In the middle of the night it starts. A nasty cold in my little one; germs gathered from the physical therapy gym. Knowing I will miss church in the morning, I rise early to read Scripture. Ecclesiastes, the whole 12 chapters, because I'm mesmerized and I can't put it down. I want more wisdom to match these wrinkles, I suppose?
This Solomon, he did it all and felt it all and watched it all...everything under the sun.
He starts thus (Ecc 1:2):
"Meaningless! Meaningless!"
says the Teacher.
"Utterly meaningless!
Everything is meaningless."
And twelve chapters later, he concludes (Ecc12:13-14):
Now all has been heard;
here is the conclusion of the matter;
Fear God and keep his commandments,
for this is the whole duty of man.
For God will bring every deed into judgment,
including every hidden thing,
whether it is good or evil.
Solomon fell away from God during his life, but at the end he repented of his foolishness. He wants us to learn from his mistakes. Stop scurrying around, chasing after the wind, pursuing this and that. Remember God now, right now.
Ecc. 12:10
Remember your Creator
in the days of your youth,
before the days of trouble come
and the years approach when you will say,
"I find no pleasure in them"--
If we're constantly chasing after something--success, money, recognition, possessions, power, pleasure--we don't put God first. We make idols of the things we chase. Later, when we're old and our years are wasted, we'll grieve that we didn't remember God. We will be judged for how we spend our time. Each day is a gift and it matters what we do with it.
So...what is worthwhile? How should we spend our time?
So I commend the enjoyment of life, because nothing is better for a man under the sun that to eat and drink and be glad. Then joy will accompany him in his work all the days of the life God has given him under the sun. Ecc. 8:15
Ecc. 9:7-12
Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for it is now that God favors what you do. Always be clothed in white, and always anoint your head with oil (signs of happiness and celebration). Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love, all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun--all your meaningless days. For this is the lot in life and in your toilsome labor under the sun. Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planing nor knowledge nor wisdom.
I have seen something else under the sun:
The race is not to the swift
or the battle to the strong,
nor does the food come to the wise
or wealth to the brilliant
or favor to the learned;
but time and chance happen to them all.
Moreover, no man knows when his hour will come:
As fish are caught in a cruel net,
or birds are taken in a snare,
so men are trapped by evil times
that fall unexpectedly upon them.
We should live with joy! In celebration with the ones we love. "Time and chance happen to them all." We do not control our own destiny, though it's tempting to believe we do. We won't have a better destiny by toiling too much.
Whatever God has given you--whether much or little--give thanks and enjoy. Not pursuing pleasure only, or work only. But in the right measure--which God will show you as you walk with Him--work hard with a glad heart
And because Solomon testifies that how we spend our time matters, here is a link about crafting a family mission statement (same one I shared yesterday). And here is an online inventory to discover your spiritual gifts...another tool to discover what God wants from you.
My joy list, because Solomon says joy is worthwhile:
~ Cuddling with four sick kids.
~ Holding a coughing three-year-old against my chest at 4:00 in the morning, smelling her sweetness and living the blessing, as she slept more soundly in the upright position
~ Having an unbelieving relative tell me "Perhaps you shouldn't be giving Compassion International $38 a month (for Nelson in El Salvador) because doesn't your own family need that money? Doesn't charity begin at home?" By the grace of God, I was able to tell her that He always gives that money back to us and more, each month. Just two days before her advice, we were given six tickets to go to "A Day Out With Thomas". It's an expensive Thomas the Train event in which you get a twenty-five minute ride on a train coupled with Thomas the Train. At each train stop there are Thomas-related activities to choose from. We were given six tickets by the hospital Beth goes to for her arthritis-related needs. In addition, the same hospital gave us free tickets to the local zoo, along with lunch and fellowship (and education) with other families who receive services from the pediatric rheumatology department. All patients and their families were invited. You can never out give God! And we should never fear that if we give, we won't have enough. Enough doesn't come from us, but from God.
~ A loving and loyal husband to spend my days with. One who lets me take his picture with a pink toy teacup in his hand.
~ Roses blooming and the girls all excited.
~ Watching the sparrows gather grass for nests.
~ Veggie Tales to watch on sick days.
~ Making cookies for sick ones, including Husband, and hearing their thankful hearts.
~ So far, no arthritis flare from Beth's nasty cold. I am praying hard!
~ An e-mail invite to a wiener roast on Sunday, right after Peter asked, "when can we go to a bonfire and make smores?"
~ The temperamental lawn mower, which works one time in fifteen, worked this weekend, long enough to do the whole lawn! God provides, just not always in our timing.
~ Extra time to fold clothes, since the kids are too sick for school.
This Solomon, he did it all and felt it all and watched it all...everything under the sun.
He starts thus (Ecc 1:2):
"Meaningless! Meaningless!"
says the Teacher.
"Utterly meaningless!
Everything is meaningless."
And twelve chapters later, he concludes (Ecc12:13-14):
Now all has been heard;
here is the conclusion of the matter;
Fear God and keep his commandments,
for this is the whole duty of man.
For God will bring every deed into judgment,
including every hidden thing,
whether it is good or evil.
Solomon fell away from God during his life, but at the end he repented of his foolishness. He wants us to learn from his mistakes. Stop scurrying around, chasing after the wind, pursuing this and that. Remember God now, right now.
