Define "lifetime"

Let me start off by saying that I have absolutely nothing against the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, or any other group that is dedicated to finding a cure for breast cancer.  I am glad that there are individuals and organizations that tirelessly advocate for increased funding for breast cancer research.  I applaud the practical and compassionate support that these groups provide for women (and men) who are living with breast cancer and their families that are affected by their illness.  Undoubtedly many lives have been saved because of the work these organizations do to promote breast health and cancer awareness.

What I can't get on board with is one of the tag lines in some of the television advertising associated with the 3-day walks -- "because everyone deserves a lifetime."

I know what the point is behind the phrase.  I agree that it's not fair that a 34 year old mother of two toddlers is diagnosed with breast cancer.  It's not fair that a 57 year old woman who just found out that she is going to be a grandmother for the first time should have to worry if she'll live long enough to hold her precious grandchild.  Breast cancer isn't fair.  It's not fair at 22 and it's not fair at 82.  Advances in diagnosis and treatment mean that if it's detected early enough, breast cancer isn't necessarily a death sentence, but it definitely brings fear and uncertainty, disfigurement and disruption into the lives of the women that are afflicted with it.

Yet every time I hear that phrase, I want to yell at my television "define lifetime!"  The American Heritage Stedman's Medical Dictionary defines lifetime as "the period of time during which an individual is alive."  Nowhere in this definition, or any other definition that I checked, is there a specified amount of time that constitutes a lifetime -- no minimum and no maximum.

None of us have any guarantee as to the amount of time we will live on this earth.  Even if the phrase was worded "because everyone deserves a full lifetime" it still wouldn't be accurate.  The reality is that for some people a lifetime, a full lifetime, is 63 years, for some it's 15 years and sadly for some it's only a matter of days or even hours.  This isn't a reality that we willing embrace, but it's the reality that we are faced with nonetheless.

Psalm 139 gives us the true understanding of the definition of a lifetime.  David beautifully describes the work of God's hand in the creation of every human being -- we are fearfully and wonderfully made by the One who knows us from our very beginning!  The Creator who knits all of our delicate and intricate parts together in our mother's womb also determines the span of our life.  David writes, "Every day of my life was recorded in your book.  Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed."  Before we draw our first breath, while we are still cradled in the darkness of the womb, the Lord has already established the length of our life.

I respectfully decline to claim the lifetime that the limited knowledge of this world tells me I "deserve."  My lifetime has been decided for me by the One who knows me best, God who fashioned me and gave me life.  As His creation, the number of my years on this earth have nothing to do with what I think I deserve, but rather they have everything to do with what He desires.  And so I place my trust in the Ancient of Days to wisely determine the number of my days.  By His mercy and grace may He enable me to live all the days that He gives me to the fullest.