It’s About Time

It’s About Time

 

The expression “it’s about time” is usually used for something that is overdue or in reference to someone who finally did something they should have done a long time ago. But here in Psalm 90 it refers to the fact that this psalm is about “time”. Time is the main subject. Another interesting note about this psalm is that it is said to be a prayer of Moses. This would be the only psalm written by Moses. I’d like to talk about two things this psalm says about time. First, here are verses 1-2: Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations. 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. God is eternal. When we think about the word eternal I think most of us think about something that never ends. But in reference to God, the word eternal also means someone who never began. God has been or “is being” from everlasting to everlasting. I think God’s eternal nature is intended to help us to hold God in awe, to realize that we are not God. He is “wholly other”.

The second thing about time here that I want to focus on comes from verse 12: So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.  What does it mean to “number our days”? None of us knows how many days we have. I think what Moses is asking for is the ability to appreciate each and every day that he has, and to understand that as the days accumulate, so does our capacity for wisdom. Time is “on our side” as it relates to wisdom. The passing of time should lead to an increase in our wisdom. I’m pretty sure that everyone reading this would consider yourself “wiser” than you were 20 years ago; or even 10 years ago. Let us “number our days”, appreciating each one of them and the ability that time has to be used by God to increase our wisdom. It’s about time that we appreciate and understand how valuable and important time is.