Ecc. 12:10
Remember your Creator
in the days of your youth,
before the days of trouble come
and the years approach when you will say,
"I find no pleasure in them"--
If we're constantly chasing after something--success, money, recognition, possessions, power, pleasure--we don't put God first. We make idols of the things we chase. Later, when we're old and our years are wasted, we'll grieve that we didn't remember God. We will be judged for how we spend our time. Each day is a gift and it matters what we do with it.
So...what is worthwhile? How should we spend our time?
So I commend the enjoyment of life, because nothing is better for a man under the sun that to eat and drink and be glad. Then joy will accompany him in his work all the days of the life God has given him under the sun. Ecc. 8:15
Ecc. 9:7-12
Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for it is now that God favors what you do. Always be clothed in white, and always anoint your head with oil (signs of happiness and celebration). Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love, all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun--all your meaningless days. For this is the lot in life and in your toilsome labor under the sun. Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planing nor knowledge nor wisdom.
I have seen something else under the sun:
The race is not to the swift
or the battle to the strong,
nor does the food come to the wise
or wealth to the brilliant
or favor to the learned;
but time and chance happen to them all.
Moreover, no man knows when his hour will come:
As fish are caught in a cruel net,
or birds are taken in a snare,
so men are trapped by evil times
that fall unexpectedly upon them.
We should live with joy! In celebration with the ones we love. "Time and chance happen to them all." We do not control our own destiny, though it's tempting to believe we do. We won't have a better destiny by toiling too much.
Whatever God has given you--whether much or little--give thanks and enjoy. Not pursuing pleasure only, or work only. But in the right measure--which God will show you as you walk with Him--work hard with a glad heart
And because Solomon testifies that how we spend our time matters, here is a link about crafting a family mission statement (same one I shared yesterday). And here is an online inventory to discover your spiritual gifts...another tool to discover what God wants from you.
My joy list, because Solomon says joy is worthwhile:
~ Cuddling with four sick kids.
~ Holding a coughing three-year-old against my chest at 4:00 in the morning, smelling her sweetness and living the blessing, as she slept more soundly in the upright position
~ Having an unbelieving relative tell me "Perhaps you shouldn't be giving Compassion International $38 a month (for Nelson in El Salvador) because doesn't your own family need that money? Doesn't charity begin at home?" By the grace of God, I was able to tell her that He always gives that money back to us and more, each month. Just two days before her advice, we were given six tickets to go to "A Day Out With Thomas". It's an expensive Thomas the Train event in which you get a twenty-five minute ride on a train coupled with Thomas the Train. At each train stop there are Thomas-related activities to choose from. We were given six tickets by the hospital Beth goes to for her arthritis-related needs. In addition, the same hospital gave us free tickets to the local zoo, along with lunch and fellowship (and education) with other families who receive services from the pediatric rheumatology department. All patients and their families were invited. You can never out give God! And we should never fear that if we give, we won't have enough. Enough doesn't come from us, but from God.
~ A loving and loyal husband to spend my days with. One who lets me take his picture with a pink toy teacup in his hand.
~ Roses blooming and the girls all excited.
~ Watching the sparrows gather grass for nests.
~ Veggie Tales to watch on sick days.
~ Making cookies for sick ones, including Husband, and hearing their thankful hearts.
~ So far, no arthritis flare from Beth's nasty cold. I am praying hard!
~ An e-mail invite to a wiener roast on Sunday, right after Peter asked, "when can we go to a bonfire and make smores?"
~ The temperamental lawn mower, which works one time in fifteen, worked this weekend, long enough to do the whole lawn! God provides, just not always in our timing.
~ Extra time to fold clothes, since the kids are too sick for school.
5 comments:
Oh Christine I ma sorry you guys are sick. I will be praying especially for Beth. I really Love Ecc. You do such a beautiful job of breaking down scriptures! I love your confidence in not being able to out give God! You are a breath of fresh air my friend :)
oh, friend, you have such a REAL faith. one that rejoices even as your children get sick and you lose sleep, you rejoice because your child is able to breathe. you rejoice because you can rise early and read scripture. you don't know hwo much strength i am drawing from this post. and how to spend my days, my time... this is something that has been haunting me lately, with books that will soon to be published, and marketing, and i don't want to worry about the marketing. i want to spend my days serving God. will you pray for me in this? that i can trust him, and stop living in fear? thank you friend. for being you. and i love the story about thomas the train... God is so faithful. love e.
Sorry it's taken some time to get back in here and respond.
Tesha, thank you so much for praying for Beth. I am hoping the cancer drug won't come up at the next appt. in early June, and no flares this month will certainly make that more likely.
And Emily, I understand about the marketing involved with releasing new books. It sounds so distasteful and I will definitely be praying for you, dear friend. God will make a way. Maybe you can contact Ann Voskamp to ask how she handled that part?
And I am still praying for you during your fostering. You are blessing me so much with your posts!
And you too, Tesha!
What a great post! Hope the kids are feeling better soon and you are spared the illness. I hope you enjoy(ed) the Day Out with Thomas. It is a great experience!
Thank you, Terra. We go to the Thomas event this Friday. I am really looking forward to it!
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