Proverbs 10:27

12,841. That’s the number of days I’ve been alive. It’s different thinking about your life in terms of days instead of years. I mean, seriously, go ahead and try it. For some of you, that’s quite a bit more math, perhaps more than I can calculate, but for others simple addition will do just fine. Regardless how long you’ve been on this earth, every day, every sunrise is a blessing from God.

I know this blog is designed to share stories from Souter’s life and I’ll get there in a second, but I’m reminded this morning of another man that impacted my life. James Blackburn was his name. To be honest, I didn’t remember his first name until I asked some friends because I knew him as Mr. Blackburn. I really don’t know much of his story, but his faithfulness and dedication to attend church and follow Jesus filled in the pages. When I was younger, I often saw Mr. Blackburn walk from his house there in the village of Otway to the church where he attended. It just so happened to be the same church I grew up in as a young boy, Otway Christian Union. Mr. Blackburn would use his cane as he slowly made his way to his seat—the second pew from the front. You see, Mr. Blackburn was blind, but he didn’t let that stop him from gathering together with other believers. Those memories are precious, but what I remember most was at any given time, Mr. Blackburn always knew the exact number of days he had been alive. Even later in his life when he was moved to an assisted living facility, he was sure to remind me, during every visit, of the exact number of days he had been blessed to live on this earth. If I remember correctly, the verse Mr. Blackburn shared each time was Psalm 90:12, “So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.” Those conversations have helped me, over the years, to appreciate the beauty of another day.

Now I’m not sure if Souter kept a tally on the days he had been alive, but I know he believed in the promise found in Proverbs 10:27, again, circled in his Bible.

“The fear of the Lord prolongeth days: but the years of the wicked shall be shortened.”

I think it’s fairly easy to see this proverb focuses on time. The words “day,” “years,” “prolongeth,” and “shortened” all describe the ticks of a clock, yet they detail quite different measures, which hinge on how we choose to live our lives. You see, some of us decide to embrace what the verse calls the “fear of the Lord.” Now to be clear, by that, I think it means we live to please our Heavenly Father. We respect and love Him. It’s not that we are afraid of Him in the sense we are terrified of His actions toward us. Rather, it’s a respect, like a son or daughter should have of their parents, but all the while, know love is central to the relationship. Simply put, for those that choose Jesus, the promise is a longer life.

But on the other hand, some are drawn to the ways of the wicked—choosing to live by the selfish desires of the sinful nature. The proverb speaks with great transparency and while there will always be exceptions, I think it is best understood this way—sin damages and destroys. It wreaks havoc on our bodies and our relationships and can bring about God’s judgement. For those who choose “wickedness,” well, consider yourself warned. Your days are likely to be cut short.

I think all of us, at some point, have chased after diets, exercise plans and the like in an effort to help extend our health and add a few days to the counter. From taking steps to eliminate stress to choosing leafy greens from the grocery store, efforts like these are common themes among health conscious people. Well, okay, I’ve at least heard this is true. Any health conscious people reading (or listening)? Maybe I should learn a thing or two.

I mean, Souter himself adamantly drank water because he wasn’t keen on consuming sodas with all their sugars. He was also knowledgeable about the medicinal use of plants, one in particular was yellow root. My aunt, Paula Roush, recently shared this story with me. When she was younger, she had a severe sore throat. Somehow Souter heard about it and brought my grandfather, Harold Boldman some yellow root for her to try. In her own words, Paula said, “It was nasty stuff, but it cleared it right up.”

While I joke, I do agree it is important to be disciplined in our lifestyle choices and to take care of our bodies, but even greater, though, is the care of our souls. And I think Souter would agree. I think the apostle Paul in his letter to Timothy said something similar. He wrote, “For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come” (‭‭1 Timothy‬ ‭4:8‬).

It’s godliness that makes all the difference. The choice to follow Jesus and walk in godliness affects not only the number of days we experience on this earth, but also where we will spend ALL of our days in eternity. Take some time today to consider your life, your days. I’m not sure if Mr. Blackburn and Souter are still counting their days now that they have an infinite number of days ahead of them, but I know their prayer would be for you to choose Jesus. It really is the best life.