We naturally assume that there will always be tomorrow—that there will always be another chance for this or that. We become procrastinators in our arrogance, assuming that the limited number of days we have on this earth will never come to an end. Because we drift toward this kind of arrogance in which we are the charters of our own destiny, we need God’s help to have a true gauge of our own mortality.

Teach us to number our days carefully so that we may develop wisdom in our hearts (Psalm 90:12).

Numbering our days means having a sense of our own mortality. It means recognizing, humbly, that we have a limited and set amount of time on the earth. It means not thinking so highly of ourselves that we live with a false sense of immortality. And, according to the psalmist, this is a very good thing. So good, in fact, that he prayed that God would help him actually do it. That fact leads to a few observations about numbering our days that I hope will be helpful.

1. Numbering our days is not natural to us.

Notice that this is indeed a prayer. Like all requests we offer in prayer, this is born out of need and an acknowledgment of something we cannot do for ourselves. In this case, the thing we cannot do for ourselves is know how to number our days carefully. We naturally assume that there will always be tomorrow—that there will always be another chance for this or that. We become procrastinators in our arrogance, assuming that the limited number of days we have on this earth will never come to an end. Because we drift toward this kind of arrogance in which we are the charters of our own destiny, we need God’s help to have a true gauge of our own mortality.

This is the point James made in James 4, a chapter diagnosing the disease of pride, when he reminded us all that we should be careful about assuming on the time-table of our lives. Even in things like planning trips, meetings, and anything else, we would do well to remember that “you don’t even know what tomorrow will bring—what your life will be! For you are like smoke that appears for a little while, then vanishes” (James 4:14).

2. Numbering our days is not morbid.

For some, this is a hard prayer to pray. That’s because for some, thinking on the nature and inevitability of death is a morbid concept. But for the Christian, thinking realistically about death is not only not morbid, it’s actually a good and motivating thing. It helps us to remember who we are in the grand scheme of the universe and ultimately moves us to greater humility before God who has no beginning and will have no end. Though the context of the psalm does indeed include reflection on the nature of sin around the psalmist and in the world, he’s not begging God for an end to his life. Instead, he’s asking for the right perspective on all such things, be they good or bad, to live in light of the limited amount of time we all have.

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