not promised. At least not here on earth.

This tragedy is also an example of why I repeatedly emphasize the need to "live while I'm alive" in my most recent book, Healed on the Inside. The idea is simple: We are here right now, yesterday is behind us, and tomorrow is not guaranteed. So, making the most of right now is essential.

I believe God tells us as much in the Bible.

In fact, James 4:14 (KJV) says, "Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away."

I love those words. They reach into my soul and remind me of this world's impermanence. This doesn’t scare me. Instead, it comforts me. We are here for a short time, and worrying nonstop about what's to come or what has previously happened is a wasted effort.

I have discovered that the idea of living while you're alive becomes even more significant when you're dealing with a health crisis, as I have with cancer. And now that I'm in remission, I'm trying to continue being present and appreciative each day.

I repeat my "live while I'm alive" mantra multiple times daily.

Do you think the migrant workers had the privilege of living in that mindset? Can you imagine what day-to-day life was like for them?

They do not call the United States home. They come to this country to work and send money to wherever they are from. They deal with different ways of doing things each day. Whether it's communicating, shopping, or making doctor's appointments, none of it is done the way they grew up doing things.

They are single-mindedly focused on creating a better life for their family back home, thousands of miles away.

And I'm sure they work very hard each day, most likely harder than you or I. I know I couldn't be out in the sun ten hours at a time, bending over to pull fruit or vegetables from the ground and then hustling to throw the harvest in a bag. Over and over, all day long.

They do work most of us wouldn't or couldn't do.

The people killed today were on their way to pick crops, traveling on Florida's State Route 40, when another vehicle sideswiped their bus, causing the bus to run off the road.

I doubt they knew that their final moments on earth were approaching. Instead, maybe they were closing their eyes and resting before a long day. Or perhaps they were talking about what they wanted to do with their families when they returned home.

Again, this is why living while you're alive is so important. You never know what God has planned for you.

As I battled cancer, I routinely challenged myself to practice what I'm preaching right now.

I tried to appreciate sunrises for a little longer. I tried to get more loving hugs from my family.

I tried to focus on what God was giving me at the exact moment rather than what He gave me yesterday or what I hoped to receive. I placed myself "right here, right now," as the ironically named Jesus Jones band sang in their 1991 release.

Living while you're alive has also served another function for me. It has forced me to stop procrastinating. Think about it this way: How would you approach each day differently if you acted like tomorrow might not happen?

Is there a book you've been saying forever that you want to write? Then start it. Now.

Is there somebody you need to call and say, "I love you?" Do it — right now.

See, the world does not sit still. It doesn't wait for us. Physical death is one of this life's only absolute certainties.

It's not a question of if. When is the only question.

So, with that in mind, don't wait. Live while you're alive.

In light of today's loss of life near Tampa, I know I will take a few extra moments today to bask in my family's love and appreciate God's gifts. I also will pray:

Dear God, please welcome home the workers who died today, and please wrap your protective arms around those who were injured, helping them heal. Lord, please give peace to the families of the deceased. I pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.