A season and a psalm to remind us how quickly our time flies by
By Dean Collins
Graduation season is upon us. It always seems to happen during one of the busiest times of the year. Spring is in full bloom. Mother’s Day weekend is often in the mix. In our family, there are several May birthdays. Memorial Day will soon kick off the summer season. All of these calendar events annually remind us that time does truly seem to fly.
Psalm 90 is a prayer from one who knew the seasons of life and especially the passage of time. Called a song of Moses (we’re not sure if Moses wrote the psalm or someone else recorded the words), it shows the wisdom of one who learned to depend on God through 40 years of wilderness living. But the clock ran out on Moses as it will for each of us. Time marches forward whether we use our time wisely or not.
Use time wisely
I suspect some college students who march across stages this month to receive their diplomas will think about how quickly these years passed. Those of us who have been around a while might laugh, because we know these new graduates have yet to see how fast time really passes and seems to accelerate every year.
Grandparents and parents will watch with pride as their children are handed diplomas. They will also offer prayers for wisdom as they take their next steps in life. Those who graduate this spring have experienced how in an instant and by forces outside of one’s control all of your plans can be altered. Covid has reminded us that there are many things we cannot control.
What the psalmist prays in Psalm 90 can help us not simply pass time with regret but rather embrace time, determined to use it for good and for God’s purposes rather than our own. We will naturally gravitate to using our allotment of time on the things we enjoy. There is nothing wrong with enjoying our days and the pleasures of life. But this prayer suggests that ultimate joy and satisfaction come when we choose to make wise use of our time and not simply go with whatever pleasant pastime comes along.
Manage time well
The psalmist also uses that four-letter word, work. We often dream, plot, and pray for the weekend or the distant day we can enjoy our retirement. But this prayer in Psalm 90 calls us to think and pray differently. We would all be happy to pray the words of verse 17: “Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us.” Favor, blessing, strength, help, even flourishing, come to us as gifts from God. We want and even need God’s grace and mercy along with his strength and wisdom to manage the allotment of time we are given.
But notice how this prayer ends. After asking for the favor of God to be upon us the psalmist prays not once, but twice, that God would establish the work of our hands. God’s presence and his favor are given so that we can make wise use of our time to do the work of God for the people of God, both near and far, and for as long as we have breath.
Dedicate time to God
And when we look at life through the lens of this prayer, we realize that yes, our days are numbered, but they are also ordered best when they give glory to God through the service we provide to those he places in our lives.
So enjoy every major event and accomplishment of your children, grandchildren, and all your life. But remember, if you are still breathing then there are still blessings to receive as we do the work God has ordered for us to do with the time we still have today.
Your time with God’s Word
Psalm 90:14-17 ESV
Photo by Kevin Ku on Unsplash
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