So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom. (Psalm 90:12, ESV)
Our lives move through different rhythms that often repeat year after year. The physical seasons—fall, winter, spring, summer—are the foundation for many of these rhythms and provide the opportunity for all of creation to work, rest, and rejuvenate. We also have internal rhythms that influence our spiritual, emotional, and mental well-being, both in positive and negative ways.
I had the opportunity to play golf twice over the Thanksgiving holiday and even though I was playing with a dear friend, I found myself feeling ambivalent about the second round we scheduled. I wanted to be with my friend, but I had little desire to swing the club.
Authentic thanksgiving is gratitude that remembers the little ways God’s grace pours out over us every day.As I pondered why I had no ambition to play, I remembered how for more than 30 years November and December were my offseason. Growing up as a junior golfer in Northern Idaho, our snow-covered winter provided a natural rhythm for an offseason. Throughout college and my years on tour, I intentionally took six weeks of no play or practice in November and December. My body needed a break after the long competitive seasons and it still holds the memory of that same rhythm today, even though I’m not competing.
While I was mindful to care for my physical body at the end of a season, I was not attuned to what my heart and mind needed. I was ignorant of the deeper spiritual care of gratitude and contemplation that are available during our yearly Thanksgiving and Christmas rhythms that coincided with my golf offseason.
For more than two decades, I drifted through the holidays with a numb heart. I was grateful for and believed in the holiness of Jesus’ birth, but my heart was hardened from unspoken trauma and loss. I cared for my physical body by taking time away from golf, but I offered little to no care for my heart. I allowed my days to pass by with little feeling or no purpose.
Authentic thanksgiving is gratitude that remembers the little ways God’s grace pours out over us every day, a gratitude that is independent of our circumstances. The season of Advent, the four weeks leading up to Christmas morning invites us into a contemplative space where we allow ourselves to feel the ache of anticipation for the coming of the Lord Jesus. Gratitude is the gateway to remaining present to this ache that resides within our souls if we are willing to notice it.
The Hebrew word for “number” in our verse today is manah, which also means to prepare or to appoint. “So teach us to [prepare, appoint] our days…” First, pray. Pray for what is not yet so that our days won’t pass us by. Consecrate them for his purposes and then enter each new day to accomplish those purposes. Regardless of what happens, be intentional.
In a few days, the spiritual rhythm of Advent welcomes us to once again (re)awaken our hearts to the ache of anticipating what is to come. Jesus is inviting us to prepare our days so that we may “get a heart of wisdom.” A heart that thirsts for his unending love and presence.
—
Tracy Hanson
November 30, 2017
Copyright 2017 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.