Satisfy Us in the Morning

Psalm 90 is credited to Moses, and many consider it the oldest psalm in the Bible. It is a sober prayer. Moses spends the first half talking about how short life is. We are like grass that grows up in the morning and withers by evening. A thousand years are like a day to God. Our years end like a sigh. It is not a happy beginning. But it is true.

Then in verse 12 Moses turns that hard truth into a prayer. “So teach us to number our days, that we may present a heart of wisdom.” Numbering your days does not mean being morbid. It means being realistic. You do not have forever. Your kids will not be little forever. Your parents will not be here forever. The chance to make things right with that brother will not last forever. Wisdom begins when you remember you are not God and your time is limited.

Then Moses cries out. “Return, O LORD! How long will it be? Have compassion on Your servants.” Then he asks for this: “Satisfy us in the morning with Your loving devotion, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.”

That is a remarkable prayer. Moses knows life is short and often hard. So what does he ask for? Not a longer life. Not an easier one. He asks to be satisfied, filled up, with the steady love of God. And he asks for it in the morning. He wants to start the day full.

Be honest. What are you trying to be satisfied with? Most of us start the day hungry for something. Approval. A good number on the scale. A better paycheck. A quiet house. None of those things are evil, but none of them can fill you. You will eat and still be hungry. Only God’s loving devotion can satisfy a human soul, and it is strong enough to make you glad all your days, even the hard ones.

The New Testament shows us where that love is found. Paul writes, “He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also, along with Him, freely give us all things?” If God gave you Jesus, He has already given you the best thing. The cross is God saying, I will hold nothing back from you. That is the love that satisfies.

Moses ends with a request about work. He asks that God’s favor rest on His people and that God would establish the work of their hands. He says it twice, like a man who really means it. He wants his short life to count. He wants what he builds to last.

Here is the good news for you as you head to the job site or the office or the classroom or the laundry pile. Your work matters to God. Paul says, “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast and immovable. Always excel in the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” Because Jesus rose from the dead, what you do for Him will not be lost.

So start this morning with Moses’ prayer. Number your days. Ask God to fill you with His love before anything else tries to. Then ask Him to establish the work of your hands. Short lives, filled by God, can still leave something that lasts.