Numbering Our Days

I'd like to begin this afternoon, brethren, by asking us a question, and that is, how important is time to you? How important is your time to you? How valuable is it? What kind of priority do you put on the use of the time that you have? Probably all of us at one time or another, no pun intended, we've probably used phrases such as this in our speech. Maybe we've made comments like, what happened to the time? Where did the time go? I know there's been occasions where I've been busy in a project and I've started in the morning and just immersed in it, and suddenly I look up in the afternoon and it's three o'clock, four o'clock.

I think, where did the time go? Maybe we've said things like, I lost track of the time, or the time went so quickly. Time got away from me. Maybe you had an appointment to make your way to and now you're heading down the road, you're realizing you're going to be a little late, and you show up and you say, well, I'm sorry, I lost track of time. Maybe you said the time just flew by.

Time went so quickly. Or maybe we've even just complained about the fact that there wasn't enough time in the day to get the things done that we wanted to get done. Have you ever found yourself saying things like that about time, the passage of time? Again, how valuable is time to you?

You and I are physical beings and we live in a physical universe and we're subject to the laws of this physical universe, and one of those is time. It's the passage of time, the day in and the day out passage of time. The Bible actually speaks to the point of time in a number of places. The Bible tells us generally how much time we're given in the flesh. It says you're generally allotted 70 years, and if by reason of strength, perhaps then you'll receive 80 years.

Now, that's not universal in terms of every specific case. Sometimes there are those who do not have that full allotment of time. Others who go way beyond on the other end. I was recently talking with Dari and his grandmother who lived in the village all her life. Back when she was born and out in the village, they didn't necessarily keep registration of births quite the same as we would here in terms of the birth certificate and the date.

Some of those people just generally know when they were born back on this year and about as close as they could determine, Dari's grandmother lived too close to 120 years old. So that's time. And that's a lot of time. But again, the Bible generally tells us 70 years, and if by reason of strength, 80. Now, in response to that, some of us might say, well, no problem. Especially if you're a youth, if you're a teenager, if you're a young adult, you say 70 years, 80 years.

That's like an eternity. All kinds of time to get all these things done that I want to do. You have all these big plans for life, and 70 years, that's a serious amount of time. But at some point, it's a matter of perspective. On the flip side of that, others might say, well, forget the averages. I've heard some say, well, I'm living on borrowed time. And, you know, 70 years passed them by, 80 years passed them by, and they're going strong.

And that certainly is a blessing. For those who are older, you can probably think back to a time when you were young. And you thought pretty much as how most young people think, I have all kinds of time ahead of me, and all kinds of opportunity to get the things done that I need to do. And maybe now you're among those who say, well, where did the time go? Because that just seemed like yesterday.

I was up yesterday walking around our property, just kind of surveying things and looking at our house that we once lived in. And I thought, you know, in some ways, that seems like a long time ago we moved up here.

It was about 20 years ago. And I think about the fact that Austin was a very small boy at that time, and Tabitha hadn't even been born yet. And there's a lot of things that have occurred over the time. And in some ways, it seemed like a long time ago. In other ways, it seems like yesterday. And that's just sort of the way life passes us along. And so maybe some of the older people will look back on their life, and maybe they're among those that would say, where did the time go?

And time just simply flies. But again, the Bible actually has much to say about time. And specifically, it speaks to the point of how we should consider the time that we've been given in this life, how it is that we should use that time.

And so today, I want to talk about the importance of using our time that God has given us wisely in how He intends. And so the title for my message is, Numbering Our Days. Numbering Our Days. And I want to begin in the Psalm that is sort of the inspiration for the title. Psalm chapter 90. Can you turn there, please?

Psalm chapter 90.

The heading of my Bible says, A Prayer of Moses, The Man of God. Psalm 90 is generally recognized to have been penned by Moses, and so in that sense, it is very old. Older than the typical psalm that we have in the collection. It's possibly the only psalm that Moses ever wrote, or as far as I'm aware, the only psalm that we have at least preserved from Moses. The timing of the psalm appears to be during the time of Israel's wanderings in the wilderness. You recall that God brought them out of Egypt by strength of hand, and brought them up.

They followed God up to the brink of the promised land, and then they drew back. They saw the giants in the land. They saw the cities walled up the heaven, and they doubted. They said, We're like grasshoppers in our own sight. You know, forget how the giants would look at us.

