3 Tasks for Each Stage of Our Lives

Why restrict the notorious LA traffic jams only to automobiles when we can easily rope in airplanes into the mix—especially around Christmas, when so many passengers book their tickets out of LAX, causing aircraft to clog the runways?

I tried sleeping. But my body could only doze off for so long, given how the accommodations pretzeled it into submission. 

Then there’s turbulence. A worrisome one just shook the plane. 

And again. 

The shakes kept jolting this jet, prompting my anxious part to flash images of us crashing into the wintry sea below. The grim fantasy painted me as defenseless because, as usual, I studiously ignored the cabin crew’s safety demonstration. 

Which left me devoid of any recourse but prayers. 

Thank God. The ride smoothed out, allowing me to nod off. 

Finally.

All things considered, I got a decent amount of sleep. But guess what? Only half of the travel time had passed. 

Half!

So, I listened to podcasts, read and read some more, visited the restrooms, waited to use said restrooms, stretched, and snacked. 

04:53 hours to go. 

Eternity indeed.  

Sixteen stretching hours has nothing on eternity. I know this. But for human beings, creatures who are limited to time and space, 16 hours can feel like forever. (So can a sturdy traffic jam on a rushed LA morning, but I digress).

I’m not alone in appraising time through a skewed lens. Things may seem to take forever, but in fact, they flit by in a dash. Our lives are like a breath (Psalm 39:5, Psalm 144:4). Check out how straightforward the following verse is: “Our days on earth are like grass; like wildflowers, we bloom and die” (Psalm 103:15, NLT).

We bloom and die. Boom. Just like that, without any intervening anything.

The brevity of life spells out one crucial message: We can’t afford to keep procrastinating ad infinitum. 

As we start another new year, I encourage you to take a minute (so to speak) and evaluate your life—whichever stage you’re in. 

1. Preparation Stage

Just because this is the first stage doesn’t mean it’s limited to youngsters and those who have never entered the workforce before. Truth is, this stage recognizes no age limit. Anyone can find themselves here, whether because you’re new at finding God’s will for you or because you’re contemplating switching careers in order to go after it.

The real barometer regarding whether or not this stage is calling your name is the level of excitement behind your busyness. Are you shackled to a ho-hum job? Is life boring? This might signify the need for a course correction. God imbued each of us with a unique and unquenchable yearning for something. Yours is there, somewhere, buried within your heart. 

This means your task in this stage is to excavate that God-given desire and pursue it. Even though the need to pay off bills may tether you to a dead-end job, remember how fast time flies by—even if it feels the opposite. Redirect focus to your God-given call before time runs out.

2. Deepening Stage 

But perhaps that pursuit is a journey you have already embarked on. In that case, deepen your journey by prayerfully evaluating emerging opportunities. Are you supposed to pay for a particular training, costly though it may be? Relocate? Seek further healing for leftover childhood baggage? 

That last question is apropos because of growing pains. This deepening stage barrels in with pain because you won’t successfully master this phase until you retire things of the past that won’t fit your future. However, this insight often comes in the form of feedback from those who are more advanced in their own journeys. While they might have the right to evaluate your progress with a critical eye, the delivery and content of their feedback can sting.

Your task in this stage is to refuse to be deterred by pain and dive deeper into your destiny regardless. 

3. Retiring Stage 

Who is your Timothy? Is there a Joshua in the wings? If you’re unfamiliar with these biblical references, they were right-hand men for famous ministers in the Bible. The apostle Paul poured his life into young Timothy to prepare him for ministry. As for Joshua, he spent so much time around Moses that God appointed him to lead His people into the promised land once Moses died. 

Everyone has a legacy to leave behind regardless of calling, clout, or occupation. What’s yours? Who will carry the torch you’ve faithfully nurtured once you join Jesus and the cloud of witnesses (Hebrews 12:1)? 

Your task in this stage is to pick a successor and then train that person with excellence. 

A Call to Action

There’s one more task regarding time and destiny everyone from all three groups should adopt. 

Evaluate whether you know—once your earthly clock runs out—that your flight will, indeed, transport you to heaven.

That is, do you believe with your heart that Jesus is Lord?

A yes will secure your ticket to spend eternity with the Lover of your soul, who also died on the cross to pardon your sin and was resurrected three days later. Without a real relationship with your Maker—who’s also the expert on the details of your destiny—discerning what you’re to do with your life would be difficult at best. 

That’s why I highly recommend taking this step.

Meanwhile, there are still 2:13 hours left on my flight. The clock can’t display 00:00 fast enough, especially because there’s a part of me that feels tempted to waste the next couple of hours.

As though life wouldn’t truly count until I escaped this giant vessel.

But maybe I shouldn’t squander time when life on earth is too fleeting to begin with (Psalm 39:4).

So, I’ll dig deeper into the destiny God has determined for me instead.

May I be so bold as to suggest you do similarly?

Photo Credit: ©GettyImages/anyaberkut 

Audrey Davidheiser, PhD is a California licensed psychologist, certified Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapist, and IFSI-approved clinical consultant. After founding and directing a counseling center for the Los Angeles Dream Center, she now devotes her practice to survivors of trauma—including spiritual abuse. If you need her advice, visit her on www.aimforbreakthrough.com and Instagram @DrAudreyD.