Pay As I Go (11/13/2025)

I am old-fashioned. I would prefer to pay cash rather than use a credit card because I feel it is better for the merchants and the staff who depend on tips. But recently, I was told that many get irritated by cash paying customers because our transactions take longer than a simple swipe. However, regardless of modern sentiments, I’m planning on keeping my “pay as I go” habit.  I must admit that it is my universal approach to life. I try to “pay as I go” materially, but also physically and spiritually.

Physically, I know that I need to maintain a certain balance of food and exercise and rest. I know what can happen if I don’t exercise or put it off until I have more time. I’ve paid the price for thinking that rest is optional or that I can make up for lost sleep later. And don’t get me started on how my life is impacted by what I eat.

Spiritually, I have learned that putting off what I need daily for my life from, through and in the LORD is a HUGE mistake. So, starting my day in the LORD with prayer, seeking direction and grace are a must. And ending my day in the LORD with prayerful reflection, thanksgiving for the good that has been, contrition for the good I failed to do, and loving praise for the One “in whom I live and move and have my being.” Daily, the LORD calls me to conversion, to turn toward Him. And I don’t want to waste a second of my future paying for what I should have paid for yesterday.

“I’ll think about that tomorrow” might work in movies if one’s name is Scarlett, but in life, we need to pay as we go, we need to maintain our relationship with the LORD and one another and atone for those times we stray or bring less love to the moment than we should.

Let us go forward on our spiritual journeys applying our faith to our lives and the challenges we encounter. Let us maintain our hope in the promises of the LORD. And let us spend the love we’ve been given and the love we’ve grown well on our Almighty LORD and on one another.

Until tomorrow, let us all love well.