Key Takeaway
We can take comfort in our smallness, in our significance, and in the fact that God has a plan and a purpose for each of us to worship Him in all of His wonder.
Every year is another trip around the sun—a 584-million-mile journey that God has already set in motion. Whether or not you’ve made resolutions, you’re already 21 days into it. The question isn’t if you’ll take the trip, but how you’ll live it. Psalm 90:12 gives us the prayer for the year ahead: “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”
To live wisely, we must begin with perspective. Psalm 90 shows us three truths: the sovereignty of God, the smallness of man, and the satisfaction of salvation.
Moses writes, “Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting, you are God” (Ps. 90:2). God has reigned over every generation; He is not new to the story. By contrast, humanity is fleeting: “You turn men back to dust…for a thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by” (Ps. 90:3–4). Our lives are brief, fragile, and easily consumed by sin.
But God does not leave us in despair. His compassion meets us in our frailty. Verse 14 prays, “Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.” The eternal God who flung the stars into the sky also entered our world. The One who breathed out galaxies came to Earth in Jesus Christ, lived a perfect life, and died on a cross so we might be forgiven and restored to Him.
This perspective changes everything. You and I are small, but we are deeply loved. We are not created to simply nod at God as royalty in passing, nor to live ordinary, self-centered lives. We were made for communion with Him, to walk humbly with Him, and to shine His glory in the world.
So as you make this trip around the sun, remember: God is sovereign, you are small, and yet you are known and prized by Majesty. Live wisely. Live fully. Live for His glory.
Discussion Questions
How does Psalm 90 help reframe the way we think about time and our brief lives?
What does it mean to “number our days” in practical terms?
How does recognizing God’s sovereignty change the way you approach the year ahead?
Why is it freeing to admit our smallness before God?
What dangers come from living as though life is centered on ourselves?
How does Psalm 90 connect both the seriousness of sin and the hope of salvation?
Why do you think Moses asks God to “satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love”?
How does seeing the grandeur of creation—stars, galaxies, the universe—lead us back to worship?
In what ways can God’s greatness shape your resolutions, plans, or dreams for the year?
What would it look like for your year to carry the banner: “Relationship with God”?
