What do you think of when you hear the expression, “To number our days”? Do you take it literally? Should you start numbering your days only at the end of your life? The Bible teaches us that all believers, young and old, need “to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom” (Ps 90:12).

In Genesis 47, Jacob and his family were in Egypt because of the famine and because of Joseph in Egypt. And Jacob was reaching the end of his life.

God gave Joseph the wisdom to help the Egyptians when they experienced the famine. They appreciated what Joseph did to help them. Joseph’s actions were in harmony with God’s will. He exercised prudence in doing God’s will and prudence in dealing with the Egyptians.

Calamities can teach us many lessons and can reveal the true character of believers. We need to ask God for prudence when confronted with calamities.

Some of us have more free time as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. But what have we been doing with our free time? Do we spend it pursuing the things of the world? Do we use the pandemic as an excuse for not serving God? Have we exercised prudence during this pandemic? May God give us the desire and the wisdom to continue to serve Him faithfully during the pandemic.

Jacob was at the end of his life and he asked Joseph to promise to bury him in the Land of Promise when he died. Why did Jacob not want to be buried in Egypt? He knew that Egypt was a temporary place for him, and that Canaan was God’s Promised Land.

Do we know that this earth is just a temporary place for us? How do we prepare to leave this earth? How do we prepare for death? Believers must prepare for eternity by numbering their days on earth. Are you living with eternity’s values in view?

Jacob’s desire to be buried in the Promised Land was an act of faith. He had made many mistakes in his life, but the Lord moulded him and he was a good testimony at the end of his life. We too must live our days on earth for the Lord, and be wise to see eternity ahead of us, beyond our earthly life. May God help us “to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.”