(This post was written by Michael Wallace, High School Pastor)

Last week I had a chance to cross off something from my Bucket List.  We all have experiences or accomplishments that we want to see happen before we die…a big item on my list has been to complete a Half Marathon.  And this past Saturday I did just that!  It was a huge relief to cross that finish line and be handed a heavy medal that signified the completion of my journey.

Tonight fpStudents at all campuses will begin a new series called “To Do List.”  There are so many things that battle for our priorities…school, jobs, relationships, family, etc…that we can often lose sight of what should be preeminent in our lives. In this series we’ll discover what’s most important and how we can order our lives accordingly.

There is a huge connection between our daily To Do Lists and our long-term Bucket Lists.  If your Bucket List items never show up on your weekly To Do List, chances are that they will never get done.  For me to accomplish a Half Marathon required me to get up several times a week and actually run!  It was painful and exhausting, but in the end it was absolutely worth it.

Let’s think for a second about what Jesus has command us in regard to our To Do Lists. In Matthew 28:18 Jesus said, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”  Throughout the Bible we see the importance of loving God and loving others, but in Jesus’ final words to the disciples He challenged them to seek out the lost and tell them about Him.

As I think back to the moment I crossed the finish line, I realize that in that millisecond my race was over.  I was no longer making progress to the goal.  I was done.  That moment will come for each of us when we die.  As our life expires, we will potentially leave Bucket List items unfinished, but there’s really nothing we can do about it.  We’ve “kicked the bucket” and moved on to eternity. 

I believe that the same is true of our responsibility to Christ’s command.  We only have a few years on earth to represent Jesus to a world that doesn’t know Him.  If you’re Bucket List included the names of your friends, family, co-workers and teammates that are separated from Christ, how are you responding to Jesus?