Learning to live wisely in the gift of time
“Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” — Psalm 90:12
There are some verses you do not merely read. You live long enough to feel them.
This is one of them.
As I come to the close of year 88 and prepare to enter year 89, Psalm 90:12 speaks to me with a fresh weight. These words are no longer simply beautiful. They have become deeply personal. I am more aware than ever of the passing days.
At this season of life, time feels different. The days are precious. They are not abstract. They are counted. Measured. Given by God.
I find myself living more consciously by the calendar than I once did. There are ministry responsibilities, family needs, School of Ministry assignments, prison services, appointments, interruptions, and quiet moments with the Lord. Some days are full from morning until night. Others slip by more quickly than I intended. But all of them matter.
That is the prayer of Moses in Psalm 90. He does not simply ask for more time. He asks for wisdom in the time he has been given.
That is a better prayer.
Most of us, if we are honest, ask the Lord for more days, more time, more opportunity. But Moses teaches us to ask something deeper: Lord, help me live wisely in the days I already have.
To number our days does not mean we become preoccupied with age or consumed by the calendar. It means we become awake. Awake to the brevity of life. Awake to the value of each day. Awake to the quiet mercy of ordinary moments. Awake to the reality that every day is a gift entrusted to us by God.
A numbered day is not a diminished day. It is a sanctified day.
It is a day received with gratitude and lived with purpose.
The older I grow, the more I find myself wanting to spend less time on what does not matter. Some things that once seemed urgent no longer do. Some opinions lose their heat. Some ambitions fade. And through it all, one desire grows stronger: to know His presence and to walk in His will.
That, I believe, is part of gaining a heart of wisdom.
Biblical wisdom is more than knowledge. It is more than experience. Wisdom is learning how to live before God rightly. It is seeing life from His perspective. It is learning what deserves our yes and what deserves our no. It is knowing when to move, when to wait, when to speak, and when to be still. It is living this life with eternity in view.
None of us knows how many days remain. Whether we are young or old, life is still a vapor in the light of eternity. But there is grace in recognizing that. The wise heart does not presume upon time. It receives each day as a trust from the Lord.
And so, at this point in my life, I find myself grateful.
Grateful for the days already given. Grateful for the faithfulness of God through wilderness years and fruitful years. Grateful for family, for ministry, for the Word of God, and for the steady hand of the Lord that has carried me farther than I could have gone on my own.
Even now, I believe this prayer matters.
Lord, teach me to number my days.
Not merely to count them, but to value them.
Not merely to schedule them, but to surrender them.
Not merely to watch them pass, but to live them wisely.
In the end, a life is not measured only by how long it was lived, but by whether it was lived with God.
Closing Prayer
Lord, teach us to number our days.
Teach us to see time as a gift and life as a stewardship.
Deliver us from wasting our days on what will not last.
Give us wisdom to walk in Your will, grace to serve faithfully, and hearts that remain tender in Your presence.
Help us to receive each day with gratitude and to live it with eternity in view.
And when our days are complete, may it be said that we walked with You.
In Jesus’ name, amen.
— Paul E. Potter
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