He went onto to share a story about a man who heard him speak somewhere saying this in his speech. The man was a very successful businessman, super driven to achieve and in the business and financial world the man achieved a lot. But when he heard the above quote he said to the author, "You just ruined my day."
He told the author that he was on his second marriage and it wasn't going great. He had adult sons who he saw only once a year. Basically, his relationships were in tatters -- but his professional life was great.
What about us? What about you? What about me? Are our relationships growing or are they in tatters? There's not much time left to work on our relationships. Those are the things we will wish we spent more time on when someone we love or we are on our deathbeds. The relationships are what matter.
Listen, we don't know how much time we have left. This could be the last day we live for any of us. You will never regret the time you loved; the time you tried to mend relationships; the time you spent talking and laughing and crying with others. But you might regret seeking after things that just won't matter. They won't matter when we are facing the end. They probably won't even matter in five years.
Jonathan Edwards wrote, "Lord, stamp eternity on my eyes."
Enjoy life but don't let stuff consume you. Enjoy the blessings, but don't live for them. Don't live to please people. Live to love them. Live to love God and them. We can always love. We can always be kind. We can give people real genuine smiles today -- showing off our teeth and letting the smile reach our eyes.
Don't get caught in drama. Life is more than that. Don't get caught up in gossip. Gossip does no good to anyone -- just brings a sour taste in a person's mouth. If someone brings someone up in conversation say good things about that person or don't say anything at all.
Be a blessing. Be Love to others. Be encouraging. Don't flatter -- flattering is not genuine. If you give compliments make them genuine -- real. Not fluffy. Notice people's hearts, their emotional state. Speak to their souls.
"Love is patient, love is kind, and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails;"
1 Corinthians 13:4-8a