The brevity of life

The days of our lives are seventy years; . . . yet their boast is only labor and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away. — Psalm 90:10

On October 19, 2008, I heard the news that Levi Stubbs, lead singer for Motown’s vocal group The Four Tops, had died at age 72. As a boy, I enjoyed the Four Tops, especially Stubbs’ emotion-filled, passionate voice. I had never met him or heard the group in concert, yet his passing affected me at an unexpected level.

Behind my sadness, I think, was the reminder that I too am getting older. The death of someone I listened to when I was young reminded me that time isn’t marching on — it’s running out!

In the only psalm attributed to Moses, he wrote, “The days of our lives are seventy years; and if by reason of strength they are eighty years, yet their boast is only labor and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away (90:10). Those aren’t words we want to hear. We want to remain forever young, but Scripture reminds us that the years pass and death will one day arrive.

That leaves us to wrestle with two essential questions: Am I ready to “fly away” at life’s end, having trusted Christ as my Savior? And am I using my fleeting days to please the One who loves me eternally?

How are you doing — no matter what your age — with the challenges raised by the brevity of life? — Bill Crowder

Our vigor of fleeting, our best years are brief,

Our youth passes quietly — time’s ever a thief;

But hope yet becomes us — death’s sting holds no power;

We have a Redeemer — an unfailing Tower. — Gustafson

READ: Psalm 90

You can’t control the length of your life, but you can control its depth.

The Bible in one year:

•Esther 1-2

• Acts 5: 1-21