MY BIRTH DATE, MAY 5, 1955, CAUSES SOME PEOPLE TO speculate that the date must mean something. If so, I don’t know what. Some think all those fives are auspicious and should be considered my lucky number. Others have suggested that I play it in the lottery. But I don’t gamble.
I was honored and privileged when Andy Andrews and his wife, Polly, threw me a surprise fiftieth birthday party. How nearly ninety people could possibly show up at one location without me ever having a hint of what was going on from any family, friends, or associates is still beyond me. If you’ve ever experienced a truly happy surprise, then you can understand what I mean. It was simply amazing—a memory created for eternity!
Out of gratitude, I called Andy late that night because I wanted to share something I had never told anyone.
In my ninth-grade PE class, a good friend of mine, Paul Kartlick, tripped while playing basketball, hit his head hard on the outdoor concrete court, and died. Gone at fourteen years old. I was stunned. Shocked to my core.
I had been raised in the church and was very aware of God and spiritual things, but this hit me hard. It was my first realization that I am always, very literally, only one step away from dying, from meeting my Creator face to face. Any moment. Any day. Anywhere.
If you’ve ever experienced a tragedy, you probably have a good idea of how I was feeling. It was a pivotal point—a transition of some kind. Almost immediately, I began to reassess everything I thought I knew about life. We’ve all heard that life can change in an instant, but when that change results in the loss of life itself, it can become a huge and incredibly defining moment.
Since that day, I have lived with the odd sense that I, too, might die young. This experience and the feeling it fostered in me created a unique sense of urgency. Even at a young age, I began to seek out ways to fulfill my purpose. There had to be a purpose to life, right? There just had to be something to being divinely guided. But guided to do what? Every day became a major mission to find out why I was here and what I was supposed to do with my life.
I may not have fully realized my life’s purpose as a freshman in high school, but I reasoned that it had to be a ton of little things adding up to something big. I had no idea what “big” looked like, but I understood little things. Consequently, I felt a pressing desire to accomplish these little things—make a phone call, write a letter, research an idea—as soon as they occurred to me. I constantly asked myself, What is important now? What is next? I could never escape those two questions as they spun around in my mind.
To this day, those same two questions keep me up late, get me up early, and create a never-ending quest of enormous possibilities and accomplishments. In truth, I never really want to be finished, though I am aware that one day, it will all end. But not yet.
I know I will die, but I do not know how long I will live.
To some, the very idea stated above may seem like a burden, but to me it’s been a tremendous gift. Actually, it has been my motivating force.
With this thought weighing heavily on my mind, and added to the somewhat shocking revelation that I had been alive for 20,000 days, the first thing I did upon arriving at the hotel was to write and send forty-eight individual e-mails to the closest people in my life.
Every single one of them responded, many with an intense reaction. Some called. Some still talk about this e-mail to this day.
The following concept, if applied—will change your life immediately and forever.
From: Robert D. Smith
Subject: 20,000 Days & Counting
Date: February 6, 2010 6:11:50 PM CST
To: (48 undisclosed individual recipients)
A couple of years ago, I found a widget called a Countdown Calendar that told me how many more days were left until New Year’s Day, or whatever future date you put. I wondered if it worked on days past. It did. I put in my birth date and was WOWed by how many days I had been alive.
I decided then that I would do something to celebrate when I reached the next big number.
Friday, February 5, 2010, was that day. I have been alive 20,000 days as of that day. I am grateful for each day, and for where they have brought me.
I decided to celebrate by taking a 48-hour crash course on planning the next 20,000 days, all while staying in a beautiful suite at one of The Leading Hotels of the World—at an undisclosed location.
I would like to share a verse that has influenced my life. “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:12; Bible, Sacred Scriptures of Christians and Judaism).
Life is short.
Our days are numbered.
Our lives are limited.
Life can pass extremely fast.
The Bible says that a person’s life is like a breath or vapor (Psalm 39:4–6).
The Bible also says that life is like a shadow that only temporarily appears (Ecclesiastes 6:12). And like a flower that flourishes then quickly withers and fades away (Job 14:2).
FIVE BENEFITS OF REMEMBERING
THAT MY LIFE IS SHORT
1. I WILL GAIN CRITICAL WISDOM.
• Counting my days has created a sense of intense urgency, causing me to choose how I am going to live and know what I am living for now.
• I must desire wisdom with all my might. “Exalt her, and she will promote you; she will bring you honor, when you embrace her” (Proverbs 4:8). Wisdom is not only critical but also valuable for me to make important daily decisions.
2. I WILL BE PUSHED TO MAXIMIZE MY RELATIONSHIPS.
• It is so easy to take my relationships for granted. Counting my days reminds me of how precious they are. This causes me to be more loving, more forgiving, and more unselfish. Time is merely the measure of passing events. Time is inflexible. You cannot manage it. It cannot be compressed or expanded. Bottom line: don’t focus on time, but on events themselves. When you control the event, you control your life. Fill these events with people you love. Relationships will be enhanced and memories created.
3. I WILL DEDICATE 100% OF MY LIFE TO GOD DAILY.
• Counting my days compels me to want to spend my remaining days and years in serving my Creator. I must stay watchful, alert, and committed.
• I am grateful for every moment. Every possibility. Every person I meet throughout the day. I am fully open to God. I am an empty vessel to fill, a building with no doors. I seek what to do and where to go, living on the edge of great expectations.
• The sum of what I do today is more expansive and far reaching than I can comprehend. This gives me certainty to continue with tons of massive action all day.
4. I WILL POSSESS A CRYSTAL-CLEAR VISION FOR MY LIFE.
• The Bible says that without a vision the people will perish (Proverbs 29:18). A vision or dream has given me direction, something to aim at, to work toward. It keeps me marching forward.
• I do not want to close my eyes and fail to see the vision. I face today with my eyes wide open, actively looking for the next action to take. Today I will practice love in all my actions, taking calculated risks and living more adventurously.
• I know I am creating a life book. Today is but a chapter—maybe even just a few paragraphs. Each sentence I write with on-purpose intention. We all dream. But not equally. To make your dreams possible, act on them with open eyes.
5. I WILL REALIZE LIFE’S TRUE VALUE.
• Counting my days makes things of eternal value feel much more important. I am more aware than ever that my life is preparation for eternity. One day my heart will stop, and that will be the end of this body. But not the end of me.
• Knowing that the quality of my life will never exceed the quality of my questions, I must ask outstanding questions. What am I doing that will count two hundred years from now? For eternity?
• Present success or failure does not measure the true value of your life’s work. You still have now.
Six words continue to motivate me: No Reserves. No Retreats. No Regrets.
I am eternally grateful that YOU are in my life. The impact you have on me daily is beyond measure. What I do, what I think, who I am, and what I am becoming has been hugely influenced by you. For this I deeply and gratefully thank YOU!! I am so very proud of YOU and that God brought us together.
I look forward to counting more time with you and creating more memories that will truly last for all eternity.
Love you!!
TheRobertD