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“Show me, O LORD, my life's end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting is my life. You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Each man's life is but a breath “ – Psalm 39:4-5
My number is greater than 8,241 but still less than 26,491. That certainly narrows it down now doesn’t it? This is what it would be like if we had an LED on the bedroom wall and every morning you woke to the daily countdown. Even the Psalmist (believe to be David) wanted to know how many more days he had left. There is something about deadlines (literally in this case) that help us plan accordingly.
I’d still be a procrastinator. It’s in my personality, I work best with a finish line mentality, a conclusion to the hard work. I think many of us operate this way, intentionally or inadvertently. Play out the scenario with me though. At what point in my life clock countdown would I wake up and say, “Okay God, it’s time to live for you now.” Would I use the traditional value of a tithe at 10%, and keep the other 90% to myself and my fun filled action? According to the University of Washington research in June 2011, the high mark of life expectancy of an average male is 81 years, that’s 29,565 days. A tithe would mean dedicating 2,956 complete days to the Lord with zero thought, words or activities not focused 100% on Him.
Let’s say that I spend 1 hour a day focused on God through prayer time, serving others, going to church or reading/studying scriptures. That 1 hour represents 1/24th of my day (4.2%). If I have lived 17,309 days at 4.2% for the Lord, that would total 721 days. If the countdown on the wall read only 12,256 days left, I would need to dedicate 2,235 of those days to God just to reach my 10%. That means 18% of every day (4.4 hours) in complete focus on His glory and awesomeness. All of this assumes that I am average and my countdown clock is on target with the “average” male.
There are 2 take aways from this quick analysis. First, It’s amazing how little time we actually spend worshipping and loving God when you put it on a grander scale like a lifetime. The bible asks for us to offer 10% of our time, talent and treasure back to His kingdom; and He will in turn bless us abundantly, to the point of overflowing. Based on the above math, I am significantly lacking in the amount of time I am giving back to God. Secondly, I am thankful that there is no countdown clock on the wall. The reality is that we need to be living every day as if it is our last. Worshiping and praising as an expression of love and adoration of the One who created us. Seeing a clock on the wall, allows procrastinators, like me, to always put it off until tomorrow. Tomorrow is not promised to any of us, it is but the next step in our yet to be lived life plan. Live today for the Lord. Celebrate in the now and for what He has given you.
I’d still be a procrastinator. It’s in my personality, I work best with a finish line mentality, a conclusion to the hard work. I think many of us operate this way, intentionally or inadvertently. Play out the scenario with me though. At what point in my life clock countdown would I wake up and say, “Okay God, it’s time to live for you now.” Would I use the traditional value of a tithe at 10%, and keep the other 90% to myself and my fun filled action? According to the University of Washington research in June 2011, the high mark of life expectancy of an average male is 81 years, that’s 29,565 days. A tithe would mean dedicating 2,956 complete days to the Lord with zero thought, words or activities not focused 100% on Him.
Let’s say that I spend 1 hour a day focused on God through prayer time, serving others, going to church or reading/studying scriptures. That 1 hour represents 1/24th of my day (4.2%). If I have lived 17,309 days at 4.2% for the Lord, that would total 721 days. If the countdown on the wall read only 12,256 days left, I would need to dedicate 2,235 of those days to God just to reach my 10%. That means 18% of every day (4.4 hours) in complete focus on His glory and awesomeness. All of this assumes that I am average and my countdown clock is on target with the “average” male.
There are 2 take aways from this quick analysis. First, It’s amazing how little time we actually spend worshipping and loving God when you put it on a grander scale like a lifetime. The bible asks for us to offer 10% of our time, talent and treasure back to His kingdom; and He will in turn bless us abundantly, to the point of overflowing. Based on the above math, I am significantly lacking in the amount of time I am giving back to God. Secondly, I am thankful that there is no countdown clock on the wall. The reality is that we need to be living every day as if it is our last. Worshiping and praising as an expression of love and adoration of the One who created us. Seeing a clock on the wall, allows procrastinators, like me, to always put it off until tomorrow. Tomorrow is not promised to any of us, it is but the next step in our yet to be lived life plan. Live today for the Lord. Celebrate in the now and for what He has given you.
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