One Moment In Time

I never knew Whitney Houston personally.  But like so many others, my life was greatly enriched by her music.  And at one point, it intersected with my own life in a very powerful way.

The year was 1989, right in the middle of a string of hits for the gifted vocalist.  My son Matt was graduating from high school in upstate New York.  And I had been asked to preach the sermon at the Baccalaureate Service being held by and for his class.  They had already chosen a theme for graduation weekend, a theme based on Ms. Houston's song "One Moment in Time."  Two graduating seniors were slated to sing it--no small feat, but one they carried it off well.

As I thought about the sermon, I decided to use their theme as my title.  I used my allotted time to help the graduates and their families consider the importance of living each day as if it were the most important day in their lives. 

I chose as my text Ecclesiastes 3:1-8:  "To everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven . . . ."  I told a story of living through an earthquake, and rediscovering just how precious life can be.  I shared a letter that had been sent to me by a young woman who was dying of cancer who wrote, "I don't want to spend the time I have living dying, and I don't want anyone else to either . . . ."  And then I addressed the graduates personally.

"Every moment is one moment in time,"  I said.  "As you graduate on Sunday, hold your head high and be proud of your accomplishments.  You've earned that right.  But remember, you've earned it day-by-day.  When your mothers gave you birth, you weren't wearing a cap and gown!  When you started your first day of school, they didn't give you a diploma.  And they didn't play Pomp and Circumstance when you first set foot in Gloversville High School.  By living day-by-day-by-day, you've gotten to this day . . . .Don't take life for granted--treasure it!  Don't wait for cancer or old age or an earthquake--live now!  Make every day count for the good.  For when you do that, as the song says, you will truly be 'a winner for a lifetime.'"

I don't know if any of those graduates remember that I spoke that day.  I don't know if they remember a thing I said.  But I suspect they do remember that Whitney Houston's music inspired them.  I suspect they do remember that her soaring songs lifted their hearts and challenged their minds.

Like an earthquake or cancer, Ms. Houston's death brings us up short, reminds us all of the preciousness of life.  I hope those graduates, now in their forties and not much younger than she was, take a few moments to consider anew the lofty vision her song lifted up on that weekend in 1989.

(Photo Credit:  Linda Bradbury-Danner)