Enjoy the Highway

 Happy Friday, Friends:

I hope and trust this post finds you all having a great day as a glorious new day is beginning to dawn in my Sweet Home Alabama!

You all are in for a real treat this morning! Payton Haslam has written a powerful, inspiring, message! Enjoy!

Have a great day, a wonderful weekend, please cherish your precious families, and please stay well!

Kev

Good Morning and Happy Friday, Friends!

I am blessed to have the honor and privilege of writing this week’s Happy Friday as I sit in the passenger seat with my dad on the way back from a great day in Memphis, TN. To be completely transparent with you, I did not learn that I would have the opportunity to write this week’s message until a few hours ago when we were leaving Starbuck’s to head to a meeting and my dad asked if I wanted to write the message. Selfishly on his part, he asked if I would in a joking manner because we are getting home late tonight and he didn’t want to have to stay up late to write this. Fortunately for both he and I, I believe that I have been blessed with the gift of writing, and decided to share the message that has been on my heart for a few months.

As I sit here writing this, I cannot help but have a smile on my face and complete gratitude in my heart for the way that my life has transpired the last few months. I won’t bore you with all of the details, but I have been blessed to move back close to family, started a job at the same University that my dad works at, and have been a part of some really cool experiences – such as going on a work trip today with my dad.

I say all that to say this: when is the last time that you really took a moment to appreciate the life that you live, the journey that you have walked, and all of the experiences that have led to where you are in this moment? Surely, we are all continuing to grow and evolve, some of us are at different points in our life, but I can safely say that a majority of us all dreamed of being exactly where we are, right here, right now, at some point or another. Unfortunately, I feel as though most of us, and I will through myself at the top of this list, often forget to truly appreciate where we are, and simply enjoy the highway (life journey) that we are on.

So, with that said, I would simply like to share a few quotes and messages that I have seen recently in different devotionals and readings that I have come across.

“Time is measured in minutes, but life is measured in moments!”

This concept is derived from the Greek words Chronos and Kairos. Chronos is the foundational principle that there is a chronological or sequential aspect of life, and that is time. Kairos is rooted in the principle that there is a qualitative essence to time; that there is a ‘right time’ and ‘opportune moments’ to our lives; essentially, that life is measured by the moments we make.

“Every single moment is your life, so enjoy the moment to enjoy your life fully.”

When I first read this quote, I felt extremely guilty. I cannot count the amount of times where I have played in my head “okay, if you can get through this meeting, this week, this season of life, etc., then you will be able to enjoy your life…” all while realizing that each of these meetings, each week, each season of life, has led exactly to who I am, right now.

The best part about both of these quotes, and hopefully this message that I am sharing is this: we have the opportunity right now, in this moment to choose to enjoy the lives we have been given, to enjoy the journey we are on, and appreciate what we have, right here, right now. None of us are perfect, we all have probably looked around and wished for something different or better, but I can honestly sit here and say that when I have chosen to appreciate what I have in my life, I have found myself to be extremely grateful with where I am at. As the pastor of my church, Pastor Steve Huskey said a few weeks ago in a sermon, “Every day we are writing a small chapter in the book of our lives, with that in mind, how do you want the story to end?”

So, as I sit here in the car, I would just like to encourage you to simply enjoy every moment of your life, right where you are at. I have been working on this quite a bit recently, and can honestly say that taking the time to appreciate every little moment has brought me profound clarity, happiness, and a heart of gratitude for all that I have in my life. Not to be cliché, but as I am doing on this trip back from Memphis, I would encourage you to enjoy the highway – the highway of life, and make the most of every moment you have the opportunity to live.

I hope that you have a great day, a happy Friday, and a wonderful weekend with your families. Choose to find the Kairos in life! Choose to enjoy each moment! They are all making our life and writing each chapter we are blessed to live!

Payton