We are small in our own sight. They did not trust in God, God's power to bring them in, and due to their doubt and unbelief, they drew back. And we know the story and the consequence of that. Israel then wandered for 40 years in the wilderness until that generation of adults who had not put their faith and trust in God perished in the wilderness. And it was a time then when the next generation, the children, would grow up and then be prepared to enter in following God's lead. So it's during the time of this 40 years of wilderness wandering that we have Psalm 90 would appear to have been written.

So let's just keep that in the backdrop of our mind as we go through this passage. Psalm 90, in verse 1, Moses said, Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations. And so it begins actually with not necessarily combining ourselves to what is the time of man, but the eternal existence of God. And he's saying, you know, through all generations, anybody that has known of you and trusted in you, you've been their dwelling place, their refuge. God is our refuge today as well. Verse 2, Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, you are God.

So Moses begins. He's acknowledging the eternal existence of God. He's always been there. He always will be there. The God we know today and worship, God has always existed. He is what He has always been. He will be what He is currently and what He has always been. It's a part of the understanding of the eternal nature of God. It's actually an expression that is brought out in the name of God that He has been, He is, and He will be what He has always been, and that God simply exists.

So it's against that backdrop of eternity that then Moses brings in the comparison of mankind and the brevity of human life. Verse 3, he says, You turn man to destruction and say, Return, O children of men. For a thousand years in your sight are like yesterday when it is passed, and like a watch in the night. If you're in bed and you're sleeping and somebody is standing guard outside the city and there's a time of that night watch, you're not even going to notice if you're in sound sleep.

It's just a time that goes like that. And he says, you know, this is like a thousand years in your sight. Verse 5, You carry them away like a flood, they are like a sleep. In the morning they are like grass which grows up. In the morning it flourishes and grows up, and in the evening it is cut down and it withers. And so the passage of time and the existence of man's life within the frame of that time is brief.

It is simply but a moment, and certainly compared to God. That's what this is saying. Physical life is brief, it is temporary, it really doesn't amount to much compared to the vastness of eternity, like the grass that springs up and then it is withered and it dies away. Verse 7, Moses said, For we have been consumed by your anger, and by your wrath we are terrified. You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your countenance. There is really nothing that is hidden from God, certainly nothing that could be done off in a corner, in the darkness that will not have the light of truth shined upon it.

Israel, in their sins, now dealing with the consequence of that, publicly, openly, brought into the light. Verse 9, For all our days have passed away in your wrath, we finish our years like I sigh.

The days of our lives are seventy years, and if by reason of strength they are eighty years, yet their boast is only labor and sorrow, for it is soon cut off and we fly away. Again, the brief nature of the physical existence here is being highlighted, saying there are struggles in this life, there are difficulties, that's just a part of the physical existence. Apart from God, it certainly would be difficult.

Having God by our side, we still walk through those things, but we have that strength and that refuge, as Moses says, has been to all generations.

Verse 11 says, Who knows the power of your anger? For as the fear of you, so is your wrath. And in light of all these things, Moses then transitions. He says, So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.

Moses is saying, in light of these things, in light of the brevity of life, and the fact that we are subject to physical frailties and the corruption of this physical existence, he says, teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.

In other words, teach us how to use the time we've been given well. Teach us to use this time in a way that would be to your glory. Show us how to make the most of each day so it's not simply just frittered away on frivolous things and just day by day that goes by and it is of no benefit.

The New Living Translation puts verse 12 this way. It says, Teach us to realize the brevity of life so that we may grow in wisdom.

And that's the lesson here. Teach us to number our days. Use our days well so that we may grow in wisdom, so that we may benefit from the things that are truly important and truly lasting, not the things that just sort of pass away like the physical brevity of this life.

So this is the concept I'd like to highlight today, brethren, the numbering of our days.

The numbering of our days is simply living with the recognition that we only have a brief amount of time. Yet there is something important going on in our life, something worthwhile. We weren't created just to have a difficult life and then you die. That's not the point. Yes, there's trial and difficulty, but there's also joy and satisfaction in rejoicing in this life as well.

The point that is given to us is that there are worthwhile opportunities that God has provided for us to pursue. And so we need to be living with the recognition of those things. We need to live with the recognition of the purpose of our existence and what it is that God has set before us to pursue is truly important in this life. Numbering our days is not simply knowing what we can do with our time.

