1 For everything there is a season,
a time for every activity under heaven.
2 A time to be born and a time to die.
A time to plant and a time to harvest.
3 A time to kill and a time to heal.
A time to tear down and a time to build up.
4 A time to cry and a time to laugh.
A time to grieve and a time to dance.
5 A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.
A time to embrace and a time to turn away.
6 A time to search and a time to quit searching.
A time to keep and a time to throw away.
7 A time to tear and a time to mend.
A time to be quiet and a time to speak.
8 A time to love and a time to hate.
A time for war and a time for peace.
9 What do people really get for all their hard work? 10 I have seen the burden God has placed on us all. 11 Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.
S(cripture) - I have seen the burden God has placed on us all. Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.
O(beservation) - Solomon had it pretty good according to the world's standards - picture "lifestyles of the rich and famous" - wine, women and song . . . As I reflect on what this got him (read all of Ecclesiastes - or at least chap 1, v 2!), I remember how Jesus said, "Yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed like one of these [flowers]." Solomon had it all and labled it "meaningless." His beautiful poem on time has been made into a sweet song*, but when you get to the end of it (Solomon's poem), it's pretty bleak - "the burden God has placed on us all." And what is that burden? God's planted eternity in our hearts - a sense that there is more than this life. Solomon in his life of duplicity saw this gift of eternity as a burden. Wonder if this is why so many are struggling so in our culture?
[*not coincidently, the song by the Byrds came out in 1965 - the year the Vietnam War was started and at the height of civil rights protests - talk about a country in upheaval!]
A(pplication) - I shared yesterday in a comment that everybody's mission connected to their use of (and amount of) discretionary time will be different. Solomon seems to have understood this. The stages of your life will determine where and how we can serve - single, dinks (dual income - no kids), families with preschoolers, school age, highschool, sports, empty nesters, retirees . . . Our mission will change as we change and our life situation changes.
But there is one thing that should never change. One way we should never slice our time is to make most of it secular and the remainder sacred - actually any compartmentalization that sees some of our time as God time and other time not. All time can be sacred time - if we can begin to avoid the distractions, find ways to remind ourselves our of purpose and move intentionally as missionaries. Even with Solomon's enumerated dichotomies (how do you like those big words?), we should be able to see that there is opportunity for the sacred in both. Go back and read and reflect on how God can be present all the "time." Honestly, this is the essense of the simple life. Simplicity not duplicty. One thing.
P(rayer) - Abba, help me to make all of life sacred - meal time, play time, time with family, work time, cleaning time . . . You want me to mediate on You and your law - day and night. I have a long way to go. Help me discover creative ways to stay connected to you through out my day. In Jesus' name. Amen.
an exploration of Kingdom life at the intersection of God's Word and God's World.
3 comments:
This is the second time this idea has come to me today. I've been reading a blog and the last few weeks she's been examining the idea of making everything she does for God. I've been pondering this a lot, especially the last few days. I really appreciate you posting these. Even if I can't make it to church I do get a lot out of reading these.
@D - the Spirit's call doesn't change - Brother Lawrence wrote the Practice of the Precense of God - short and pithy. Rob Bell video-taped an hour long teaching on "Everything is Sacred." We lose out on so much when we compartmentalize our lives. Learning to let God be a constant companion is not easy, but an incredible joy. I am no expert but have had those moments - some longer than others when God was there everytime I "looked up." Thanks for sharing.
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