"For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." Philippians 1:21

"Whereas you know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time, and then vanishes away." James 4:14

"And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yes, says the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors; and their works do follow them.” Revelation 14:13

George Whitefield crossed the Atlantic six times in the mid 1700's and preached Christ in the open field to hundreds of thousands in America and England. God used George Whitefield to lead the First Great Awakening in America and to be the spiritual founder of the Methodist Church in England, which was carried on by George Wesley.

Whitfield kept preaching even with the tuberculosis that eventually took his life . He had preached all day and had retired to bed in the upstairs room of the parsonage in Massachusetts. A crowd gathered in the late evening desiring to hear the Gospel. The faithful minister put on his coat and preached Christ one more time holding the candle in his hand as he preached. Just before completing his message, the candle went out in his hand. He gave the appeal for men to come to the Saviour. Fatigued and ill, the man of God went to men and went to Heaven in his sleep that night. The lamp of his life had burned out for Christ, and the influence of George Whitfield continues burning brightly even to this very day.

"You have only one life;

It will soon be past.

Only what's done

For Christ will last.

And when I am dying

How glad I shall be

If the lamp of my life

Did burn out for Thee."

Our life will one day be a "dash" on a tombstone. The joy of life is to love Jesus with all our heart, to love and feed His precious sheep, and to reach out to those without the Lord. A life lived in that manner is a "dash" well spent.

At the end of this Internet Devotional, is a link to a picture portrayal of a moving poem entitled "The Dash" which will inspire you to give each day to God.

"Holy Father, You are our Creator and Redeemer. You have given us the gift of life and the gift of salvation. Someone needs us today. Help us to be sensitive to your Spirit and to share the love of God and live our "dash" for You. In the name of Christ. Amen."