August 31
Ecclesiastes 3-5
Psalm 99:6-9
Proverbs 21:20-21
Galatians 6
Time and Seasons
“There is an occasion for everything, and a time for every activity under Heaven; a time to give birth and a time to die; a time to plant and a time to uproot; a time to kill and a time to heal; a time to tear down and a time to build; a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance; a time to throw stones and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace and a time to avoid embracing; a time to search and a time to count as lost; a time to keep and a time to throw away; a time to tear and a time to sew; a time to be silent and a time to speak; a time to love and a time to hate; a time for war and a time for peace.” Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 HCSB
Ecclesiastes is a depressing book. Solomon had everything anyone could possibly want. He had money, fame, women, possessions, wisdom, power, basically everything and he realized that none of it really mattered. None of it was the secret to contentment and happiness. People chase after the same things today and come to the same conclusion. When you climb to the top of the ladder, whatever ladder that might be, you realize it is just propped against a blank wall. Fame is fleeting, the richest people in the world are some of the most miserable, power can be taken away or lost in an instant, and possessions don’t provide love and intimacy. Solomon’s wisdom made him realize that nothing this world can offer is worth anything. It is a good reminder for us of the dangers of relying on the security and pleasure of temporal things. Value and meaning in this life are found in the things that are eternal. Our relationship with God, loving and serving people, building others up in their faith, and telling people about Jesus bring a sense of fulfillment and purpose that possessions and money are incapable of giving.
While most of Ecclesiastes is anything but encouraging, chapter 3 is comforting to me. I’ve been thinking a lot about seasons lately. Looking back over my life, there have been many different seasons I can identify. Seasons of laughter and tears, mourning and dancing. I’ve given birth to two beautiful daughters, and I am about to have the joy of watching as one of them gives birth to my granddaughter. I have spent seasons in hospital rooms with loved ones as they battled illnesses that ended in death. I have had seasons of health scares myself where I have faced my own mortality followed by seasons of thanksgiving for healing. There have been times when I knew I needed to speak up and other times when I needed to keep my mouth shut. I have watched as war broke out in other countries and I’ve seen what looked like war zones on the streets of cities across this country. But they are just seasons. War is always followed by a time of peace. Tearing down is followed by building up. Plowing is followed by planting and that is followed by reaping what we have sown. No matter how bad things get, another season is around the corner. Seasons come and go, but God is always faithful. He is with us through every season we face, and He brings good out of bad. He is our strength for today and our hope for tomorrow.
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