I went to lunch with one of my best friends, Don, the other day. We met at our usual deli where we get together several times a month and encourage one another in our relationships with the Lord, our relationships with our family and our careers.

            This particular time Don had been learning a lot about being content with his lot in life. Like me he has struggled with his career and wondering if working in corporate America is where he should finish out his career. Like me, his has an entrepreneur spirit. In fact, he and I attempted to start our own company last year, helping small businesses cut costs. We got one client and made a few bucks, but discovered that the effort far out weighed the benefits and ended our efforts early this year. We tried this venture while continuing with our regular jobs.

            Lately Don’s job as a business manager has included many mundane tasks that are quite boring and unfullfilling. He is dealing with the frustrations of this situation.  Like me, his job has provided an excellent opportunity to stretch his faith and iron out the rough edges. Through these times, God is teaching Don to seek His direction in the overall future of his career, but to focus on the present, not the future.

            Oh how we tend to focus on every thing but the now! Either we are worried about a future trial that may or may not happen or we are looking forward to something that we think will make us “totally happy”. We all tend to be guilty of living in the future or being crippled by the past. The tragedy is that when we do this, we miss out on the beauties of living right now. Only in the present are our senses active. The past is only a memory and the future only an imagination. Only now can we truly experience life.

            As we discussed the problem, Don described the present as “the aroma of the now”. This is an excellent term, but after thinking about it more, aroma is only part of what the present offers. Besides aroma, now offers all the sounds, feelings, tastes and sights that the past and future do not. Most of all, however, the present offers our only change to have full contact with people. We can never go back and change our interactions with people moment by moment. We can look back and reflect on the past and plan on how we will relate in the future, but only in the present can we come in full contact with people.

            We should seize every moment! Only in the present can we relate with our most cherished loved ones, listen to our children, and share with our friends. The problem, however, is that we are so concerned with everything but the present moment, or we are so busy with our tasks and duties, that thousands of present moments are literally wasted.

            What I received from my time with Don was we should seek to live each moment with gusto, enjoying God’s gift to our senses. And we should see the present as our only opportunity to make a positive impact on the people God is pleased to bring our way.