Finish the Assignment

Perspective is a funny thing. It causes people to see things differently than another individual simply because of the vantage point one has. Individuals look at the very same thing and yet draw different conclusions all because their outlook differs from another’s. I have observed how differently children respond to rollercoaster lines at an amusement park. An excited child looks at a line winding before them as unending, feeling it was progressing too slowly, envisioning the thrills about to occur, and fearing the ride may close before they ever get there. Seeing the same line, another child with some sort of apprehension concerning the ride sees the line moving too quickly, conjuring scenarios of potential catastrophes, and hoping the ride would close down before they got to the boarding spot. Same line, different child, alternate perspectives, and resulting in different emotions.

     Life is often like that as perspectives alter the way we process what will happen in the future. In some ways we are all headed for a “rollercoaster” called life and view that prospect very differently. Some have an adventurous spirit built into their DNA while others are injected with a sense of apprehension as they process what lay before them. The adventurous seem to be inoculated with a sense of immortality. Another, bearing the weight of apprehension, feels their mortality deeply and often events in their lives are seen as a threat to their longevity. The reality the Bible enjoins is “Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring” (Proverbs 27:1 NIV). Neither the adventurous nor the apprehensive has a perspective that is assured.

     The tragic events that have occurred in recent months has made clear that one’s perspectives may not reflect or alter reality. A trip to the grocery store, a day at the elementary school in the last days before summer vacation, or a night of relaxation on a city street may be drastically altered by the deviant and distorted perspective of another. In other cases, a trip in a car, a ride on a bike, a walk on a country road, a rumble of thunder on a Spring evening, or attendance at a religious service, all can end very differently than anticipated. Does this mean we should shelter in place because nowhere, no time, and no one is safe? Does this mean we embrace a fatalistic view of life, “Eat drink and be merry for tomorrow we die?”

     David the Psalmist suggests that there is another alternative as we face the rigors of life. David has gone through numerous difficulties before his writing of Psalm 39 and is cautions as to how he responds to those painful experiences. He curbs his tongue. He acknowledges the distress that is boiling in his life. He then asks God to give him a necessary perspective in life. He writes these powerful words, “Lord, remind me how brief my time on earth will be. Remind me that my days are numbered—how fleeting my life is. You have made my life no longer than the width of my hand. My entire lifetime is just a moment to you; at best, each of us is but a breath… Hear my prayer, O Lord! Listen to my cries for help! Don’t ignore my tears. For I am your guest—a traveler passing through, as my ancestors were before me” (39:4-5, 12 NLT).

     Perhaps adversity and age help one to appreciate what David is saying. As people travel through life, they experience the tears of misfortune and understand what was churning in David’s emotions. Others advanced in years have seen or experienced hardships in what they consider a brief life. They process how life moves so quickly and not without difficulty. Perhaps that is why the “Prayer of Moses” is recorded in the Psalms, “But even the best years are filled with pain and trouble; soon they disappear, and we are gone…Teach us to make the most of our time, so that we may grow in wisdom” (90:10, 12 NLT).

     One activity that has recently caused me to appreciate Psalm 90 is to read the obituary pages in the newspaper. Years ago, the obituary had little interest to me. These were old people. I had as Robert Frost said, “Miles to go before I sleep” (“Stopping by woods on a snowy evening”). In recent years I glance at the obituary pages with a different perspective. I am seeing people that are more my contemporaries. Suddenly I’m sensing, “Maybe I don’t have so many miles to go before I sleep!” Then the follow-up question is, “What am I doing with the miles, or years, that are left?” Perhaps the request in Psalm 90:12 is a wise one, “Teach us to make the most of our time.”

     What do we do to “make the most of our time?” Perhaps Jesus summarized it well when he said, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind… equally important: Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:37, 39 NLT). What kind of adjustments do you think would occur in our lives if this was the monitor of the moments of our fleeting life? Maybe more time would be spent developing our friendship and intimacy with God than developing friends or likes on social media. Perhaps it would mean less amusements and more investments of time in healthy relationships that reflect our love of people. Rick Warren in his book The Purpose Driven Life shares an important reminder, “Life is a gift... Life is a test... Life is a temporary assignment....” I would add, “Boldly finish the assignment we are given in life to the glory of God.”