Psalm 115: 16-18

" The highest of heavens belong to the Lord,
but the earth He has given to man,
It is not the dead who praise the Lord,
those who go down to silence,
it is we who extol the Lord,
both now and forevermore.

Praise the Lord." (NIV)

We are stewards of this earth. Everything belongs to the Lord but yet He chose to allow mankind, humankind, if you will, dominion over the earth. That how we choose to use the earth, is how decide how we will live. If we misuse its resources, so we also misuse ourselves by deliberately denying ourselves the benefits of the earth from its misuse. Yet, that verse still echoes the vast power and greatness of God...that even in His giving, He is glorious. He is still out protector. For we can turn to Him...we who extol the Lord. He is proud of us, when we act to make Him proud...by tiling the soil, by working honestly with our hands, by making much of what He has given us to being with...just like the parable of the ten minas...taking what he has given and making more, not sitting around and wasting away or being deceitful and using dishonest ways to fill our pockets.

And that time is now, the time to act is now...it always has been now. For who knows the future? The dead do not walk the earth, they do not contribute to the wealth and health of the world. They sleep, what they have done while living, is what they will be known for in the afterlife...the rewards of heaven, or grief in hell. We have the privilege to praise the Lord, to find out more about Him, to be in an intimate relationship with Him. How many works of fiction in movies, books, etc. tell of the missed opportunities...the boy didn't tell the girl, the girl didn't tell the boy and now one of them is gone forever...We feel the excitement of courtship and dating, the intensity of emotions...and so it is the same with our courtship on earth with God. Amazing. And then we can praise Him. And we can finally meet Him in heaven...our reward, the face of our lover, who first loved us.