Teach Us to Number Our Days

"Never blame a day in your life; good days give you happiness and bad days give you experience. Both are essential in life to make you a seasoned person." This is a quote from my friend, Dominic,  who lives in Africa. God connected us, which is so amazing to me. Anyway, we have become prayer partners and he has been such an encouragement to me. He has prayed for me faithfully and I hope he knows what that has meant to me. Anyway, his statement rang so true for me.


Life is like a roller coaster. Sometimes you are going slowly uphill and it feels as if you will never reach the top. Other times, you are racing downhill and your heart is in your throat with fear. Still other times you are feeling exhilarated and joyful. That sounds a bit like life, no? Just like Dominic said, the good days in our lives show us what joy and happiness mean. We truly have to remember to savor each and every day God gives us. Too many times, we go along in our daily grind and barely pay attention to the wonders that surround us. I am guilty of this too. We grow complacent and take for granted that tomorrow will come as scheduled. When things are good, we are in danger of forgetting to be grateful for our blessings.


I work in oncology and being up close and personal with people who may be dying really tends to put life in perspective. Dominic has also helped me to see that I have been taking for granted all the amazing things my country has to offer. As much as people complain about our healthcare system in the US, it is still head and shoulders above most other countries, including Dominic's country, which is Uganda. His mother is suffering terribly with diabetes. She has had her leg amputated and, because they do not have a lot of money, they have to rely on public healthcare, which, I am sorry to say, is very poor. If she lived in the US, she would probably still have her leg.


I share Dominic's story with you for this reason. As he also said, bad times give you experience. I like to say that if we allow ourselves to learn from our trials, we gain wisdom. When I see my patients or hear about how Dominic's mother is suffering, I realize that my problems are not small, but they are certainly manageable. I also realize that most things, good or bad, are only temporary. In the good times, we must be in the present, enjoying every second and thanking God for His blessings in our lives. In the bad times, we must hold on to the hope that it is only temporary, have faith that it will work for our benefit somehow, and look for the lesson we can learn that will help us gain wisdom that we can share with others.


Life is so very precious and it is limited. This life we have is the shortest part of eternity. No one is promised tomorrow. I do not say this to scare anyone. I say this to help you keep things in perspective. Ask yourself this; if you knew that your days were numbered, are you living the life you want to be living today? Are you stuck in an attitude of complaining and bitterness? Is that how you want to spend your remaining days in this life? There is a scripture I like to read every now and again to remind myself to stop being complacent, "Teach us to number our days that we may gain a heart of wisdom" (Psalm 90:12). So, like Dominic said, I challenge you to delight in each and every day. When things are good, enjoy your life and be grateful for your blessings. When things are bad, look for the lesson and hold on to the hope that it will get better. Do not waste a second of this life that God has given you. It is just too precious! God bless!