by Jeremy Lallier

Our physical lives are limited. Despite mankind’s considerable technological advances, we have no way of knowing how close we are to the end of our physical lives. Actuarial science can make reasonable guesses, but at the end of the day, that’s all we have—a guess.

Moses, the author of Psalm 90, was asking God for an invaluable gift: perspective. Numbering our days isn’t a matter of producing an accurate count of the minutes and hours allotted to us during our physical lifetime. It’s about learning to view our lives as the very precious and limited existence that it is. Moses’ request in Psalm 90 is one of the most practical steps we can take to redeem the time (Ephesians 5:16).

Numbering our days means realizing that the time we have on this earth is limited. That perspective ought to lead us to evaluate how we use our time. We have to look at the ways we fill our time and consider if our activities are worth a precious resource that is literally dwindling by the second.

Part of redeeming the time means understanding that we’re already running out of it. Our life has a purpose, and the ways we use our time are either going to reinforce or take away from it.

To learn more about the reason for your existence, read “Purpose of Life.”

See also our Daily Bible Verse Blog post “Walking in Wisdom.”