The Benefits of Knowing Your Need for God
Andrea Mantegna, The Adoration of the Shepherds, 1456
“For a thousand years in your sight are like yesterday when it passes by, or as a watch in the night…So teach us to number our days, that we may present to you a heart of wisdom.” Psalm 90: 4,12
Psalm 90 is a prayer of Moses in which he recognizes the transient nature of human life. He calls the things we take pride in nothing more than “labor and sorrow” (90:10) that end just as quickly as they begin. This line of thinking may seem discouraging to some; however, Moses ends his prayer with a way forward: “teach us to number our days, that we may present to you a heart of wisdom” (90:12). Some translations say, “that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.”
Developing an awareness of the brevity of life and of our great need for God, finding significance and fulfillment in him alone, and continually pursuing His wisdom are habits that the Holy Spirit teaches us. And we learn and practice them over a lifetime of partnership with him. Meanwhile, he provides an abundance of grace through that process.
There is wisdom to be gained, and even more than that: in verse 14, Moses says, “O satisfy us in the morning with your lovingkindness, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.” This is the daily reality and result of living with an active recognition of our need for God, because in this recognition of our need, we behold the One who meets that need, who has all power and love, who sees a thousand years as a watch in the night, and who has traded the treasure of heaven to be our “dwelling place in all generations” (Psalm 90:1).
REFLECT
Psalm 90 encourages us to recognize our human limitations so that we may look to God to be sustained and satisfied. Additionally, in II Corinthians 12:9, God tells Apostle Paul that His strength is made perfect in our weakness. What are some ways you can see God’s strength being made perfect in your weakness?
Ephesians 5:16 discusses how important it is to “redeem” the time we’ve been given on the earth. While none of us knows the length of our days but God, what can it look like to “number our days,” to “redeem” or steward the time we’ve been given?
In Christ, the reality of Psalm 90:14 can be ours every day. How can we become more open to receive the lovingkindness of God?
Moses asks God to “teach us to number our days,” and John 14:26 refers to the Holy Spirit as our teacher. What has the Holy Spirit been teaching you lately?