What did you do with your extra day?

I love leap years because we get an extra day. Today is a unique day in each person’s life. Once every four years we get to celebrate February 29^th. Who hasn’t ever exclaimed, “I just wish I had more time!”? We all wish for more time very often. As I made my last visit tonight after dark, I thought to myself, “How did today go be so fast?” Here it is my extra day; only to get to the end of it and wonder where it went. What did you do with your extra day?

Today ended up like many days. It seemed very normal as days go. I enjoyed reading and studying early, then teaching, on to lunch with fellow faculty and students, then an afternoon filled with Zoom meetings and counseling, dinner with the family, and a final visit in a nursing home. Very normal.

At the end of the day, I realize that I used this special day like most of the others in my life. I studied, worshipped, served, fellowshipped, enjoyed my family, and tried to help others. I am tired as I write. For a day that started at 4:00 am, it is getting long. But, today has been a good day. My extra day accomplished, for the most part, the first and second great commandments, as I went throughout the day.

What did you do with your extra day? Consider some of these ideas:

You Share This Day with Jesus

Jesus celebrated at least eight leap years. Julius Caesar created the first calendar system that added an extra day every four years in 46 BC. It was later change,d and amended some in Pope Gregory’s calendar in 1582. The extra day added facilitates the difference between the Gregorian calendar of 365 days and the earth’s orbit that actually takes 365.2422 days to complete.

Questions, Questions, Questions

What do we do with our extra day?

How do we spend our time?

Do we do something today that is different than every other day?

How do you make the most of this special day?

Whatever You Did, Consider This

• Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31)
• Whatever you do, take advantage of the opportunity (Ephesians 5:16)
• Whatever you do, do it with all of your might (Ecclesiastes 9:10)
• Whatever you do, rejoice because this day is made by the Lord (Psalm 118:24)
• Whatever you do, embrace today as God’s gift to you (Ecclesiastes 3:1-11)
• Whatever you do, seek to serve someone else today as well (Galatians 5:13)
• Whatever you do, recognize you only have today once (Psalm 144:4; cf. Psalm 39:4-5)
• Whatever you do, understand that honoring God will benefit you (Proverbs 3:1-2)

So how did you spend your Leap Day?

I hope you enjoyed your day recognizing that it is a gift from God with many opportunities to love God and serve others. Maybe you did something fun. Possibly you did something rememberable. How about unique? For many of us, we treated this day like a normal day for very real and normal reasons. But whatever we did, we only get this chance every four years.

Whatever it was, hopefully you sought to honor God in it.

Now what will you do tomorrow?