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Psalm 90:1(0) A prayer of Moshe the man of God:
(1) Adonai, you have been our dwelling place
in every generation.
2 Before the mountains were born,
before you had formed the earth and the world,
from eternity past to eternity future
you are God.
3 You bring frail mortals to the point of being crushed,
then say, “People, repent!”
4 For from your viewpoint a thousand years
are merely like yesterday or a night watch.
5 When you sweep them away, they become like sleep;
by morning they are like growing grass,
6 growing and flowering in the morning,
but by evening cut down and dried up.
7 For we are destroyed by your anger,
overwhelmed by your wrath.
8 You have placed our faults before you,
our secret sins in the full light of your presence.
9 All our days ebb away under your wrath;
our years die away like a sigh.
10 The span of our life is seventy years,
or if we are strong, eighty;
yet at best it is toil and sorrow,
over in a moment, and then we are gone.
11 Who grasps the power of your anger and wrath
to the degree that the fear due you should inspire?
12 So teach us to count our days,
so that we will become wise.(Complete Jewish Bible)
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In the different communities that I am a part of, we can be obsessed with time. I recently listened to a lecture on the history of the wrist watch. The speaker provided some interesting new information, but then shared that even though he had many valuable watches, he was still often late. The Bible often speaks of God's time as Kairos, the time of opportunity and the promise of tomorrow, while the days and years in which we live is called Chronos. Chronos is a gift that orders and limits our days on the earth. The unfortunate reality is that we often let the gift of Chronos drive us without being open to the possibility that God's promising Kairos might be at play in our lives. The psalmist reminds us that God can teach us to count our days, to truly be cognizant of how we use them. Such knowledge belongs to wise hearts that are able to deal with whatever the day may bring.
Oh God, we give you thanks for this day and the ability to spend it in service to you and our neighbor. We pray that you will help us to see the value of our time and help us to not squander it in fruitless pursuits or selfish desires. Amen.
Rodger C. Prois, '93
Bishop, Western Iowa Synod, ELCA
Psalm 90:1 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, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
3 You turn us back to dust, and say, "Turn back, you mortals."
4 For a thousand years in your sight are like yesterday when it is past, or like a watch in the night.
5 You sweep them away; they are like a dream, like grass that is renewed in the morning;
6 in the morning it flourishes and is renewed; in the evening it fades and withers.
7 For we are consumed by your anger; by your wrath we are overwhelmed.
8 You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your countenance.
9 For all our days pass away under your wrath; our years come to an end like a sigh.
10 The days of our life are seventy years, or perhaps eighty, if we are strong; even then their span is only toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away.
11 Who considers the power of your anger? Your wrath is as great as the fear that is due you.
12 So teach us to count our days that we may gain a wise heart.(New Revised Standard Version)
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The Luther Seminary
2481 Como Avenue
St. Paul, Minnesota 55108, United States
Telephone: (651)641-3456-
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