What Are You Doing With Your Dash?

Friends, this article was on Mark Cahill’s website.

Do you ever stop and think about the power of life and death? Recently, we had a lady write into the ministry who had some interesting observations about this. This is what she said: “Before I had a family and became a ‘Christian Hippie’ living off the grid in Alaska, I was an RN. I have watched many people die, some in peace and some in agony fighting God until their last breath. I was telling my daughter today, that when it comes to life and death, nothing else really matters at that moment. I have had 8 children, all at home. At the moment before a birth, nothing else matters. It does not matter how poor you are or how much food you have, the overdue bills, the lack of a nice vehicle, house, furniture, clothes, etc. It is life and death, and the only thing that matters is that life that you are trying to bring forth. Time stands still until it happens; it does, and the parents get to glimpse at just a little of the glory of God. The same thing happens with death. It no longer matters how rich you were, how many people you have stepped on along the way to get there, the friends you have had, the nice house and car you own. It is death now, and there are no other thoughts. The ones that have called on Jesus rest sweetly and wait for the glory; no anxiety, no fear. The ones that refuse salvation (or worse yet, have not been told) fight every breath, struggling to not make a decision, even though they know it is at the doorstep. They put it off until the last breath comes and there are no more chances. Nothing else matters now.”

This email really got me thinking. I love to think. I love challenging questions. I like statements that get my brain circuits whirring. This lady’s insights did that for me. I am not a mother. Not really in my future plans either! But I can see what she is saying. Baby is coming! The child is about to pop out, and I bet nothing else really matters at that moment. She probably only wants good health for the child, good health for the mother, and glory for God! Kind of simple. Kind of profound.

I have heard people say, “What are you doing with your dash?” They mean, what are you doing with your time after you are born and before you die? I googled that to see what would pop up. This poem below was on one of the websites. Take a read:

The Dash

By Linda Ellis, Copyright 1996

​I read of a man who stood to speak

at the funeral of a friend.

He referred to the dates on the tombstone

from the beginning…to the end.

He noted that first came the date of birth

and spoke the following date with tears,

but he said what mattered most of all

was the dash between those years.

For that dash represents all the time

that they spent alive on earth.

And now only those who loved them

know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not, how much we own,

the cars…the house…the cash.

What matters is how we live and love

and how we spend our dash.

So, think about this long and hard.

Are there things you’d like to change?

For you never know how much time is left

that can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough

to consider what’s true and real

and always try to understand

​the way other people feel.

And be less quick to anger

and show appreciation more

and love the people in our lives

like we’ve never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect

and more often wear a smile,

remembering that this special dash

might only last a little while.

​So, when your eulogy is being read,

with your life’s actions to rehash…

would you be proud of the things they say

about how you spent YOUR dash?