Don’t Waste Your Life in the Pursuit of Seashells

Remember the old tongue twister, “She sells seashells by the seashore”? Recently I heard the story about a couple who apparently tried to live that out. They worked hard, saved diligently, and soon as they could started collecting Social Security, quit their jobs, sold their home and bought a beach house in Florida. Still in their early 60s, they determined to spend the rest of their life reveling in the sun – and collecting the most beautiful seashells they could find.

Some of us might be thinking, ‘Wow! That sounds like a pretty good idea to me.’ Might even seem like one version of the American dream: Leave the rat race of the workplace behind and start living a life of leisure while you’re still young enough to enjoy it.

 

Other similar scenarios might involve spending day after day on the golf course. Or sitting in a boat fishing. Or honing one’s tennis or pickleball skills. Or traveling across the United States, or around the world. Or just sitting on a front porch somewhere sipping iced tea and reading good books. 

 

There’s nothing wrong with any of those activities. Everyone’s entitled to enjoy their favorite pastimes. And after spending countless hours on the job, dealing with one frustration after another while trying to earn a reasonable living, aren’t we entitled to enjoy the fruits of our labors?

 

Yes, of course we are. But do we want the sum total of our lives to add up to a collection of seashells? Or golf scorecards? Tales about the biggest fish we caught? Doubles matches we won on the court? Or how many books we read?

 

I often think of the poem written by British missionary C.T. Studd, “Only One Life.” In it he states, “Only one life, ‘twill soon be past, only what’s done for Christ will last.” When we stand before God one day – as the Bible teaches we all will – and He asks what we accomplished during our lives, do we want to proudly present a collection of seashells, or recount how many birdies we scored on the golf course?

 

This question isn’t just for those currently living in their twilight years. Because no matter how old we are, we’ve already started writing the biography of our life, figuratively if not literally. The story about our family, career, personal relationships, and how we’ve used the experiences and opportunities God presented to us, is well underway. What’s it saying so far – and what will the next chapters have to say?

 

In the Scriptures we read a lot about the importance of vision and mission. “Where there’s no vision, the people perish” says one translation of Proverbs 29:18. In light of this, a reasonable question might be, ‘What’s the vision I have for my life?’ Does it revolve around stuff we’ve accumulated, or pleasurable experiences? Or is our vision to leave a mark, even a legacy, that will endure long after we’re gone?

 

The best way to do this is to recognize that, as C.T. Studd declared in his poem, “only what’s done for Christ will last.” The apostle Paul had spent the first part of his adult life seeking to wipe out anyone who professed faith in Jesus Christ. However, he made a 180-degree turn after encountering the Lord on the road to Damascus, had his eyes opened – literally and figuratively – and devoted the rest of his life to helping people discover the saving power of Christ. His vision and mission shifted dramatically, from eradicate to evangelize.

 

He expressed this urgency to believers in ancient Colossae, urging them to “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom…. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him” (Colossians 3:17).

 

Several verses later, perhaps for emphasis, Paul rephrased that charge: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving” (Colossians 3:23-24).

 

God has created a wondrous world for us to enjoy, overflowing with beauty in many forms. And there are innumerable hobbies from which to choose that can occupy our free hours. But Jesus told His disciples, “…I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit – fruit that will last” (John 15:16). Are our diversions, our avocations, the primary focus of our lives, such that they will bear fruit that will last?

 

At least once each year retail establishments will conduct an inventory of what they have in their stores. Maybe a periodic personal inventory of our lives would be appropriate to see what we’re accumulating. Are we producing fruit that will last? (Another translation says, “fruit that won’t spoil.”) Or are we just collecting seashells?

After ‘Famous Last Words,’ What Will Be the First Words?

Not to seem morbid, but when your time comes, what do you think your final words will be? That’s a sobering thought, because most of us presume we’ll be speaking lots more words before that moment arrives. But it’s worth considering.

Through the centuries, the last words from famous people just before their death have been archived. Some reflect a final attempt at humor; others are encouraging; and some are heart-rending. Consider these examples:

On his deathbed, famed composer Beethoven is said to have uttered these words: “Friends applaud, the comedy is over.” Legendary actor Humphrey Bogart quipped, “I should have never switched from Scotch to martinis.” Comedian Groucho Marx said simply, “This is no way to live!” Reggae legend Bob Marley made this final observation: “Money can’t buy life.” And Winston Churchill, former prime minister of the United Kingdom, muttered this last sentence: “I’m bored with it all.”

 

Nostradamus, the 16^th century prognosticator, is still studied for some of his predictions. At least one of them, on his death bed, was correct: “Tomorrow, at sunrise, I shall no longer be here.” Marie Antoinette was the wife of King Louis XVI and the last queen before the French Revolution. On her way to the guillotine, she accidently stepped on her executioner’s foot. The last words anyone heard her say were, “Pardonnez-moi, monsieur.” (“Pardon me, sir.”)

 

Then there were those who clearly had their focus on what would happen after their final breath. Blues singer Bessie Smith stated, “I’m going, but I’m going in the name of the Lord.” And when Harriet Tubman was dying in 1913, with family gathered around her, she said, “Give my love to the churches. Tell the women to stand firm. I go to prepare a place for you.” 

 

Apparently with some regret Leonardo da Vinci, the renowned artist, scientist and engineer, declared, “I have offended God and mankind because my work did not reach the quality it should have.” The sister of Steve Jobs, the entrepreneur, inventor and co-founder of Apple Inc., reported his final words were, “Oh wow. Oh wow. Oh wow.” No one knows what that meant.

 

Recounting famous last words is interesting, but what matters exponentially more are the first words we’ll hear after our lives have ended. What will they be? The Bible gives us a good idea of what we’ll hear – or at least something similar. They should either excite us – or terrify us.

 

Jesus Christ told a parable about an owner who had entrusted three servants with his property while he was away on a long journey. He expected them to properly manage what they had been given. Upon his return, he found two of the three servants had demonstrated good stewardship and were commended. “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’” (Matthew 25:21,23).

 

We often hear these words spoken of stalwart followers of Christ when they pass away. They’re not reserved only for ‘super-Christians,’ but also for all who have been faithful in whatever circumstances God placed them, using the gifts and opportunities He provided for His glory.

 

However, not everyone who dies and stands before the Lord will hear words like those. Jesus warned that just because someone says the right things, that doesn’t mean he or she will be welcomed into the heavenly realm. He declared:

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name and in Your name drive out demons and in Your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from Me, you evildoers!’” (Matthew 7:21-23).

 

How can we know for certain which phrase we’ll hear? What if being ‘religious’ and doing some good deeds isn’t enough? The Scriptures say we can definitely know what to expect. “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life” (1 John 5:13). But exactly how can we know?

 

The Bible addresses this in many ways, but here are three of them:

Do a self-examination. “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Jesus Christ is in you – unless you fail the test?” (2 Corinthians 13:5). We could become hopelessly introspective, but it’s not a bad thing once in a while to ask ourselves what we truly believe – and why.

Are we living out what we claim to believe? James 1:22-25 admonishes, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks at the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it – he will be blessed in what he does.” One evidence of saving faith is the desire to put it into action.

For whom are we doing what we’re doing? In performing good works, are we doing them to be commended by others, or are we doing them for God’s glory and in appreciation for all He’s done for us? “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him” (Colossians 3:17).

 

It's sobering to realize that when our earthly lives end, the first words we hear will either be along the lines of, “Well done, good and faithful servant!”, or “Depart from Me, I never knew you!” Which will we hear?