Doing Your Dash
By Patti Marshall, Session Elder
Chuck Swindoll, a favorite pastor/writer of mine, wrote a devotional a few weeks ago entitled Trophies. He contrasts the life of Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Amadeus Theophilus Mozart with Julius Caesar. One is poor and powerless. The other is wealthy and powerful. One is short-lived (1756-1791) and buried in an unmarked grave. The other is long-lived (100 BC-44 BC) and is buried in a granite-engraved shrine.
Their similarity: both are gone forever, forever absent from sight. But the most significant difference between them is their trophy, their contribution, the good that lives on. Mozart, the most gifted composer of all time, lives on. Unexcelled. Caesar, on the other hand, is just another ruthless dictator with the adopted familial name of Roman emperors.
That devotional stirred up in me a “blast from the past” poem, The Dash by Linda Ellis. It compelled me to think about my own dash. She writes that each of us will be remembered by two notable dates: our birthdate and death date, separated by a dash (-) in between, the time we live on earth. This little horizontal line floats in the middle of a line, text, or numbers, and indicates a pause or a range. The carved-on tombstone dash is sometimes little, long, short, or curved. The length and shape make no difference. It seems so little and insignificant. But is it?
Does a full-term baby who dies within seven hours of birth have a dash? Does a dad who suffers from the ravages of pancreatic cancer, but leaves his children with a legacy of love for Jesus have a dash? Does a mom, whose successful financial investments permit her to buy anything she wants yet whose ego is on the throne of her heart, have a dash? Yes. Yes. Yes.
Did Ruth, a Gentile, by leaving her home and moving to a foreign land and culture to support her mother-in-law Naomi, live her dash? Did Abel’s dash endure? The Bible says he “offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. … when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith, he still speaks, even though he is dead.” (Hebrews 11:4)
Did the Name above all other names, Jesus, live His dash by intentionally giving glory to His Father? Does His dash endure?
Doing our dash is so much than living every day to the fullest (or making the most of everyday) and being happy. It’s knowing that you don’t have a clue what tomorrow may bring. For your fleeting life is but a warm breath of air that is visible in the cold only for a moment and then vanishes.” (James 4:14) It’s realizing that everything we do during our “dash” must count for eternity. It’s filling that space with a life dedicated to God and His kingdom.
So, how are you doing your dash? What are you doing with this in-between, very short time? What’s in your dash? Are you wasting it? Living it? Cherishing it? Overindulging it? Nourishing it? Regretting it? Hiding from it? Criticizing it? Sharing it? Investing it in others?
I wonder if the brilliance and delight of Mozart’s music will be heard in heaven ...
Prayer: Generous Gift Giver, thank You for our “dash,” that very narrow, little line between our birthday and death day. Show us each day how to contribute, live, serve, and show others. “How deeply intimate and far-reaching is your love! How enduring and inclusive it is! How endless … this extravagant love pours into them until they are filled to overflowing with the fullness of God.” (Ephesians 3:18-19)
P.S. I think “When It’s All Been Said and Done” is a beautiful song to meditate on after reading this devotional. Listen to it here.
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