Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.
Monday 29th August
1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
You will probably have heard this famous poem read out at funerals, yet we rarely take time to think about it. It is a meditation on the rhythms of life – some that we cannot control and others that we can. Qohelet begins with things we cannot control – birth and death, planting and harvesting. However much we try to influence them, we ultimately have to go with the rhythm of God’s work in the world. Is this something that you feel comfortable with? Or do you feel that we should have more control in areas like these. For example, some people want to prolong life, and delay death as much as possible, or even eliminate it altogether. In our medicalised society we have come to think that death should be avoided at all costs. These verses remind us that death is a part of life. The poem is simply making the point that this is the way God has made things in his world.
At this point we are in late summer. As I write, the weather has changed and it is beginning to feel quite autumnal. Of course, we hope that some good weather will return, but we have to take what we get! In our western world we can become accustomed to the fact that we can get all sorts of things out of season in our supermarkets. We can get strawberries in winter and turnip in the middle of the summer. Can you think of any disadvantages to this? Think about the things that you appreciate about the different seasons of the year? What do you want to give thanks for in this season?
Tuesday 30th August
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
Do you ever wish that life could be good all of the time? A worldview which wants to erase the difficulties of life, or to attribute them always to an evil source brings a duality to our lives which is untrue not only to our experience but also to the way God has made the world. It is vital that we be real about the sad and difficult times in life, and also to express our emotions. We need the valleys in order to appreciate the mountaintops.
But surely we should never be saying there is a time to kill? How are we to relate that to the commandment that we should not kill? I remember when we had an infestation of moths in our home. They got everywhere and eventually we tracked them down to a small patch of carpet in the spare bedroom. We tried everything to get rid of them, but it took a while, and eventually we had to take drastic action. Too many woollen things were being destroyed. That was very much was a time to kill!
All this begs the question – When should we acquiesce with what is going on around us, and when should we resist? Pray for God’s wisdom as you go through daily life.
Wednesday 31st August
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
What do you think Qoheleth is saying with the phrase “a time to scatter stones?” Some people think this has to do with spending money – there are times when we have to buy and times when we have to sell. Others think that this is a reference to and throwing stones into an enemies field (2 Kings 3:19,25) – in other words, sabotaging someone’s hostile attempts to undermine us. Could there ever be a time when we cannot cooperate with someone, or at least not be involved in what they are doing? Some Christians find it difficult to say “no” when people ask for help. They feel that they should always be there for people and always be supportive. Do you think there might be exceptions to this? It takes courage to be able to refuse to participate in something you think is wrong.
The second line brings us back to the question we had yesterday – when should we accept and when should we resist? This can be a tough call, and we can become tied up in knots trying to keep control – of ourselves and others. If it helps you today, pray the famous Serenity prayer
God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change
The courage to change the things I can
And the wisdom to know the difference.
Thursday 1st September
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
What are your dreams? According to Proverbs 29:18, without a vision the people perish – we need to have things to work towards, to look forward to, and to give us hope. But what happens when these dreams turn out to be unrealistic or even unhealthy? Think about your dreams and hopes today and take time to talk to God about what you should be pursuing and developing. Alternatively there may be things that you should be letting go of. That can be a painful, if necessary exercise.
This verse also challenges us to think about our priorities in our day to day lives. What are yours? How can we get our priorities right? What do you think is your priority right now? Sometimes we have to stop doing one thing in order to concentrate on another. Sometimes we need to recognise that a long term ambition or dream has to be given up. But this takes courage and wisdom and we sometimes would like the responsibility to be taken from us. We need to ask God to help us to be wise in our day to day decision making as to what our priorities should be.
Friday 2nd September
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.
When should we be silent and when should we speak? Think of the times you have felt you should say something and then wished you hadn’t? Or conversely, a time when you should have said something and didn’t? What have you learned from these experiences? I am grateful for the Psalm which says
Do not remember the sins of my youth
and my rebellious ways;
according to your love remember me,
for you, Lord, are good. (Psalm 25:7)
One of the wonderful things about life is that our mistakes do not need to mean that life stops. We can learn from them and grow. We may beat ourselves up about them, but God in his infinite love can lead us to maturity and the kind of wisdom which Qohelet has already discovered he cannot teach himself.
But just as we do not need to let our mistakes dominate our lives, so too these verses warn us against always standing on our principles. There may be times when long cherished ideas have to go, in order to develop and mature spiritually. We all need to learn to behave with integrity in every situation, and that is a life time’s journey. Are we willing to keep learning and revising, growing and maturing or do we want to live in the (unlikely) certainty that we have everything sussed out? Give thanks today that perfect wisdom is to be found in Christ, and let’s, with Paul, make it our continuous prayer that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give us the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that we may know him better (Ephesians 1:17).
Saturday 3rd September
Ephesians 1:15-17
15 For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, 16 I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. 17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit[f] of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.
Sunday 4th September
Ephesians 1:18-19
I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, 19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe.
Marion Carson
Chaplain
