Take therefore no thought for the morrow; for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself.
— Matthew 6:34
Have no fear of tomorrow; enjoy today. Refuse to carry the corpse of a mistaken yesterday.
— The Science of Mind, page 432
One Day at a Time
I was waiting for the wedding ceremony to begin. Jayne, my niece, was waiting with me. When the music from “Somewhere in Time” began to play, a feeling of terror swept over me. I was about to remarry the man to whom I had been married until two years ago, when we were divorced. All of a sudden I was more scared than I had ever been in my life. The memories of all the pain we had been through flashed into my awareness— memories of hurt and rejection, and those memories did not feel good at all!
“Jayne, “ I spoke in a hoarse whisper. “I can’t go through with it! What if this is a repeat performance of all I’ve just experienced? I’m sure I couldn’t live through it twice! Go out there and tell them I’ve changed my mind!”
And then Jayne said something that calmed me down and has enabled me to get through many a rough situation since. “Listen,” she said, “forget about the past. It’s not real. How about living one day at a time?”
Of course! I took a deep breath. One day at a time! That’s all we know. Each day is a recommitment to life. One day at a time!
The music started. I opened the door, walked slowly over to the sanctuary, paused, and entered, smiling.
God is the eternal now. All I truly know is this moment. When the bigger picture seems overwhelming, I return to this moment and live in the eternal now. I live one day at a time, but that’s all right because God is the eternal now. Thank You, God, for this moment, the greatest gift there is!