There's a lot of things we could do with our time. When you're young, when you're strong, you know, maybe you can go skydiving or parasailing or rock climbing or any kind of adventure you could come up with and not saying there's a problem with those things, but it's not all about what can I do. It's about what is it that God would have us do with the time we've been given.

Again, it's seeking after the wisdom and the things of God.

Again, verse 12 said, teach us to number our days that we may gain a heart of wisdom.

Our life is physical. It is a brief process of time, as the Scripture says, but even through that reality, God's provided the opportunity for something good and for something lasting and for something eternal.

Verse 13, Moses continues, he says, Return, O Lord, how long, and have compassion on your servants. O satisfy us early with your mercy, that we may rejoice and be glad in all our days. God is merciful. He desires us to learn the lessons and turn to Him in repentance.

David said, restore to me the joy of your salvation.

There is joy and great rejoicing in living this way of life. When we're in opposition to God, such as Israel was, they're realizing the struggle of that. But what's interesting, as you keep the background of this psalm in mind, Israel is wandering as a consequence of the rejection of God, but don't think that that's the end of the work that God had to do with them.

You know, if somebody was in their early 20s, at the time Israel was turned back from the Promised Land, and they wandered in the wilderness for 40 years, don't you think that maybe God would desire them to learn something during that time? That there would be something that they could pass on to their children, and that their children who were growing up in those 40 years of wilderness wandering would learn as the important lessons of life, as they then went up and entered into the Promised Land, following God's lead.

I believe those things are important, and again, the backdrop to here when Moses says, teach us how to use these days you've given us well. Help us to learn the lessons and apply them in a way that brings glory to you and fulfills what it is you're seeking to do in our life.

Verse 15, Moses says, Make us glad according to the days which you have afflicted us. You may be going through a trial, but there can again be rejoicing when you come to the truth, and you acknowledge God and turn to Him again. The years in which we have seen evil. Let your work appear to your servants and your glory to their children, and let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands. Yes, establish the work of our hands. When something is established, it endures for a time. It reminds me, back when I had my landscape business, there was a certain route that I would run, and every week I'd drive by this house and property out in the countryside, and there was a big sign out front, and it said, it said, Established, I think it was like 1889. And my understanding of this home and this property was that it was the same family living on it. It had been homesteaded, established, passed down, passed down, passed down through the generations. It's something that, at least physically, was established and was carrying on for a time. We want God to establish the works of our hands. What is it that we can do that would be established for a time, and certainly beyond the physical flesh? Do we want God to establish the work of our hands? Well, if we do, we need to learn to number our days. We need to learn to submit to those things which truly have value, which God is working out in our life. We need to learn to use this brief life to pursue the work that God is doing in us all. That has to be the priority, again, if we want to see the work of our hands established, not just for a brief moment, but for all time going forward. Teach us to number our days. It was a prayer of Moses for himself, for the children of Israel. It's a prayer that should be on the lips of each of us as we live a life pursuing the eternal purpose for which God has called us. Numbering our days is something that needs to take place each and every day. What if, brethren, your days were numbered for you? As in, when you're born, when you become of age, where you can make decisions for yourself. What if you were handed a calendar that went forward by a course of years, and there was an X on a certain day of the calendar? September 23rd, whatever. And that's your date. Suppose those days were numbered for you, and as you walked through life, you could look to that date, see you were getting closer, getting closer. Maybe someone else's date was farther out, and yours was closer in. How would you live those days? How would you live it if you were approaching closer and closer to that date? Would it change how you lived later in life from the beginning? Would it change your perspective? Would it change what it was that you valued as important? Well, certainly we're not given a calendar in that way, but I think the point is, brethren, we should live our lives each and every day as if today is the day that God has given us, and we have to make the most of today. As the Scripture says, this is the day the Lord has given us. Let us rejoice and be glad in it. But let us do those things right and properly. There's an example of someone in Scripture who was literally given that option. Basically, here's a calendar, and here's your day. Speaking of King Hezekiah, let's go back to Kings, 2 Kings, chapter 20. 2 Kings 20, beginning in verse 1.

It says, In those days Hezekiah was sick, who is near death, and Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, went to him and said to him, Thus says the LORD, Set your house in order, for you shall die. The message is, you're sick, you're going to die. Very short order, not next month, next year, 10 years from now. So set your house in order. This sickness, which you have, is going to kill you. Thus says the LORD.

