Tomorrow is Today

A quote from Martin Luther King … "We are now faced with the fact, my friends, that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there is such a thing as being too late. Procrastination is still the thief of time. Life often leaves us standing bare, naked, and dejected with a lost opportunity. The tide in the affairs of men does not remain at flood … it ebbs. We may cry out desperately for time to pause in her passage, but time is adamant to every plea and rushes on. Over the bleached bones and jumbled residues of numerous civilizations are written the pathetic words, "Too late."

When you listen to Dr. King speak, in old radio sound bites, you realize the sheer power that he had in his words, his cadence … he drew you into his words. NPR had some of his speeches on the radio this weekend and I felt like I was nodding as he spoke. Powerful words leave an imprint.

I had never seen this quote but it certainly feels like it was this concept that drove him. He surely knew his destiny was upon him. People were looking to him for action, resolve, courage … and so he did his duty to himself, to them and to Him.

Dr. King’s quote came into my inbox yesterday, courtesy of Seth Godin in his daily email blog. And Seth said this a different way … “Most of us are carrying around a check, an opportunity to make an impact, to do the work we’re capable of. No, the world isn’t fair and most people don’t get all the chances they deserve. But the check remains, now more than ever. The opportunity to step up, and to fail and continue failing until we succeed, is greater now than it has ever been.”

I pray that we not fail in our own duty to Him. We are here to impact our corner of the world, to show that we were here for a purpose. In small ways and large, in how we contribute … that is how we cash our check every day. We too have a responsibility to act with courage and resolve, just like Dr. King. We may not be famous luminaries but we can still shed a positive light on all we touch … because powerful acts of kindness leave an imprint too.

Remember Dr. King’s words … tomorrow is now today. How will I … and you … choose to cash our check today, and every day?