LIFE IS SHORT
Psalms 39:4-7 NKJV
4 "Lord, make me to know my end,
And what is the measure of my days,
That I may know how frail I am.
5 Indeed, You have made my days as handbreadths,
And my age is as nothing before You;
Certainly every man at his best state is but vapor. Selah
6 Surely every man walks about like a shadow;
Surely they busy themselves in vain;
He heaps up riches,
And does not know who will gather them.
7 "And now, Lord, what do I wait for?
My hope is in You.
I do not believe this was a negative moment for David. I do believe he had a glimpse of how big and eternal God is in comparison with how small and temporary our life is here on earth. Reading this passage out of the New King James Bible, my translation of choice, we don't get a clear picture of what David is expressing. So, I want to add the New Living Translation for the verses we are looking at today.
"LORD, remind me how brief my time on earth will be.
Remind me that my days are numbered—
how fleeting my life is.
You have made my life no longer than the width of my hand.
My entire lifetime is just a moment to you;
at best, each of us is but a breath."
We are merely moving shadows,
and all our busy rushing ends in nothing.
We heap up wealth,
not knowing who will spend it.
And so, Lord, where do I put my hope?
My only hope is in you.
Compared to eternity, our life here on earth is short. David was asking to be reminded of the brevity of our time here. And although it sounds a bit fatalistic, it is realistic. No one stays here forever. We get very much involved with our life here and lose sight of the fact that eternity is real and so much greater than our temporary life in the flesh. This is not an attempt to devalue people, just a perspective that compared to God, we are so much smaller. And even if we amass billions, we will not take it with us.
I do like where David ends up. He expresses that his hope is in the Lord. After determining that life is short and fleeting, that riches do not last, and all our efforts will pass away, David places his hope and expectation in the Lord. And this is the safest place to be. Our hope is in God not in ourselves. Our future in eternity is wrapped up in Him.
So we don't have to be negative about the temporary nature of our life here on earth. We can use our time to live strong for God and make a difference for His Kingdom. What a great reminder that our efforts for Him are not futile, but what we do for Him here will impact us on the other side. Paul wrote to his spiritual son Timothy and said that living for God is profitable in two realms. It profits our life here and the one to come. There is a life to come that will never end.
PRAYER
Lord, my hope is in You. Thank You for reminding me to make the most out of the short time I have here on earth. My future is with You in a world that will never fade away.