Verse 2, says, Here Hezekiah is reminding God of the type of king he had been. He's generally considered one of the good kings of Judah. Loyal, faithful, tore down the places of worship in the hills and the high places.

It's interesting when you consider his son, who is considered to be one of the worst kings, but here Hezekiah was considered a good king in that way, in his service to God. And so now he's, in the face of his death, pleading to God, reminding God of those things, in that sense, pleading his case before God, why maybe God, in his mercy, could extend to him a little more time.

Verse 4, it says, And it says, And in verse 6, And it says, Then Isaiah said, And Hezekiah said to Isaiah, Then Isaiah said, He says, Or shall the shadow go backward ten degrees?

It's the shadow on the sundial, you know, marking the passage of time, the rotation of the earth around the sun. And Hezekiah, verse 10, answered and said, It's an easy thing for the shadow to go down ten degrees, but let the shadow go backwards ten degrees.

So Isaiah the prophet cried out to the Lord, He brought the shadow ten degrees backwards, by which it had gone down on the sundial of Ahaz.

So here, it's an incredible thing to think about.

God moved the shadow backwards as a sign of his faithfulness to Hezekiah, that he would perform this in his life.

And if you think about it, Hezekiah cried out to God and Isaiah as well, and the sign of that was this shadow moving backwards, literally God moved heaven and earth, as a sign of that what it is that which he promised to Hezekiah.

God healed him. He added to his life fifteen more years.

So I don't know if it was to the day, but roughly Hezekiah could live his life and say, Okay, from here, I've got fifteen more years. Mark it on the calendar.

How would you use those days? How would you live? What would your response be?

You were generally a good person up to that point, but now God has given you fifteen more years.

How would you use that time? Well, we get a little bit of a glimpse into Hezekiah's perspective in Isaiah chapter 38.

Let's go there. Isaiah 38, and we're going to pick it up in verse 9.

Isaiah chapter 38 verse 9, it says, This is the writing of Hezekiah, king of Judah, when he had been sick and had recovered from his sickness.

So this is the song, essentially, that Hezekiah wrote following that incident.

Verse 10, I said, as Hezekiah said, In the prime of my life I shall go to the gates of Sheol, to the grave. I am deprived of the remainder of my years. He's saying, you know, upon getting this news, it's the prime of my life. I'm king. I'm serving God. All these things I could accomplish. And the word is, you're cut off. Your time will continue no more.

Verse 11, I said, I shall not see YAH, I shall not see the LORD in the land of the living. I shall observe man no more among the inhabitants of the world. There's babies that are going to be born, children that are going to grow up, people that are going to do things and accomplish things, and I won't be there. And I won't even see it. Verse 12, my lifespan is gone, taken from me like a shepherd's tent.

You think of the nomadic shepherds that go out and follow the flocks and the herds around and put up a tent in the night and you quickly just fold it up and move on during the day. He says, that's my lifespan.

I have cut off my life like a weaver. He cuts me off from the loom. From day until night you make an end of me. He says, I have considered until morning like a lion. So he breaks all my bones. From day until night you make an end of me.

Like a crane or a swallow, so I chatted. I mourned like a dove. My eyes fail from looking upward. O Lord, I am oppressed. Undertake me. Here's his cry. Here's his prayer to God. Verse 15, what shall I say? He has both spoken to me and he himself has done it. I shall walk carefully all my years in the bitterness of my soul. Life can be bitter, but again, it's the perspective that we're to have. Putting God first, that even in the trials and the struggles of God as first, we see a greater and a better picture than just this physical life. But Hezekiah says, if God intervenes here, I shall walk carefully all my years. Verse 16, O Lord, by these things men live, and in all these things is the life of my spirit. So you will restore me and make me live. Indeed, it was for my own peace that I had great bitterness, but you have lovingly delivered my soul from the pit of corruption, for you have cast all my sins behind your back. For Sheol, the grave, cannot thank you. Death cannot praise you. Those who go down to the pit cannot hope for your truth. There's a lot of writings in the Psalms of David as well, where he said, God, deliver me from my foe, raise me up, because how can I praise you from the grave? How can I declare your name to those if I'm dead? And again Hezekiah is saying, from the grave cannot praise you. Verse 19, the living man, he shall praise you as I do this day.

