Stewardship Week: Thursday

So teach us to count our days
    that we may gain a wise heart

Psalm 90:12

Today is Thursday, October 15th, 2026. On this date in 1582, people in parts of Europe woke up to a remarkable change. The day before had been October 4th. Now it was October 15th! With the introduction of the Gregorian calendar, they omitted ten days to correct a growing mismatch between the calendar and the seasons. No one had actually lost ten days of life. The dates had changed; time had continued. Still, imagine looking at the calendar and watching so much of October disappear overnight!

Sometimes our own calendars seem to move that quickly. We begin a week with good intentions. We mean to call a friend, spend time in prayer, or help with a ministry that matters to us. Then the week fills up, and the things we intended to do are postponed. We tell ourselves we will have more time later.

Our scripture reading from Psalm 90:12 offers this prayer: “So teach us to count our days that we may gain a wise heart.” The psalmist is asking for more than the ability to keep a calendar. He is asking for wisdom to recognize the value of the life God has given. 

John Wesley encouraged Christians to practice the means of grace, including prayer, searching the Scriptures, worship, and acts of mercy. These are ways we open ourselves to God’s transforming presence. Through them, God’s sanctifying grace shapes our hearts and teaches us to live more fully in the love of Christ. Yet these practices require something we cannot put in an offering plate: our attention and our time. Our theme, “Faithful Today, Fruitful Tomorrow,” reminds us that today is where our response to God begins. Planning our financial giving matters. So does making room in our lives for the people and purposes that giving supports. A church’s ministry needs both generous resources and people willing to be present. This does not mean filling every hour with another responsibility. Faithfulness is not the same as exhaustion. Sometimes love asks us to slow down, listen without checking the clock, or receive the gift of rest. A wise heart learns the difference between being busy and being available.

Before this day is over, choose one intention to put into practice. Call the person who has been on your mind. Set aside time to pray. Contact a ministry leader at St. Andrew about a way to serve. Begin with something you can offer today. We cannot return to yesterday, and we do not yet hold tomorrow. But here is this day, held in the grace of God. What a gift! Let us receive it gratefully and live it lovingly.

Let us pray:

Dear God, thank you for this day. Give us wise hearts, attentive spirits, and the courage to make room for what matters. May the time we offer today bear fruit in love tomorrow. Amen.

Rev. Geoff Beakley