Teaching Us to Number Our Days

Job 14:5
Man's days are determined; you have decreed the number of his months and have set limits he cannot exceed.

Psalm 39
For the director of music. For Jeduthun. A psalm of David.

1 I said, "I will watch my ways
and keep my tongue from sin;
I will put a muzzle on my mouth
as long as the wicked are in my presence."
2 But when I was silent and still,
not even saying anything good,
my anguish increased.
3 My heart grew hot within me,
and as I meditated, the fire burned;
then I spoke with my tongue:
4 "Show me, O LORD, my life's end
and the number of my days;
let me know how fleeting is my life.
5 You have made my days a mere handbreadth;
the span of my years is as nothing before you.
Each man's life is but a breath.
Selah
6 Man is a mere phantom as he goes to and fro:
He bustles about, but only in vain;
he heaps up wealth, not knowing who will get it.
7 "But now, Lord, what do I look for?
My hope is in you.
8 Save me from all my transgressions;
do not make me the scorn of fools.
9 I was silent; I would not open my mouth,
for you are the one who has done this.
10 Remove your scourge from me;
I am overcome by the blow of your hand.
11 You rebuke and discipline men for their sin;
you consume their wealth like a moth—
each man is but a breath.
Selah
12 "Hear my prayer, O LORD,
listen to my cry for help;
be not deaf to my weeping.
For I dwell with you as an alien,
a stranger, as all my fathers were.
13 Look away from me, that I may rejoice again
before I depart and am no more."

Psalm 90
A prayer of Moses the man of God.
1 Lord, you have been our dwelling place
throughout all generations.
2 Before the mountains were born
or you brought forth the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
3 You turn men back to dust,
saying, "Return to dust, O sons of men."
4 For a thousand years in your sight
are like a day that has just gone by,
or like a watch in the night.
5 You sweep men away in the sleep of death;
they are like the new grass of the morning-
6 though in the morning it springs up new,
by evening it is dry and withered.
7 We are consumed by your anger
and terrified by your indignation.
8 You have set our iniquities before you,
our secret sins in the light of your presence.
9 All our days pass away under your wrath;
we finish our years with a moan.
10 The length of our days is seventy years—
or eighty, if we have the strength;
yet their span is but trouble and sorrow,
for they quickly pass, and we fly away.
11 Who knows the power of your anger?
For your wrath is as great as the fear that is due you.
12 Teach us to number our days aright,
that we may gain a heart of wisdom.
13 Relent, O LORD! How long will it be?
Have compassion on your servants.
14 Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love,
that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.
15 Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,
for as many years as we have seen trouble. 16 May your deeds be shown to your servants,
your splendor to their children.
17 May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us;
establish the work of our hands for us—
yes, establish the work of our hands.

I was just thinking about something that my mother in law said to me when she told us about her diagnosis with stage 3 skin cancer.

She said that God already knows the number of her days and how this is going to turn out, so there is no point in bemoaning it, she just needs to enjoy her days, however many there are.

That statement has taught me so much. When I go back and read the Psalms and Job, both of them pair numbering one's days with trials. In Psalm 90, Moses even says that we should be glad for the days we are afflicted...taking joy in our trials.

Without our trials, how often do we appreciate the blessings? I cannot speak for others, but when things have been going well for me for a time, I don't always spend as much time appreciating the one who blessed me with those things. When I am afflicted with trials though, I spend much more time with the one who loves me. Those trials also help me to appreciate all the good in my life and help me to remember to count my blessings. They teach me to appreciate each day I have as one day more to spend with my husband, my children, the people who I love, the blue sky, the roof over my head, the food in my refrigerator, my health, the health of the people I love...

When God teaches us to number our days, I don't think he is telling us to consider how many days we have left until we die, I think he is reminding us to enjoy each day he has blessed us with and to find as much joy in it as we can.

God bless you.