Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. –Psalm 90:12
Some years ago, I was at a meeting at church where the leader suggested that while a headstone shares the birth and death dates of the person, life is what happens in the dash between the dates.
The art of living well and the quest to live longer permeate our society. Modern medicine lengthens life, heals innumerable diseases, and is now suggesting that babies born today might see a life expectancy of 150 years.
However, the truth is that no one really knows how many days a person will see on this earth. My own grandmother passed away at the age of 102, while a friend of mine lost their son at 2-years-old. My Father-in-law just got diagnosed with cancer…again. In this life, we have no guarantees about our length of years.
Scripture is full of reminders that life is brief. Even a full life of one hundred years is a flash in light of eternity. James 4:14 reads, “What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.” Psalm 103:15 records, “As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field; for the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place knows it no more.”
Knowing this, it seems like a shame to waste even one day. Life is precious and our days are numbered. Today we are living somewhere in the dash between birth and death. The question is: what are we doing with our dash?
When it comes to making the most of each day, what opportunities are you most likely to overlook?
Blessings,
Thora
Lord, help me to appreciate and be faithful with my dash!
I love that verse from James. It’s as if God breathes life into our lungs when we’re born….and then we expire into a vapor in the end. And oddly, it’s a beautiful, and peaceful, metaphor.