our daily bread
Dexu Xia
The Burden of Waiting
Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. Psalm 90:12
Over the last few years, two members of my family have faced life-threatening diagnoses. For me, the hardest part of supporting them through their treatments has been the constant uncertainty. I am always desperate for a definitive word from a doctor, but things are rarely that straightforward. Instead of being given clarity, we are often asked to wait.
It’s hard to bear the burden of uncertainty, always wondering what the next test will reveal. Will we have weeks, months, years, or decades before death separates us? But regardless of disease and diagnosis, each of us will die one day—things like cancer just bring our mortality to the forefront instead of letting it hide in the recesses of our minds.
How can we best spend the time we’ve been given?
Faced with sobering reminders of our mortality, I find myself praying words that Moses once prayed. Psalm 90 tells us that though our lives are like grass that withers and fades (vv. 5–6), we have an eternal home with God (v. 1). Like Moses, we can ask God to teach us to number our days so we can make wise decisions (v. 12), and to make our brief lives fruitful by making what we do for Him count (v. 17). Ultimately, the psalm reminds us that our hope is not in a doctor’s diagnosis, but in a God who is “from everlasting to everlasting.”
How can we best spend the time we’ve been given?
Share your thoughts with us at odb.org.
We can face the reality of our own mortality because we trust in God.
等待的压力
求祢指教我们怎样数算自己的日子，好叫我们得着智慧的心。-诗篇90篇12节
过去几年，我有两位家人罹患了致命的疾病。对我而言，在陪伴他们度过治疗的这段期间，最困难的一件事情就是什么都无法确定。我巴望着医生能给个确定的答案，但总是事与愿违。医生给我们的并不是明确的答案，而是无尽的等待。
无法确知事情的发展，带来了难以承受的压力，让人不断猜想下一次的检查会出现怎样的结果。我们还有多少时间相聚？是几周、几个月、几年，或是数十年？但不论我们患了何种疾病，或得到什么诊断，终有一天，我们每个人都必须面对死亡。癌症之类的疾病，只不过是突显了人类必会死亡的事实，让人不能对此继续抱持驼鸟的心态。
面对人人必有一死的事实，我也像摩西那样祷告。他在诗篇90篇说，我们生命虽如草一般枯干（5-6节），但上帝却是我们永远的居所（1节）。我们也可以像摩西一样，求上帝教导我们数算自己的日子，让我们凡事都能做出明智的抉择（12节），并求上帝坚立我们为祂所做的工，让我们短暂的生命结出丰盛的果子（17节）。此外，这篇诗篇也指出，我们的盼望并不在于医生的诊断，而是在于“从亘古到永远”的上帝。
我们该如何善加运用上帝所赐的日子？
我们因为信靠上帝，便可以坦然面对死亡。
灵粮透视:
从永恒的角度来看，我们在世上的年日不过是沧海之一粟。若你记得，上帝是现在的上帝，也是永恒的上帝，那你要如何展现你在上帝里的盼望呢？