A time for everything

Ecclesiastes - that wonderul book in the Bible that studies the meaning of life and tells us that all is meaningless unless God is at the center of our lives.

In Chapter 3 we find the famous verses that have even been put to folksong .....to everything there is a season.....

The NIV translation says "There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under Heaven".

Just the other day I was reading another blog that mentioned these passages, and for her it told her there is time for everything. Not just "a" time but time. I suddenly had a new and fresh understanding of these passages that I had not experienced before (isn't that why it is called the Living Word?)

We rush around so....we are late, we are late, for very important dates....but God encourages us to slow down. There is time for everything. Time to be born and time to die. Time to plant and time to uproot. Time to weep and time to laugh. All these things come into each of our lives, and all are of God. Even when we do not recognize that fact, it is nonetheless true. All things are of God and we need to spend our time making it count for Him.

So what I heard and felt anew in these passages, was that I need not rush. There is time for everything. These times may come to my life unbidden, but is part of the infinite plan for each of us who are God's children.

I also began to feel less guilty, because sometimes I feel I do not navigate through my time well enough. I do not chase after riches, high degrees in education, and accomplishments I could list in a resume. This has plagued me.....but I hope God uses my time here for making a difference in someone else's life in a good and loving way.

Go and read Ecclesiastes (it is right after Proverbs.) You will find a time for treasuring His Word.