Alive

I am alive this day.

Joseph Campbell said I don’t believe people are looking for the meaning of life as much as they are looking for the experience of being alive.

As a Christian (and I often refer to myself as a baby Christian) we are taught the meaning of life is what we are looking for no matter what. But, I think we need to be careful we don’t slip into  the idea that life --–our human life---is all there is. Whatever your denomination,  that can be discouraging at best, and leave us directionless at worst.

Of course we want to feel alive—we pay for experiences, don’t we? We pay for trips to Disneyworld to cherish the experiences and build memories with our families. 

Plenty of books have been written  about living in the present. Meditation is all about learning to live in the moment. We are advised to breathe deeper, appreciate our surroundings and cease worry. 

God is working in our lives every moment. God is faithful to his promises, his words and to us.He asks us not to worry and to give it up to Him. I don't think he would endorse our medicating, overthinking (a form of worry) and overliving. 

In today’s affirmation, Tian Dayton advises us to be in this experience rather than avoid it, medicate it, overthink it or overlive it.

 I am not sure I understand what it means to “overlive” something.

The people in our lives who had problems with alcohol had problems with overthinking, perhaps. They drank to medicate themselves to avoid something, overthinking perhaps. Maybe they too, were overliving by partying hard, or acting recklessly.

Is overliving a type of squeezing the joy out of each moment, indulging in excess and not planning for the future? I'm not sure if we should do anything to excess. Wouldn't that go against taking one day at a time?