Now his mind, his attitude, is looking towards God, giving him the glory, giving him the praise, honoring him. The Father shall make known your truth to the children. He can pass it on. Generation, the generation. Verse 20, the Lord was ready to save me. Therefore we will sing my song with string instruments all the days of our life in the house of the Lord.

Again Hezekiah received 15 more years as God had promised. Upon his healing, his zeal and his praise was for God, it was at the forefront of his mind, and he says, this is how I will live according to the mercy you have shown me. It doesn't mean that Hezekiah had never sinned again. It doesn't mean that he never made a mistake. In fact, he made mistakes. And there were things that occurred that God said, and that's right, there's going to be judgment for this, but because of your faithfulness, not in your lifetime. Hezekiah, in his response to the time God gave him, was to look to God, to put his focus on him and the things of God, the remainder of his days.

Let's look at an example of another individual who realized the brief scope of life, and especially compared to the existence of God. Psalm 39. This man is David. Psalm 39 will begin in verse 4. Psalm 39.4, David said, Lord, make me to know my end, and what is the measure of my days, that I may know how frail I am.

David is essentially saying, God, remind me how brief my time on this earth will be, reminding me that my days are in fact numbered, that life is fleeting. It's not just to be depressed or morbid. It's actually for an important purpose. When we come face to face with the reality of our own limited existence, it causes us to stop and evaluate what is it that's truly important. What is it that's lasting? What is it that we can go after in this life that actually extends beyond the grave?

Indeed, it's a purpose for which God has created us. Verse 5. Psalm 39.5, David says, Indeed, you have made my days as a handbreath, and my age is as nothing before you. Certainly every man at his best state is but a vapor, selah. Again, man's existence, the time that we have on this earth, he says, is just a moment. Quickly, it vanishes away. It's like a vapor. It was there one moment, and now it's gone. Went out early this morning, heading down to Lewiston, I went out about five minutes early and started the car because the windshield's all covered with frost.

The ground was white with the frost, and walking between the front door and the car, I would breathe. Exhale my breath, and you would have this vapor cloud that was in the air. But it only lasted for a second or two, and it would dissipate, and then it's gone.

David says, this is like certainly every man at his best state is but a vapor. And he says, selah. Think on this. Consider this. There's something we should learn from it. Verse 6, he says, Surely every man walks about like a shadow. Surely they busy themselves in vain. He hips up riches and does not know who will gather them. We can spend our whole life on this earth, accumulating physical things, going after things that we want.

And certainly there's not a problem with that in a proper perspective, for keeping our priorities straight. But the point is here, you can spend your time, you can heap up riches. And he says, he does not know who will gather them. I read more than once recently that the younger generations really don't want the stuff that their parents have collected. You know, my readers digest volumes going back to 1930. Son, these will be yours someday.

That's not really what they want. I suppose they want the money. That's all right. You know, that's kind of a universal thing. But the things that maybe are important to us, go visit every state. Buy a spoon in every state, or a plate in every state. Well, go collect. Go collect.

I'm not trying to pin anybody down. Whatever you have, whatever you collect, again, the point is that DCR tape collection may not necessarily be what your 20-something-year-old is looking forward to inheriting. It may end up in the landfill. That which you valued, that which you chased after, or I've got to get that, add it to the collection. The next person that comes along may be hauling it down to the landfill. So again, what is truly lasting? What truly matters? That's what David's asking. And he answers in verse 7. He says, And now, Lord, what do I wait for? He says, My hope is in you. He says, That's where the eternal value lies.

It's in God, trusting God in the things of God, pursuing that relationship with God, and the character that God would have us to develop. He says, My hope is in you. Verse 8, He says, And then he says again, Consider these things. Brethren, what is it that we must keep daily in our focus? What is it that must be the highest priority in our life, that thing that we value above everything else, that which has consequence, which will not fade away? You know, a new car is only a new car for so long.

Then it's a used car. No problem with owning a new car, but again, what is it in terms of our effort and our focus and the things that we go after? Nothing wrong with owning a nice house. You know, my car is a three-year-old car when I bought it last year.

The newest car I'd ever owned. On a warm day, I could open the door, and you could still smell a faint hint of the new car smell. I thought, this is nice. You know, a new car. If you've ever owned a new car, you know, you open the door, the leather is pristine, you have the new car smell. Eventually, it gets replaced by other smells. Eventually, there's rock chips on the windshield.

