Five Invitations - Day 14
DAY 14 - Today is Temporary
Psalm 39:4-7
David’s prayer in 1 Chronicles 29 shows a final attitude adjustment that helps him connect with God through giving. He prays in v.15, “We are here for only a moment, visitors and strangers in the land as our ancestors were before us. Our days on earth are like a passing shadow, gone so soon without a trace.â€
David isn’t saying that this material world doesn’t matter and “I can’t wait until we’re ghosts hanging out in heaven!†He’s not talking about place, but time. Life before death doesn’t last long, especially in comparison to life in eternity. Today is temporary.
Jesus teaches us the same thing in Matthew 6:19-20, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven.†David echoes the theme again in Psalm 39. He remembers the shortness of life.
Today is temporary. These things are temporary. They’re scarred by sin and waiting to be lifted to a higher level of permanence, into glory. The problem is we put too much value and too much trust in temporary things. So we hold tighter to our stuff and yell “Seize the day!†Knowing today is temporary shifts our perspective to the truly long-term, the eternal. It lifts our eyes up to God.
If today is temporary, then I can hold money and things loosely. If today is temporary, I can give willingly and joyfully. If today is temporary, I can give to God. If today is temporary, I can trust God who lasts forever.
Giving then becomes an act of faith. It strengthens our relationship with God because we’re trusting God to provide what we need, even when we give away some of what we have.
REFLECT:
How does the possibility of life with God in eternity affect how you live today? How does it affect the way you use money and material things?
PRAY:
Lift up my eyes, Lord, from the temporary. I want to hold money and things more loosely. Help me to live in the light of eternity when this world is purified and glorified. Amen.
Psalm 39:4-7
David’s prayer in 1 Chronicles 29 shows a final attitude adjustment that helps him connect with God through giving. He prays in v.15, “We are here for only a moment, visitors and strangers in the land as our ancestors were before us. Our days on earth are like a passing shadow, gone so soon without a trace.â€
David isn’t saying that this material world doesn’t matter and “I can’t wait until we’re ghosts hanging out in heaven!†He’s not talking about place, but time. Life before death doesn’t last long, especially in comparison to life in eternity. Today is temporary.
Jesus teaches us the same thing in Matthew 6:19-20, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven.†David echoes the theme again in Psalm 39. He remembers the shortness of life.
Today is temporary. These things are temporary. They’re scarred by sin and waiting to be lifted to a higher level of permanence, into glory. The problem is we put too much value and too much trust in temporary things. So we hold tighter to our stuff and yell “Seize the day!†Knowing today is temporary shifts our perspective to the truly long-term, the eternal. It lifts our eyes up to God.
If today is temporary, then I can hold money and things loosely. If today is temporary, I can give willingly and joyfully. If today is temporary, I can give to God. If today is temporary, I can trust God who lasts forever.
Giving then becomes an act of faith. It strengthens our relationship with God because we’re trusting God to provide what we need, even when we give away some of what we have.
REFLECT:
How does the possibility of life with God in eternity affect how you live today? How does it affect the way you use money and material things?
PRAY:
Lift up my eyes, Lord, from the temporary. I want to hold money and things more loosely. Help me to live in the light of eternity when this world is purified and glorified. Amen.
Posted in Fall 2022
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