| Just a note: my new website is tchak.cjb.cc. I just find it easier to navigate than Xanga in terms of going through Bible passages.
I'm also going to add my worship service and Sunday school notes. |
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A Time for Everything
I've heard that timing is everything, and fully agree. Even Solomon in all the wisdom God had given to him stated in these verses that there are appropriate times for everything. The most important part in timing is to ensure that your timing is in sync with God. This is something that I try to watch for myself. Sometimes, when we find out what God's timing is for something in our lives, we resent it. Many guys I know (myself included at some times) resent the fact that we don't have girlfriends. Some guys assume that the girl for them is somewhere out there, waiting to be found. I'm starting to take a step back and get another look at the situation. My intent now is seek God's will for me on WHETHER OR NOT I will get a girlfriend. THEN, if I feel that He has set aside a girl for me, I will wait for His time.
It's interesting how Solomon says there's a time to hate in verse 8. Although we shouldn't hate people, we should hate sin (both our own and others') and injustice. In fact, we should hate these things so much that we want to do something about it.
Solomon reveals in verses 9-13 the secret to enjoyment in our work. We must remember that the work that we have has been assigned to us by God (v. 10) and that the fruit of our work is a gift from God for us to enjoy (v. 13). Some of us (myself included-again) become dissastisfied with our work because we lose the sense of purpose that God intended for us in what we are doing.
In verse 11, Solomon says that God has planted eternity in our hearts. What this means is that we will never be happy with earthly pursuits and pleasures. We'll only be satisfied when Jesus himself rules over us one day. We have a glimpse of eternity in the rule of Christ himself and we'll never be satisfied until this becomes reality. It's interesting, because Satan has used this to turn people away from God; often, athiests would argue that there can't be a God because a God of love and justice wouldn't allow innocent children to die, people to starve, and bad things to happen.
[v. 12] We must be careful when we pursue happiness. True happiness can only come as gifts from God, not from the earthly things we accumulate for ourselves.
[v. 14] Our purpose starts with our fear for God. Fear doesn't mean being afraid. Rather, it means to revere and respect God. We must stand in awe of Him and realize his power, wisdom, and strength. It is impossible to have a meaningful life without having a purpose. We can't have a purpose in life without knowing what it is in the first place. We can't know what it is without knowing God - the One who assigns us our purpose. We would have no motivation to know and follow it without a fear Him. |
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