I was recently sitting in my car in a parking lot, minding my own business, and bang! Shopping cart rolling across from somewhere into the side of my car. I've come out and seen dense. Somebody opened their door inside my car. I've seen a scratch from halfway down the driver's door, down to the back door. You go, well, where did that come from? A new car isn't new for very long. Sooner or later, somebody spills a cup of coffee on the carpet. Sooner or later, one of the kids or the animals throw up in the backseat. How long is a new car new? Again, everything at some point, physically, will pass away. It'll age, including our flesh. But what is it that we truly go after? What is it truly that matters? If we put the physical things ahead of the relationships, spiritual relationships, relationship with God, relationship with one another, relationship with our families, then our priorities are backwards. What is our order of priority? Well, first it's God. God's at the top. Then comes family. And I put that as spiritual family and physical family. Then everything else has a priority, and it falls in order. And it's right and proper way. But God is always at the top. And that's where He needs to remain. Anytime we get that priority level out of order, we've lost perspective. David asks God to help him see the limitations of his physical existence for the purpose of having the proper perspective in life. So I say, what about us today, brethren? What about us today? What is our perspective? The reality is, none of us knows when the end of our days will be. The date is not marked on the calendar. Two years, five years, fifteen years. But again, we should be living our lives with the same zeal for God and the calling that He's extended to us as if there was a date. And we say, I have to live to the fullest. Numbering our days means we are conscious of the time that God has given us. And each and every day is a concerted effort to use the time God has given us well. It means we make the most of each day that we've been given. It doesn't mean that we can never have fun, that we can never go to a restaurant or have a good time or take a vacation or do those things. Those things are important in their right perspective. But the purpose of life isn't about how much fun we can have or how many things we can cram into, how many years we have. The purpose of life is ultimately about growing in the spiritual wisdom and the understanding of God. Teach us to number our days so that we may gain a heart of wisdom. There are times and places for those other things, and we do need to rejoice in our life. We'll look at a scripture shortly about that. But the point is, let's not think that that is what life is all about. Just having a good time. 2 Corinthians 4, verse 16.

2 Corinthians 4, verse 16, breaking into the middle of Paul's thoughts here. He says, Therefore we do not lose heart, as even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. Again, it's a commentary on the brevity of the physical life. We each have one less day today than we had yesterday. One less day than the day before. However, it says, The inner man, that new creation in Christ, is being renewed day by day. Our physical flesh may be getting weaker, but our relationship with God, and growing an understanding of God, and who He is, and what it is He desires from us, and our character that we develop should be growing day by day by day. Outward man perishes. The inner man should not be. Verse 17, it says, For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, we go through struggles and trials in this life, and some of them are severe. But Paul's saying, you know, by comparison to what God has planned for us forevermore, this physical life and the things we go through are a light affliction, but for a moment, by comparison. He says, it is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. While we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen, for the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal. You know, the things we could grab ahold of with our own two hands, including our own flesh, is temporary. But the things of God are eternal. 1 John 2 continues with the same thought. 1 John 2, verse 15. John says, Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of this world. And this world is passing away in the lust of it. But he who does the will of God abides forever. Again, the things of this world are temporary. The things of God are eternal. And the question becomes, once again, what are we doing with the brief time that God has given us? Are we focusing the primary efforts of our life on the things that are temporary and that will pass away? Or are we focusing on developing those things which will last for eternity? In this life, again, there's many priorities, many things to worry about, and we need to learn to balance them and to order them properly. A job is a major priority. You have to go, you have to work the job because you need a roof over your head, you need to put food on the table, you need to provide for your family in that way. And you know what? That is biblical. And so that is a, it is a priority in this life. Our children are a priority. They need to be clothed, they need to be educated. We need to point them and direct them to God. That is a priority as well that is biblical. And so I understand that there are real priorities in this life. It's not like we just push everything aside and have 20 hours a day of prayer, Bible study, and meditation. That's not a reality. But the fact is, our focus in ideal for God needs to be primary. And we have to find the balance of how we use each day. If we're filling up life with so many things that we push out prayer and study to where we say, where did the time go? Wow, I meant the Bible study, but time sure flies, I guess. That'll be for another day. Then we haven't properly numbered that day that we were given today. Ephesians 5, verse 15.

Ephesians 5, verse 15. Once again, the Apostle Paul, he says, See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise. To walk circumspectly means you have an understanding of your surroundings and what it is that you need to do in proper response. See, you walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise.

