My husband texted me one day recently to inform me that on that very day it was 100 days until Christmas. Ugh. It was still summer. A few days later and still, technically summer, I was in my local warehouse store and was greeted with rows full of Christmas decorations.
So, we’re drinking pumpkin spice lattes and Christmas shopping in the summer. Once January rolls back around we just won’t be able to wait for summer again. If my math is correct, most of us seem to be okay with two-thirds of summer (providing it’s not too hot and there is water nearby), a brief flirtation with sweaters and pumpkin spice, maybe one day to watch the movie “Hocus Pocus,” and Christmas. It feels like we are forever wanting to skip the rest of it.
Don’t misunderstand, I know why retailers start early. I understand looking forward to things we enjoy. If you can’t get enough pumpkin spice, put your fall decorations out on August 1, and want to listen to Christmas music in October there is nothing inherently wrong with it. Those are simple enough ways to get some needed enjoyment out of life. I’m all for enjoying simple things that make us happy.
However, what God began to whisper to me in the middle of aisles of Christmas decorations is that while we try to jump over ordinary days in favor of chasing fun, happy stuff, sometimes we just can’t. No matter how much we celebrate a season or holiday in advance, we still must live life daily. We must go through the ordinary and the unpleasant one day at a time.
We’re so often trying to adjust time. When we’re young it’s common to wish it away. We can’t wait for summer breaks, big events, and certain milestone birthdays. Then we become parents and watch our children grow so fast it makes our heads spin. How many times have you been guilty of looking at their baby pictures and wished for time to slow down?
If you’ve ever watched someone you love suffering on the way to their death, you want to slow time and speed it up at once. It’s an awful paradox. We want to hurry through painful days. Why can’t those times where life isn’t going according to our desires just be quick? Oh, how there have been days in my life when I have wanted to press fast forward and skip times of pain. I’ve had enough character-building times, and maybe I don’t want to grow anymore. Can’t we just bypass all that if we promise to be good?
Ah time. No matter how we want to alter it, we can’t. We can’t make more or buy more. We can’t get a mulligan on yesterday or a head start on tomorrow. I could pull out Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 and remind all of us how there is a time for everything. It is a beautiful passage. But what God put on my heart was not about everything in its season, but rather making the most of the time we’re in. I believe it’s important that we relish the time He is giving us without trying to rush through it or dig our heels in and slow it down.
Psalm 90:12 (NKJV) is part of a prayer written by Moses that says, “So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” The entire chapter focuses a lot on our limited time. We’re reminded to rejoice in all the days.
A couple of things jump out to me about verse 12, though. Numbering each day makes each day important on its own. Each has its own identity. There is much to be learned and gained from each individual day. Also, numbering days means days have an end number. Our time here has a conclusion. Our days are, in fact, numbered. When we think of our days in a limited quantity, each one gets more valuable. A heart of wisdom isn’t interested in racing through them but rather enjoying each of them for the purpose God has given them.
Friends, go ahead and look forward to special things in life that you enjoy. If you want to sing Christmas songs all year long, have at it. If you want to stock up on pumpkin spice creamer so that you can drink it in March, go nuts. But don’t forget that your days are numbered, and there is something worth rejoicing about in each one of them – even the hard, character-building ones. Don’t wish your days away.
