Every Day Is a Gift

Long ago, I got in the habit of beginning many prayers with, “Heavenly Father, thank you for this day. Every day is a gift.”

On most days, those words are a sincere expression of gratitude. However, I confess that some days they flow more out of habit than heart. Still, even on those days, I find them helpful. They put my perspective where it should be, helping me remember that life is short, tomorrow is not guaranteed, and every day really is a gift.

That reminder comes in other forms as well. Like news of a bad medical report for someone I know. And it doesn’t even have to be about someone I know personally. It could be a favorite author, actor, or musician.

So it was when I heard that Jonathan Clements, author of the October 2024 Sound Mind Investing newsletter cover article, has terminal cancer. He’s one of my favorite financial writers. Iread his column regularly when he wrote for The Wall Street Journal. And I’vekept up with his work ever since he started his blog, Humble Dollar.

It was there, in a piece he wrote this past June, where I learned of his diagnosis. He said he “may have just a dozen okay months ahead of me.” The news set me back.

Like I said, I don’t actually know him, and yet I feel like I do. I’ve enjoyed and benefited from his writing for a long time.

Admirably, Clements is using his circumstances to help others. As always, he writes with honesty and authenticity, sharing that he now feels far more vividly the uncertainty we all live with. He knows his time is short, but he doesn’t know how short.  He wonders how extensive his medical needs will be, and how expensive. He writes with humility, saying what a happy surprise it was to discover how little he regrets about the frugal life he has led. He does plan to check off a few bucket list items in the months ahead. However, he says, “Mostly what I feel is profound gratitude for the life I’ve had.” He writes with an even stronger appreciation for just how difficult it is to manage risk, pointing out that we can control it but we can’t eliminate it. “I don’t want readers to obsess about risk. But I would encourage folks to build financially resilient lives and to avoid big assumptions about the future. Risk has now arrived for me, and it’s taken a form I never imagined.”

He writes with hope, wanting to live with a sense of purpose for as long as he can. “I do want the time ahead to be happy, productive and meaningful.”

Many of the steps he’s taking now are driven by his desire for his wife and adult children to be okay financially and emotionally. Wherever he can, he’s simplifying his finances. And there are a few items on his to-do list that he’d like to see completed for his wife’s benefit, like a bathroom remodel they discussed before his diagnosis.

I don’t know what Clements believes spiritually, although it was interesting to see him refer to Pascal’s wager in a recent post about risk.

“As 17th century French philosopher Blaise Pascal saw it, it was logical to believe in God. If you believed and God didn’t exist, your religious devotion might cause you to miss out on a little earthly fun. But if God does exist and you don’t believe, the price is considerably higher.”

Of course, I hope he believes.

Humble Dollar was a wonderful resource before Clements’ diagnosis, but his pieces carry even more poignancy now. Like a recent post about the nine reasons why he feels grateful. While a few of those reasons have to do with money, most are about family, doing work he believes makes a difference, and the many meaningful experiences he’s had — whether growing through adversity, seeing the beauty of the world, or now, having the time to contemplate his own death. His situation serves as another reminder of the brevity of life. It’s a reminder to consider what our spouse’s situation may look like should we pass away first, and to do all that we can to put our affairs in order (Isaiah 38:1) — insurance and estate plans and all the rest. More importantly, it’s a reminder to consider the state of our relationship with Jesus. Some of the most haunting words in all of Scripture are in Matthew 7:21-23. What Jesus wants most is for us to know Him and to be known by Him. Just as the Bible teaches us to live in a constant state of readiness for Jesus’ return (Mark 13:32-36), we would be wise to live with an awareness that life is fragile, and to remember that every day is a gift. Image used with permission