Numbers

I went home today pretty happy that the results of my Annual Physical Exam are normal.

BUN, Creatinine, Total Cholesterol, Uric Acid, Hemoglobin, Hemoticrit and WBC Count all within the normal ranges. My HDL is high and my LDL is low which, by the way, I was told was a good thing.

While I was looking at the pieces of paper handed to me containing the results, I can't help but wonder, "So, is this all there is?"

I mean, is life simply about striking a balance between all these numbers? That's it?

Oftentimes, Christians do the same thing - keep numbers. From the seemingly trivial - number of verses memorized or chapters read every night to the big ones like percentage given as tithes or hours spent in prayer, or number of converts in a religious meeting.

It's funny but really, we have got to stop and ask ourselves the question. And hopefully realize together, that life is not merely about counting as much as living.

Jim Elliot had it nailed when he - in one of his journals in college - asked God not for a LONG life, but a FULL one. I believe we should ask just the same.