Life Is Short... How Do I Make it Count? - Your Daily Bible Verse - April 23

Audio By Carbonatix

Life is Short... How Do I Make it Count?
By Jeanne Doyon

I will praise the Lord while I live; I will sing praises to my God while I still have my being. - Psalm 146:2

I don't know how many years I have left to live and love. Life is short and the older I get, the clearer that is to me. The fact is, none of us know. Life is short, so I think I should live each day with that in mind.

The meaning of this verse is the psalmist’s desire to lift up the Lords praise throughout his whole life – while he still has breath. I will praise – I will sing.

This is a determined prayer. It is present tense—I will do it now.

No matter what I face – I will praise.

No matter what is going on, I will sing praises to God...

Praise is more powerful than we can imagine:

- Praise routes the enemy.

- Praise stirs our spirit.

- Praise ascends to God’s throne as an offering.

- Praise erects a shield to combat defeat, and depression.

- Praise overcomes grumbling.

- God is worthy of that praise and he loves to hear it – to smell the fragrant offering.

We can find other references to this:

Psalm 63:4 says, “so I will bless Thee as long as I live; I will lift up my hands in Thy name.”

Psalm 104:33 that tells us, “sing to the Lord in my lifetime; Let me sing praise to my God.”

I want my life to matter. Romans 12:1 says to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice—as worship. I want to give my all to God. How about you?

We don’t know about tomorrow—we aren’t even sure there will be a tomorrow. So, I want my life to be a fragrant offering today. Because life is short. And, my life belongs to God. He bought me with the blood of The Lamb.

What are some ways you can live in the spiritual moment?

What is worthy of praise today?

Reflect on today’s verse with us. Share your thoughts in the Your Daily Bible Verse discussion on the Crosswalk Forum.

Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Lock Stock

This devotional was adapted from Jeanne Doyon’s 7-day devotional “Psalm 146: The Call to Praise the One in Whom You Trust.” You can access this and other free resources from Jeanne here.

Related Resource: Praying Through Psalms 60: Victory in Hopeless Ground

What do you do when the battlefield stretches in every direction, and it looks like God Himself brought the defeat?

Join Jaime on the Praying Christian Women Podcast for a devotional on Psalm 60 — a raw, honest lament born out of being surrounded on all sides, where David dares to say You did this, God — and still picks up the banner and calls Him Lord.

Jaime unpacks the historical backdrop of David fighting enemies to the north, east, and south all at once, and shares a breathtaking story from her years near Death Valley — where barren, salt-crusted flats that look permanently dead suddenly erupted into a once-in-a-century bloom of purple wildflowers. Sometimes the victory is already buried right beneath the most hopeless-looking ground, waiting for God's rain to bring it to life. If this episode helps you navigate life with prayer and intention, be sure to follow Praying Christian Women on Apple or Spotify so you never miss an episode!