Posted by Psalm 39:4 “Show me, LORD, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting my life is”
Stewarding in Three realms
David expresses his diligence in measuring his thoughts, the words of his mouth, and his behavior. All three are being recorded 24/7 and entered into heaven’s data bank. David knew that life is about the stewardship of God’s resources. As the redeemed, we will all stand before the judgment seat of Christ to determine how we will lead with Him at the restoration of all things. Our thoughts words and deeds will all be examined. (see 2 Cor. 5:10 and Eph. 6:8).
Think Well (God Examines our intentions)
Throughout the Scriptures, we are encouraged to carefully weigh the merits of wise instruction. Proverbs 4:21-23 says, “Do not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart; 22 for they are life to those who find them and health to one’s whole body. 23 Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” The word heart can accurately be rendered “mind,” it refers to the interior mind or “inner self.” Here is the control center of all we think and feel, here is where our core values reside.
I remind myself from time to time to guard my mind. My desire is to have my thoughts be pleasing to God and profitable to the Kingdom. Psalm 104:34 says, “May my meditation be pleasing to him, as I rejoice in the LORD.”
Paul encourages the Church at Philippi to measure and direct their thoughts, saying, “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things” (Philippians 4:8). Great advice to keep our mind in line with God’s Kingdom purpose.
Speak Well (Our words will help us or hurt us)
Paul says, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen” (Ephesians 4:29). Jesus says, “A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of” (Luke 6:45 ). Keeping control of our thoughts helps us to measure our words. Keep in mind we are emissaries of the Kingdom representing Christ before a watching world.
Live Well (We have an allotted time to complete our assignments)
Redeem the time, Moses in Psalm 90:12 says, “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom,” Moses understood his responsibility to steward the time God has allotted him. We all have a certain number of years in which to complete our assigned mission. In Ephesians 2:10 Paul says, “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
Like Moses, David says, “You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Everyone is but a breath, even those who seem secure” (Psalm 39:5). I’m amazed at the brevity of life.
Making the most of the time we have should be of major concern to all of us, for our life on earth is brief in the grand scheme of things (see Eph 5: 16– 17). How important it is for us when looking at our to-do list, to understand that the time we allow for a project is more valuable than the project itself.
Paul is an example of redeeming his time and encourages believers saying, “whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you” (Philippians 4:9 ). With less technology, he accomplished more than most of us.
Leave an Inspiring Legacy
Psalm 39:6 “Surely everyone goes around like a mere phantom; in vain they rush about, heaping up wealth without knowing whose it will finally be”
David undoubtedly taught this to his son Solomon who years later went on to write about this very thing in Ecclesiastes. Solomon writes in Ecclesiastes 2:21 “For a person may labor with wisdom, knowledge, and skill, and then they must leave all they own to another who has not toiled for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune.”
How important it is to steward our God-given resources of thoughts words and actions to accomplish what He’s designed us to do. Instead of building wealth for the sake of possessing them, and passing them on to someone who hasn’t labored for them, why not do it to establish God’s covenant purpose for our lives? (see Deut. 8:18).
Leaving an inspiring legacy begins with modeling a life well lived, and the wise use of our assets. If we do our best following God’s instructions we will surely hear Him say in the end “well done my good and faithful servant!”
(1) Featured image from https://churchleaders.com
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