Making Each Day Count For The Kingdom

Psalm 90:12 so teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.

Moses’ prayer offered on behalf of every generation of God’s people presents somewhat of a conundrum. How can we ‘number our day’s when, as James says, we do not even know if we will be alive tomorrow? ‘Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes’ (James 4:14). In light of this, what does it mean to number our days?

Perhaps it begins with being intensely aware that our time on this earth is limited. That our life is fleeting like a breeze or a mist. Then we believe that all the days God ordained for us to be on this earth are written in His book of decrees so that everyone of them has a purpose. Each moment of each day is a handcrafted gift from God for a specific reason and never to be repeated.

Psalm 139:16 Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.

The psalmist rejoices that God’s predetermined course for his life has been planned out and that they consist of good works and deeds that God has prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:10). These are eternally prepared good works that we can never do again once that specific moment has passed. When we understand how precious our time on this earth is and how valuable the works are that God has ordained for us to do, we will make the most of every day, trusting Jesus Christ to lead us into these worthwhile Kingdom-orientated activities.

Ephesians 5:16 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

Paul pleads with his readers to redeem the time. Redeeming means to ‘buy back’. Our time must be rescued for Christ and His Kingdom work from the works of the enemy and evil. Each hour of each day we have breath in our body, the Christian is to use their time wisely to advance the Heavenly Kingdom rather than pursuing activities that will burn like wood, hay, and straw. So, we pray that the LORD would teach us to number our days so that we might live them wisely for Him. Each day, with faith-filled exertion, we are to intentionally redeem the time or that time will be lost for all eternity. And one day, we will have to give an account of how we have used our time.

However, there are times when we are sick and out of sorts. Does our LORD stand over us with a rod beating us into the submission of doing good works? That is not the God of the Bible. God knows there are times when rising from our bed is impossible. When our body is aching and to muster the energy to rise and attend to the day is too much.

God has sovereignly prepared good works for us and yet graciously pardons us when we are unwell. He is a loving God and not demanding. When the intent of our heart is right and we are not succumbing to apathy and laziness, God understands and makes allowances for these times. Yet even then, we can lift the needs of others up to our Father in prayer. Nothing helps our own infirmities than praying in faith for others. Even our ‘down’ days can count for the Kingdom.

So let us number our days wisely and redeem them by faith in Christ. They each have the potential for labor to bring glory to our God.

‘Heavenly Father, thank You for this reminder to use my time and energy wisely for You and Your Kingdom purposes. Forgive me for pursuing frivolous pursuits that have no eternal value. Help me to rearrange my priorities and pleasures so that You will be primary in my life. Thank you. Amen.’