“So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts to wisdom.” Psalm 90:12

Life can be lost to hurry. In our rush to tomorrow we miss the delights of today. And so the dance continues.

The number of days only ever diminishes, so it is wise to stop and take stock of how you are spending them. Are the moments dripping through your fingers in pursuit of something you already have? Or something that you think you want but on inspection could never satisfy your craving?

It is easy to live by default, reacting to circumstances as they rush by, rather than living by design, cultivating the life that you desire.

And by that I don’t mean the American dream. Whoever the ‘American’ is, he has much to answer for. The dream (or more precisely what the dream has mutated into) that has been foisted on unsuspecting generations drives the ambitions of millions over a precipice of endless discontent.

This is not the way of Jesus.

His purpose for you is richly furnished with provision, but is not driven by market forces. It is not moulded by passing fads and fashions.

God has great plans for your prosperity in every arena of life, and all that is necessary for fulfilment is already baked into your future.

Steps of humble obedience will get you there.

Applying your heart to wisdom will yield results far greater than the heart-attack-inducing chase that the world’s idea of significance offers.

“Seek first the Kingdom of God.”

That’s what Jesus said.

“…and all of these things (that the world is seeking) will be added to you.”

That’s easy to read, but hard to apply.

The driving forces and currents of modern culture are strong and drag so many into the raging life of rushing.

What you seek first, as your priority above all else, determines what comes second, third, fourth, and fifth.

Getting them in the wrong order is a recipe for confusion. Broken marriages, burned out bodies, irrational fears, and premature deaths, all testify to misplaced priority.

You are designed to multiply. You are destined to bear fruit. But the greatest fruit will be borne on the branches of those with the deepest roots.

Why do I say all of this? Is this not supposed to be a rallying call to live to your full capacity?

Absolutely, but capacity begins with consecration.

Jesus is the Vine. You are the branch.

The flow of divine life comes from Him, through you, to others.

Jeremiah records the Lord’s lament:

“For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.” (Jeremiah 2:13 KJV)

Drawing only from our own resources. Shaping your purposes and judging your successes by human hewed measures, is a leaky world of pain and disappointment.

In the pursuit of greatness, and the drive to grow and expand, it behoves us to remember that there are far more precious and valuable things than the accolades the world deems worthy of note.

As we seek to be more productive and useful to others through our service, however that looks, be sure to keep first things first. Keep drawing sustenance from the Source, and number your days not in dollars but in devotion.

Sow abundantly to the spirit, and let the fruit of your outer life be the overflow of an abundant inner connection with Jesus, and in doing so you will become an earthly steward of Heaven’s storehouses.