Redeeming the time because the days are evil. To redeem something means to buy it back. You and I were sold under sin leading to death. God bought us back by the blood of Jesus Christ. He redeemed us from death. He brought us back. We need to redeem the time. We need to rescue it from loss. If day by day is going by and we don't have our priorities straight, we are losing time. We need to buy it back. We need to rescue it from loss.

And the point is, we can't say, well, tomorrow. Tomorrow I'll redeem the time. The point is, what are you doing today? Well, it is called today to redeem the time. You can't redeem yesterday. Yesterday is gone. Okay, that's reality. You can't go back. You can't push the shadow back on the sundial and go and do it again. It is gone, but you can purpose in your heart to begin today and redeem today. And you can plan to redeem tomorrow. And today you say, what will I do today to strengthen my relationship with God and to grow in these things?

And tomorrow you say, what can I do today? And you ask that same question day after day after day, as long as God has given you breath. It takes discipline to do that. It takes structure and organization to do that. It takes sometimes taking a hard look at our life and saying, what have I put as a priority in my spare time that has pushed God out, but really doesn't have any real value. Verse 17, Paul carries on saying, Therefore do not be unwise, don't you remember? Teach us the number of our days that we may gain a heart of wisdom. He says, do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

That's true wisdom. That's true value. Verse 18, do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit. Dissipation is just something, an effort that goes to nothingness. Kind of like a thin wisp of smoke going up in the air and it dissipates. It says to be drunk is throwing your life to dissipation. There's nothing of value being built there. But verse 19, he says, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord.

I guess Mr. Wilson and I were looking at the same page in the Bible this week. It's about right relationships. Verse 20, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting one to another in the fear of God. Teach us to number our days that we may gain a heart of wisdom.

Can we see how important that principle is? And that it is to remember it day after day after day. God's given us a certain amount of time to focus on things of lasting value. And we can't afford to say, well, someday. Someday when I have the time, someday after I'm out of school, when I've built the house I want to build, maybe someday when I've married that guy or that gal I want to marry, when I've got the job, the dream job, someday then I can put God first.

I think, brethren, we understand that's not a proper numbering of our days. That's not redeeming the time as God would have us to do. Because you see, those principles of numbering our days and redeeming the time are about putting first things first, and things of lasting value first. Everything else comes in its proper order. All those priorities of life, house, family, education, career, all those priorities of life are important priorities. But you know what? They don't... they're not hindered. They're not hindered by putting God first. The hindrance, if we choose to, is we hinder our relationship with God by putting those things first.

The reality is those things will be hindered if we do not put God first. It's in putting God first that we have the blessing of His hand along the way. It's about priorities. Nigeria this year at the feast, there was a young lady who came to the feast for the first time. She's about 20 years old, and actually it was the first time she's ever been to a church service in the Church of God. Her father was in the church. Her dad, he was... or I'm sorry, it was her grandfather, actually, who was in the church.

He's a member going back to the 70s, somebody in declining health who has not been able to gather with a congregation for a number of years, probably 10 or 12 years, because there's not a congregation in his region. And he gets the literature, or he's continued to get the literature over the years. He died this spring, but I went and saw him once with Dari and Mark.

We made a visit and stopped by his home. He was in the church. His wife was not. Their children were not, but there's this granddaughter. And she called Dari up about two months ago out of the blue and said, you know, I used to rely on my grandfather for his wisdom. He had special insight. When I had questions about life or how to deal with these situations, he had the answers. And the answers he had were from Scripture, and she recognized the fact that she couldn't find that elsewhere. And so she talked to her grandmother, and her grandmother actually encouraged her, well, you know, maybe you should contact the church that he attended.

Because, you see, he died and all his stuff was getting cleared out. And amongst that were the church booklets and the magazines, and she grabbed ahold of those, because she said, you know, this is at least some basis of the wisdom that he had. And she contacted Dari. Is there a congregation nearby? Well, there's not currently, but he told her about the feast, and she made her way to the feast.

This gal is in medical school, nursing school. She stepped out of, and short-notice, school to come to the feast at sacrifice to her. And she was at every service, every Bible reading, every activity, and she had many questions. But she's trying to understand, and she wants to know this understanding that she thought she had lost at the death of her grandfather. And so I hope she sticks with it. It was very encouraging. A number of people really spent a lot of time visiting with her, and it was a very positive relationship that seems to have developed.

