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Moses wrote in Psalm 90:12 “So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.”
All of us prepare for the seasons of the year. (If you don’t believe me, check the mall parking lots around the holidays.) All of us know how to plan for New Year’s Day, Valentine’s Day, Easter, July 4th, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. We understand the rhythms of the seasons. Now let’s see if we can look at our passing years the way we look at the passing seasons. If my math is right, every five days would represent one year (using Moses’ average life span in Psalm 90:10). Here’s an idea – Plan your life like you plan your year.

Think about a Lifetime the Way You Think About a Year

The day you were born – Happy New Year! It’s the start of a brand new life and a brand new year. What a wonderful season! Your whole life and your whole year are before you. Get ready! Here we go.

At 9 years of age, you would find yourself at Valentine’s Day. It’s still too early for spring, but things are beginning to change. Now drawing hearts means something new. Valentine’s Day introduces you to love – and not just the mom and dad kind. When you discover this kind of love, everything begins to change! Most importantly, when you come to know the love of Christ for you and learn to love Him, you will find Him to be a wonderful, lifelong guide.

You would be “sweet 16” on St. Patrick’s Day … and not a moment too soon either! This “green” day reminds you of the green freshness of spring. In this season of “spring cleaning,” you must sort out the treasure from the trash. At 16, you are choosing between good and garbage – constantly. Your choices in “spring cleaning” stay with you all year long, and that’s just like life. You need the Lord’s help to know trash from treasure.

You need the Lord’s help to know trash from treasure.

At 18, you’re late in March and ready to march. Congratulations! High school is behind you; the world lies at your feet. Spring is in full swing! It’s a time to plan your planting, and remember, you will reap what you sow. So much of the rest of your “life year” will be formed by the choices you make here. It’s always the right time to trust the Lord and ask Him for wisdom.

Age 22? You’re in the Easter season and already making some very adult decisions. As the flowers bloom and the weather warms, you see bright new horizons ahead of you. Already you have seen the results of some of those trash/treasure decisions. Did you notice that what you planted is exactly what came up? As you plan out vacations and holidays, you begin to realize that the course of your “life year” is pretty well set. How you “applied your heart to wisdom” has made all the difference.

When you’re 27, you would be celebrating Mother’s Day, and, by Memorial Day, you would be “over the hill” at 30! The weather is warm and the plans are many. Now you are making decisions, not only for yourself, but for others. You have more responsibilities and more prospects. Sometimes opportunity comes knocking – with some very hard knocks! It becomes more and more obvious what kind of life and what kind of year you’ve made for yourself.

If you are in your mid-thirties, it’s time to celebrate July 4th. Isn’t independence great? But how did time pass so quickly? Valentine’s Day was just yesterday, right? These are warm days, sweltering “years,” hot with the activity of many well laid plans. The real fruit of your choices is starting to show and grow. It’s still the right time to “number your days” and “apply your heart to wisdom!” Think about it. How many more sunrises and sunsets do you expect to see? Use those days wisely and well.

It’s time to “number your days” and “apply your heart to wisdom!”

By the time you’re fifty, it’s Labor Day, and the summer is over. It’s harvest time! So many choices you made earlier in the year, and earlier in life, are now ready for harvest. You begin to understand the phrase “too soon old; too late smart.” Fall is on the way. Is that snow on the roof already?

It seems like a stretch, but if you’re 65 you would be at Thanksgiving. (Whew! let’s stop to catch our breath!) In this season of the year, you want to gather all your loved ones together. The word “family” is more important than ever. It’s time to gather together to enjoy the fruit of your labors. It’s time to bless and be blessed.

At 70, it’s Christmas. . . who would have believed it? There isn’t as much daylight as there used to be, and it’s a little tougher to be out and about. When you get to this age, you can guess how many more of these beautiful holidays you will enjoy. Reminiscing in this season brings back the memories of a lifetime. The treasure of those beautiful memories must push aside the trash of the bad memories. It’s time to bless others with the fruit of your year and the fruit of your life.

In which season of the “life year” are you now living?

Wisdom teaches us to use each season of life the right way. It’s never too late to make some adjustments to honor the Lord.

As this new year lies before us, I hope you will treasure every moment that you have, and remember “time waits for no man.” None of us is guaranteed three score and ten years. “So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom” Psalm 90:12.

In which season of the “life year” are you now living?

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Failures aren’t finished!

Check out these biographical messages from the life of Peter. These messages reminds us that  failures aren’t finished. Let’s study the life of the Apostle Peter to discover how the Lord can still work through us today.