Day 84 — My Times Are in His Hand

Main verse

“My times are in thy hand: […]”
— Psalm 31:15 (excerpt) (KJV)

Meditation

At the end of a week devoted to waiting, several questions may remain unanswered. We still do not know when a situation will change, whether a door will open, or in what form the hoped-for answer will come.

David does not say that he controls the times of his life. He affirms that they are in God’s hand. Seasons of beginning, growth, delay, and fulfillment do not belong entirely to him.

This confession does not remove his responsibility. David still had to make decisions, face dangers, and fulfill what was entrusted to him. But he refused to carry the impossible weight of governing every outcome and timetable himself.

We can do the same. We work faithfully, pray persistently, and take the opportunities that arise. Then a point comes when continued worry adds nothing to our action. We must then entrust time to God.

Placing our timetable in his hands does not mean that delay stops hurting. Some waits concern health, family, safety, or a deeply legitimate hope. God welcomes this pain; he does not reproach us for feeling it.

But rest becomes possible when, for a moment, we stop constantly watching the clock. We recognize that our lives do not lose their value because a promise remains unfulfilled.

Today is more than a waiting room for tomorrow. It is a real day, inhabited by God’s presence. We can love, serve, learn, and receive within it.

Let us now give God not only what we await, but also the moment when we hope to receive it. Our times remain in his faithful hands.

Psalm

Psalm 31:14–24 (KJV)

¹⁴ But I trusted in thee, O LORD: I said, Thou art my God. ¹⁵ My times are in thy hand: deliver me from the hand of mine enemies, and from them that persecute me. ¹⁶ Make thy face to shine upon thy servant: save me for thy mercies’ sake. ¹⁷ Let me not be ashamed, O LORD; for I have called upon thee: let the wicked be ashamed, and let them be silent in the grave. ¹⁸ Let the lying lips be put to silence; which speak grievous things proudly and contemptuously against the righteous. ¹⁹ Oh how great is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee; which thou hast wrought for them that trust in thee before the sons of men! ²⁰ Thou shalt hide them in the secret of thy presence from the pride of man: thou shalt keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife of tongues. ²¹ Blessed be the LORD: for he hath shewed me his marvellous kindness in a strong city. ²² For I said in my haste, I am cut off from before thine eyes: nevertheless thou heardest the voice of my supplications when I cried unto thee. ²³ O love the LORD, all ye his saints: for the LORD preserveth the faithful, and plentifully rewardeth the proud doer. ²⁴ Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the LORD.

Further Bible reading

Ecclesiastes 3:1–11; Acts 1:6–8; 1 Peter 5:6–7

Suggested hymn

The Church Hymnal (1941), no. 404 — “My Jesus, as Thou Wilt”

View the hymn reference ↗

Prayer

Lord, I entrust to you what I await and when I would like to receive it. Give me faithfulness to do my part, then the rest of leaving in your hands what I can neither hasten nor control. Teach me to live this day fully with you. Amen.

A thought to keep

Today is more than waiting for tomorrow; it is already time God gives me to live.

Personal Notes

What would you like to remember, pray about, or put into practice today?