--- id: 20170601_thankful_for_life title: BLOG - Thankful for Life category: Biblical Life Counsel predicted_narrative_arc: wasted-time-to-god-honoring-purpose sentiment: Reflective emotions: - Grateful - Convicting - Hopeful keypoints: - Dean recalls seasons of oblivious, self-defeating "killing time" - Teenage carelessness contrasted with later gratitude for grandparents and education - Biggest lesson — honor God going forward; He alone gives fruitful purpose - Hebrews 1:2–3 — God has spoken through His Son who sustains all things - Grace and God's purpose make productivity possible after wasted days summary: > Dean Rush reflects on days spent "killing time," teenage carelessness, and later gratitude for grandparents who funded his education. He concludes that God alone supplies fruitful purpose, citing Hebrews 1:2–3 on the Son who sustains the universe, and credits grace for making life productive. tags: - blog - invention - gratitude - time - purpose - hebrews-1 - grandparents - education - grace - dean-rush sycophancy: 0 truth_score: 8 entropy: 3 sample: false consent: owner_approved agent: blog created: '2017-06-01' updated: '2026-09-09T00:00:00Z' vault_stage: 07_CODEX headwaters: BLOG prefix: BLOG enrich_status: ok enrich_blockers: [] enrich_method: manual pipeline_filename: BLOG_2017-06-01_thankful-for-life.md source_kind: blog_article proposed_topic: Wisdom lane: Wisdom voice: desk active_voice: desk voices: - desk routing_source: carbon corpus_topic: Wisdom content_status: active date: '2017-06-01' share_url: https://deanrush.net/blog/thankful-for-life source_url: https://deanrush.net/blog/thankful-for-life site_category: Invention archive_month: 2017-06 description: > Dean moves from oblivious wasted days to thanksgiving for life under God's purpose, citing Hebrews 1 on the Son who sustains everything by His word. --- # Thankful for Life **Author:** Dean Rush **Original post:** [deanrush.net/blog/thankful-for-life](https://deanrush.net/blog/thankful-for-life) **Archive month:** June 2017 · **Site category:** Invention > Voice note: Everything under **Dean's article** is Dean's original prose (lightly cleaned of HTML/image artifacts only). Sections marked **Biblical foundations**, **Scholar sidebar**, **Takeaways**, and **First-time learner** are enrichment for Asker / first readers — not Dean speaking. --- ## Biblical foundations (preface) Dean confesses seasons of wasted time and careless youth, then redirects gratitude toward God who alone gives fruitful purpose — and points to the Son who sustains all things (Hebrews 1:2–3). The enrichment below frames that confession for a first-time Bible reader. | Dean's claim | Scriptural undercarriage | | --- | --- | | Killing time is self-defeating; each day is an adventure for good | Teach us to number our days (Psalm 90:12); make the best use of the time (Ephesians 5:15–16) | | Honor God going forward with the time you have | Present your bodies as a living sacrifice (Romans 12:1); whatever you do, do it for the Lord (Colossians 3:23–24) | | God alone provides fruitful purpose for existence | Apart from Me you can do nothing (John 15:5); we are created for good works God prepared (Ephesians 2:10) | | The Son sustains everything; grace covers unworthy days | God has spoken by His Son who upholds the universe (Hebrews 1:1–3); by grace you have been saved (Ephesians 2:8–9) | --- ## Dean's article ### Oblivious ![Thanksgiving / life image from Dean's original post](https://deanrush.net/Portals/0/images/article/thanksgiving-1680142_640_1.jpg) Many times in my life I determined that my days were simply routine and I was oblivious to the world around me. I went from one day to the next just killing time. I sometimes envy the relaxed attitude I displayed on those days. I do , however, have some guilt about the lack of I productivity. during those days. In my undergradutate studies of psychology I would have catorized my thoughts as "self defeating." While enjoying the lack of pressure or concern, I also found myself ignoring the need to reach a goal. Real satisfaction with life can only be experienced by appreciating every day as a new adventure and the opportunity to produce good for the world. > **Scholar sidebar — Numbering the days** > Psalm 90:12 asks God to teach us to number our days so we may gain a heart of wisdom. Ephesians 5:15–16 urges walking carefully and "making the best use of the time, because the days are evil." Dean's diagnosis of "killing time" as self-defeating sits inside that biblical realism: ease without purpose is not rest; it is drift. Satisfaction, in his telling, returns when each day is received as adventure and chance to do good. ### Careless Time In contrast to the the protected days of childhood, as a teenager I displayed the normal traites of someone who thought they would live forever. I ,secretly, drove too fast,as a pilot I flew too low, took unhealthy chances with my friends, and imagined that my grandparents had little knowledge of the modern era. It was amazing how my attitude began to change as I matured. and the daring traits I had displayed became more