Remind and remind yourself: ‘I shall die, I shall die for certain! My fathers and forefathers died; no human being has remained forever on earth. And the fate that has overtaken everyone awaits me too!’ Do not fritter away the time given you for repentance. Do not rivet your eyes to the earth on which you are a momentary actor, on which you are an exile, on which by the mercy of God you are given a chance to change your mind and offer repentance for the avoidance of hell’s eternal prisons and the eternal torment in them.
Use the short spell of your pilgrimage on earth to acquire a haven of peace, a blessed refuge in eternity.
~Ignatius Brainchaninov
Prayerful Life 