You Do Not Know Series

That’s what you do when you don’t know. Live with the mystery—Work diligently—and enjoy it. Find joy in life. Rejoice! Throw a party, but…

CELEBRATE RESPONSIBLY.

Celebrate life with the knowledge that God will judge someday. Enjoy life now before you die.

Ecclesiastes 11:7-8 Light is sweet, and it is pleasant for the eyes to see the sun. So if a person lives many years, let him rejoice in them all; but let him remember that the days of darkness will be many. All that comes is vanity (ESV).

Light and darkness are metaphors for life and death in the Bible. So rejoice in the light, because days of darkness are coming. Celebrate when you’re alive, because death is coming when there will be no more opportunity to celebrate in this life. You cannot show people on this earth how wonderful God is when you’re dead (Psalm 115:10). So do it now, before it is eternally too late!

Several years ago (2005) National Geographic identified three regions of the world where people have consistently shown longer life spans: Okinawa (Japan), Sardinia (an Italian island in the Mediterranean Sea), and Loma Linda, California. Dan Buettner, a researcher and explorer involved with the article, decided to do a follow-up study three years later to determine if there were more regions they had overlooked. His team found an abnormally large number of people living past 90—even into their 100s—on the Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica.

Intrigued, Buettner and a large research team made their way to the region to discover what factors led to a longer life for these people. They found that their longevity is due in part to diet, sun exposure, and source of water, but they also found the following factors to be crucial in the survival of the people:

• The people on the Nicoya Peninsula have a strong sense of purpose. They "feel needed and want to contribute to a greater good."

• They choose to focus on the family. Persons over 100 years of age in this region "tend to live with their families…. Children or grandchildren provide support and a sense of purpose and belonging."

• They have strong social networks. Their neighbors visit frequently, and they all seem to know the value of listening, laughing, and appreciating what they have.

• They know the value of hard work. They even manage to "find joy in everyday physical chores." &

• They understand and appreciate their historical roots and spiritual traditions. In essence, they know their story (Dan Buettner, "Costa Rica Secrets to a Long Life," AARP magazine, May/June 2008, p. 69; www.PreachingToday.com).

To put it simply—the people on the Nicoya Peninsula have learned to enjoy life, celebrating it with their family and friends and even at work. You do the same. Enjoy life before you die.

But enjoy life with the knowledge that God will judge. Have fun, but don’t be foolish.

Ecclesiastes 11:9-10 Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and the sight of your eyes. But know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment. Remove vexation from your heart, and put away pain from your body, for youth and the dawn of life are vanity (ESV).