reserved. My grandparents suddenly knew more about life than I had ever imagined There was never enough time to hear them talk about how their lives had evolved. They talked about their education experiences ( there was never an opportunity for them to attend college because they were the hired hands for their family's farms.) I heard both grandfathers say they would like to have had an opportunity to spend more time in school. As I look back in my life, I am thankful for the opportunity I had to actually go to college. I was the first person in the entire family to obtain a college degree. My grandparents had provided the foundation for my education by working through their college years to develop the resources that were later used for me and my brothers to go to a university. > **Scholar sidebar — Honor and received gift** > Dean's teenage dismissal of grandparents flips into thanksgiving for their labor that funded his degree. The fifth commandment to honor father and mother (Exodus 20:12) and the call to rise before the gray head (Leviticus 19:32) underwrite that turn. Education as received gift rather than self-made achievement also matches James 1:17 — every good gift comes from above. ### Lessons There are many lessons to be learned from the days when I just "killed time'. I think the biggest point from my perspective is to honor God from this point forward in my life. He has provided me the ability now to appreciate the value of time. He, alone, can provide a fruitful purpose for our existance. In Hebrews there are some clear instructions for using the available. time in our lives: (Hebrews 1: 2 " And now in these final days, he has spoken to us through his Son. God promised everything to the Son as an inheritance, and through the Son he created the universe. 3 The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command. When he had cleansed us from our sins, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven. " Yes, we all find our selves wasting time, but God is still there in those moments. He provides the purpose that brings productivity to every moment of life. With the purpose, He provides satisfaction and productivity for Him. It is His purpose that all of our life is judged. If I were judged on those nonproductive days, I would be judged unworthy. It is only through God's grace and purpose for my life that I can really be productive. In Him Dean Tyndale House Publishers. (2013). *Holy Bible: New Living Translation* (Heb 1:2–4). Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers. > **Scholar sidebar — Hebrews 1 and grace for wasted days** > Hebrews 1 opens by locating history's climax in the Son — creator, radiance of God's glory, upholder of all things by His word, and the one who made purification for sins before sitting at the right hand. Dean reads that cosmic Christology pastorally: the same Son who sustains the universe is present even in wasted moments, and supplies purpose that judgment alone would deny. Ephesians 2:8–10 pairs grace with prepared good works — exactly Dean's sequence from "unworthy if judged on nonproductive days" to "productive through God's grace and purpose." --- ## Takeaways 1. **Oblivious days confessed.** Dean names seasons of killing time as self-defeating, not romantic leisure. 2. **Careless youth corrected.** Speed, low flying, and dismissing grandparents give way to gratitude for their sacrifice. 3. **Honor God with remaining time.** The main lesson is forward-looking worship, not nostalgia for wasted hours. 4. **Hebrews 1 centers purpose.** The Son who created and sustains everything is Dean's frame for meaningful days. 5. **Grace, not self-rescue.** Judged only on nonproductive days he would be unworthy; grace and God's purpose make productivity possible. --- ## First-time learner ### What is Dean saying in one sentence? Stop killing time — thank God for life, honor Him with the days ahead, and receive purpose from the Son who sustains everything. ### Why does he quote Hebrews 1? Because wasted days leave him "unworthy" if measured alone; Hebrews 1 points to the Son who cleanses sins and upholds the universe — the only sufficient ground for a productive life. ### Key verses to read with this post - **Hebrews 1:1–3** — God has spoken by His Son, who upholds all things. - **Psalm 90:12** — Teach us to number our days. - **Ephesians 5:15–16** — Make the best use of the time. - **Ephesians 2:8–10** — Grace, and good works prepared beforehand. - **John 15:5** — Apart from Christ you can do nothing. - **Colossians 3:23–24** — Work heartily as for the Lord. ### A simple practice (Dean's challenge made concrete) For seven mornings: (1) thank God aloud for one ordinary gift of the day ahead, (2) pray Hebrews 1:2–3, (3) name one concrete good you will attempt "for Him" before evening. ### How this feeds Ask Dean This post is seed material for questions such as: *How do I stop wasting my days? What does Hebrews 1 mean for ordinary life? How should I think about grandparents and gratitude?* Answers should keep Dean's voice primary and use the scholar notes only as supporting biblical scaffolding.