God is timeless, but He knows our timely limitations – He cares about our days.
I received my new passport a couple of weeks ago. My last one covered ten years of my life – I look at my youngish photo and review all the places I have been: US, Egypt, Greece, Spain, Italy, Mexico – there’s been a lot of living in the last decade. I look at my new passport and realize it will take me until I’m 81! That’s quite a thought!
It’s got me thinking as I read through the book of Exodus in preparation for a pilgrimage to Egypt in the new year. After the plagues against the Pharaoh, with the death of the oldest still causing pain, the Israelites were allowed to leave. The date of their parting was very interesting. “Now the length of time the Israelite people lived in Egypt was 430 years. At the end of the 430 years, to the very day, all the Lord’s divisions left Egypt” Exodus 12:40,41. The Living Bible paraphrases this to say: “This night was selected by the Lord to bring his people out from the land of Egypt…” The very day was important to the Lord of the universe, inhabiting the timelessness of eternity.
The bible describes our lives as the grass that springs up with the morning dew and turns brown and dies under the burning sun of the day. Even our oldest people live a short time. God is timeless, but He knows our timely limitations – He cares about our days. He thinks about you and me – He knows the numbers of hairs on our head. He has set out our timeline. AW Tozer said: “I believe every man is immortal until his work is done.” And isn’t it wonderful that one day we will be with Him forever – there will be no time restraints then!
How are your days going? Do you feel you have lots of time? Just a little time left? As believers, let us rest in God’s best for us knowing that He has known us before we are born and desires to have us live with Him forever. In the meantime, “Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”
Pastor Leon Throness
