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Ecclesiastes 3 - Embrace Change
4/3/2015 Creating this Digital Bible journaling page allowed me to look at Ecclesiastes 3 differently than I ever had before. Realizing that each statement in God's perfect timing is actually a "change" in our life brought whole new meaning to the verses for me.
Each day is precious no matter what it holds, so I need to fill it with things that help me draw closer to Jesus! The bad times are only for a season! Everything has its opposite, except for God.
3:2 God determines the day we are born and the day we die. Psalm 139: 13-16 Matthew 6: 27 Psalm 31: 15 God is sovereign. A farmer sows the seed, but God brings the sunshine and rain to determine the time to harvest. God is sovereign.
3:3,4 God is in the midst of our relationships and our emotional responses to the changes in life.
3:8 A time to hate seems wrong because we are supposed to love, but we can hate those things that do us no good.
3:11 Everything is beautiful in its time, whether the positive or the opposite negative, because God is perfect. God put eternity in ever heart. As in Romans 1:20, every person has the knowledge of God innately, but we can never know all that God has done or will do.
3:12, 13 is a repeat of verses. Solomon is still contemplating the purposes of this life.
3:14 Solomon states the purpose of life, to fear God, because God has done it all, and nothing can be added to or taken away from it, and what He does is forever. I am guilty of trying to add to what life is by striving for the more exciting, but there is nothing more exciting than the hope of heaven. I am guilty of trying to take away to what is life by complaining of less desirable, but there is nothing more less desirable than eternal punishment.
3:15 I am drawn to the words, "God seeks that which is driven away" and wonder what it is that has been driven away. Of course, the simple answer would be the lost sheep who are driven away by sin. It could also apply to merely my thoughts that have wandered unto the things of this earth and God seeks my thoughts to return to Him.
3:16, 17 Solomon points out that under the sun, on earth, where there should be justice and righteousness, there is still wickedness. Yes, even for judges or kings and queens, they are human and sin and make wrong choices. Bad people under disguise of good do get elected to positions of authority. So should I ever be under the authority of bad people, it is good to remember that the ultimate judgment in the end comes from God, who will judge all. Our hope is not in government, but in Christ.
3:18-22 Solomon points out that with regard to the flesh, people and animals are no different. All are from dust and to dust they shall return. Who knows whether people or animals go to heaven or to hell? It is not for me to know or be concerned, but that I only need to know my own relationship with Christ. There have been some people die in my life who were close to me that I could spend hours worrying about their faith at the end, but after they are gone, it is not my worry anymore. The same is true for my beloved pets and an unbaptized baby. My God is a God of love and that is good enough for me and I trust in Him and do not worry. Verse 22 indicates that it is my job to rejoice in my work on this earth, not to worry about the hereafter.