DO BIBLE VERSES EFFECT OR INSPIRE YOU?

My times are in your hands. Ps 31:15.

Recently, this verse was in my daily devotion. A simple verse, yet so powerful. It makes me stop and think about how I spend my time. There is a commercial on PBS, where the announcer says, “The only thing we don’t have enough of, is time.” We can’t buy it, prolong it, move it. As a teenager I remember not wanting a day to end. Now I’m grateful our bodies were created with the need to rest, restoring us.

Someone shared with me a you tube video called the Jelly Bean Lesson, where Ze Frank takes a jar of jelly beans to symbolize all our days. He wonderfully demonstrates what an average American life comprises. Below is his calculations for how we spend our time.

28,325 represents all our days that an average American will live. (78 years)

• 5475 First 15 days
• 8477 Days we sleep
• 1635 Days sleeping, eating, preparing food
• 3202 Days at work
• 1099 Days traveling/commuting
• 2676 Days watching TV
• 1576 Days household activities: shopping, cleaning our homes, taking care of pets
• 564  Days taking care of the needs and wellbeing of family and friends
• 671   Days bathing, grooming
• 720  Days community activities: Church, volunteering, civic duties, charities, classes
• 2,740 Days we have left about 7.5 years!

We realize how precious a day is when we see it this way. Knowing my time is in His hands, do I spend my time wisely? Do I laugh enough, worry less? How much time is devoted on things that aren’t important? If I knew this was the last day on earth, would I spend it differently? Throughout my day, do I trudge through the insignificant moments, or live as if for the Lord?

This psalm about my times being in God’s hands really inspired me to contemplate the above questions. I printed out some Bible verses about time and placed them around my computer. I also memorized several, saying them throughout my hours reminding me to cherish each day.

Has meditating on these verses changed my habits? Not entirely yet, but it’s helped me with a mindset.  It has made me slow down, be more appreciative of the little things, and letting go of minor irritations. If we are in God’s hands then we can face the small and big challenges with the knowledge we are not alone. We can seek with confidence the joy in daily life.

We are two and a half weeks into Lent, a great time for reflection, recalibration, and commitment. Forty days for us to set aside and perhaps establish a new pattern for the order of our days. Starting each with a devotional sets my day right. If I ever skip, I find a piece missing in my heart, longing to connect with the simple Word.

I hope these verses touch you and can bring some light into this meaningful season of Lent and Easter.

Which Bible verses have effected or inspired you? 

Please share your verse in the comments and how it has made a difference in your life. 

May we remember our times are in God’s hands.

Jelly Bean Lesson: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOksW_NabEk&t=164s