Short or long, your days are more than what you see

Life has a way of reminding each of us of its brevity and unpredictability. Unexpected moments come that remind us of the fragility of life itself. Early morning phone calls broadcast late night tragedies. Waters invade boundaries that are not theirs to claim. Friends whose lives seem to be an uphill path are cut short in their triumph. Like a Band-Aid being quickly torn from its wound, the unforeseen leaves each of us grasping for words that will sooth us and make some sense of the sudden event that has left us speechless.

The ancient words of Scripture remind each of us that the whole of our lives does not rest in our hands alone. Proverbs 9:11 says "For by me your days will be multiplied, and years will be added to your life." These living words remind each of us that life, its beginning and its end, do not rest in fragile hands but in the in the hands of the eternal Lord.

No matter our advances in science and technology, the unknown and unplanned will always be there. There was once a man who went to great lengths to protect himself from the unknown burglar he was certain was going to attempt to steal all that he held dear. He created systems of traps in his home: shotguns wired to fire at an unexpected late night pull of the basement door, shelves cut into the framing of the walls to be hidden by furniture and pictures. He never enjoyed the success of his life. He hid himself and his possessions behind curtains for fear that an unknown someone would look in, covet and remove what he had labored for. Rather than preparing him for the unknown, his attempts to protect himself left him living in constant, restless fear of it.

The Lord never intended his creation to live in the grips of fear. The unknown lurking in the corners can leave us fearfully and restlessly battling against them or living with the wisdom that they are there but our lives are not in their control. God acts to multiply both the quality and quantity of our days. Whether those days seem short or long, they are ones that he has calculated. Your days are more than what you see.

Rob Hurtgen is a husband, father and serves as the associate pastor at the First Baptist Church in Jackson.