On the flip side of that, Dari contacted me a few weeks before the feast, and he said, just as a heads up, there's going to be a baptism at the feast. And after arriving, after being there for a few days at the feast site, I think it was the third day Dari hadn't said anything. I said, well, Dari, what about this baptism you were talking about? He said, well, you know, he called me about a week before the feast and said he wasn't going to make it.

He had to work. I said, well, I guess that answers the question, doesn't it? Where his priorities were, where his commitment was. And I kind of looked at those two individuals, interesting in contrast, somebody who had been associated with the church for years, decided they had to work. Somebody else who had just had a brief contact with it and recognized value here and said, I need to be there. Again, brethren, it's about our priorities. Ask yourself, what will I do today to build my relationship with God today? And what will I do tomorrow to build my relationship with God as well?

Ask and answer the same question day after day after day. Time is a precious asset which God has given us, but it's just brief. And He's given it to us for an important purpose, that we might come to know Him and pursue a relationship that will last for eternity. I want to conclude in Ecclesiastes chapter 9.

Ecclesiastes 9, Wisdom from Solomon on life. Ecclesiastes chapter 9, verse 3, Solomon says, There is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that one thing happens to all. Truly the hearts of the Son and Men are full of evil, madness is in their hearts while they live, and after that they go to the dead. The point of the message here isn't to be discouraging and to think, well, life is just bleak and then you die. Because I know as a young person especially, you don't want to hear that. You want to hear, I've got my whole life ahead of me. There's opportunities. I'm going to find my spouse. I'm going to build my house. I'm going to have my career. I'm going to make something out of life. That's what you want to hear. That is good. You should plan for those things. But the point of the message as well is don't forget along the way what is the priority. The point of remembering the message is the fact that from the beginning you should live your life with this view in mind.

I listened to two sermons today while I was in the car on the way down to Lewiston and back, and I thought it was interesting. The first one, they were both given at the feast. The first one was a sermon by Dr. Ward. He gave at the feast. And something he reiterated over and over through the message is the fact that this is a time that God has given us and time is short. Use it well. And on the return, Brian Shaw, the message I listened to, and he talked about the end from the beginning. That it is God who knows the end from the beginning. He's purposed it. He has the power and will to bring it to pass. And through the holy days that we walk through, he's given us a glimpse into the end from the beginning. And it's from that perspective then that we should live our life today, focusing on what it is that God has purposed, not only for us, but for all mankind. So I just thought it was interesting. Each message said, basically, live today while it is today. Number your days. Still in Ecclesiastes 9. Verse 4, it says, But for him who is joined to all the living there is hope. For a living dog is better than a dead lion. You know, as long as there's life, there's hope. As long as their life for one more day is an opportunity to build that relationship with God, to draw closer. As long as you have breath, as long as you have life. Verse 5, For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing, and they have no more reward, and the memory of them is forgotten. Also their love, their hatred, their envy have now perished. Nevermore will they have a share in anything done under the sun. So Solomon says, Go and eat your bread with joy. Drink your wine with a merry heart.

For God has already accepted your works. Let your garments always be white, and let your head lack no oil. You know, God does intend that we would live a good life, that we would enjoy the blessings of life, that you would enjoy the family, enjoy the job that you do to the best of your ability, enjoy the good things that life has to offer, but keep it within the balance and the perspective of putting God first and chasing after truly what is important.

Verse 9, Live joyfully with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vain life, which he has given you under the sun. All your days are vanity, for that is your portion in life and in the labor which you perform under the sun. Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might, for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave where you are going.

Whatever you're given to set your hand to in this life, make the most of it. Whatever job you've been given, put your whole effort into doing that. You know, work as if you were working unto God in your marriage, put your best effort into it, in your families, put your best effort into it, and in your relationship with God. Give it everything you have.

Brethren, don't fritter away your time on frivolous things, on things that are dissipation that just sort of go to nothingness. Take the time that God has given you and make the most of it. Pursue the things of value. Pursue the things that have eternal consequence. Pursue the things that will last forever and pursue them with all your heart while it is called today.

Let us consider the prayer of Moses. Let it be a part of our prayer to God as well. Ask God to teach you to number your days properly so that we may gain a heart of wisdom. Wisdom that leads to obtaining those things that God has planned for us for all of eternity.