Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days. Psalm 90:14
For some months now I’ve been corresponding with a young man who’s thinking deeply about faith. On one occasion he wrote, “We’re no more than teeny, tiny, infinitesimal blips on the timeline of history. Do we matter?”
Moses, Israel’s prophet, would agree: “Our days . . . quickly pass, and we fly away” (Psalm 90:10). The brevity of life can worry us and cause us to wonder if we matter.
We do. We matter because we’re deeply, eternally loved by the God who made us. In this poem, Moses prays, “Satisfy us . . . with your unfailing love” (v. 14). We matter because we matter to God.
We also matter because we can show God’s love to others. Though our lives are short, they’re not meaningless if we leave a legacy of God’s love. We’re not here on earth to make money and retire in style, but to “show God” to others by showing them His love.
And finally, though life here on earth is transient, we’re creatures of eternity. Because Jesus rose from the dead, we’ll live forever. That’s what Moses meant when he assured us that God will “satisfy us in the morning with [His] unfailing love.” On that “morning” we’ll rise to live and love and be loved forever. And if that doesn’t create meaning, I don’t know what does.
When have you struggled with wondering if your life counts? How does Psalm 90 help?
I’m grateful, loving God, that I matter to You. Help me to share You with others.
INSIGHT
More psalms are attributed to David (seventy-three) than any other writer. Asaph, David’s worship leader, comes in second with twelve, followed by the sons of Korah with eleven. Other known writers include Solomon, Ethan, Heman, and Moses. Psalm 90 is the only psalm attributed to Moses. Its superscription states: “A prayer of Moses, the man of God.” He wrote this psalm (and some suggest the anonymous psalm that follows) in the wilderness as he led the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt to freedom in the promised land of Canaan. That makes Psalm 90 the oldest poem in the book. Its theme speaks of the brevity of our life as contrasted with the eternal nature and majesty of God. It’s important to note that Moses also wrote the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible, while in the desert.