I got a text from my friend, Peyton, asking what my favorite Bible verse is. I cannot nail down a favorite verse, but I did tell her that this is my favorite passage:
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 (English Standard Version)
1 For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
2 a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
3 a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
4 a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
5 a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
6 a time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
7 a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
8 a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace.
I stumbled upon this passage when I was in about 6th grade. I have always been an avid reader and so it was only natural that while I was reading a book, this passage of scripture came up and I investigated it.
I was in a phase of reading stories by Lurleen McDaniel. She is the author of books about children with terminal illnesses. The book I was reading at the time was called No Time to Cry, (I believe) and the main character just lost her friend to Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. The girl who had passed away left a memory box to her good friend and included in the box was her favorite passage of scripture. I looked up the scripture in my Bible and it has been my favorite ever since.
I know that there are lots of great verses in the Bible. There are others that I like, but this one always has stood out as my favorite. I think it is probably because I like to ask the question, "Why?"
"Why did this happen?"
"Why did this not happen?"
"Why am I going through this?"
"Why is this person getting all this, and I am not?"
I ask, "Why?" for selfish reasons and I shouldn't. This passage helps answer, "Why?" The simple answer is: time. Things happen because it is time for them to happen. That does not mean that God sits in Heaven and decides when we should struggle with a particular issue, nor does it mean that He decides the time and place for everything that ever happens (although, I believe that God knows) God gave us all free will and things happen because of our decisions. So, you might ask the question, "If God allows us to decide, then how do we know if the timing is what God would want?" My answer would be, "time;" Time spent in prayer, time spent in Bible study, and time thinking with the brain that God designed for us.
I don't mean for this blog post to sound like I know everything (because I don't) And I don't mean to offend anyone who believes differently. Like I said earlier, this is my favorite passage of scripture and this is the lesson I learn from it. I am sure there are hundreds of other thoughts and lessons that could come from these verses. If you feel comfortable, share those thoughts with me by posting a comment. I would love to hear what other people have learned from their study of this passage of scripture. :)
I should have known that you favored Ecclesiastes; there's a mindset of balance there that makes it hard to overreact like people are wont to do. As a book it cuts against judgmental mindsets, and this passage goes a long way toward that.
ReplyDeleteMostly what I see from this passage is its dovetail with Romans 14:23 and friends as well as Proverbs 25:11. Far from a legalistic mindset, the point of what we do is as much or more about context than conduct. Lots of things are available to do; the question is when we're doing them and how we're maximizing them. Knowing what time is which might be a large part of what wisdom is.
Brandon, thank you so much for your thoughts! I love knowing the lessons that others have learned from the Bible. Thanks for the compliment (I consider the first paragraph of your comment to be a compliment) :)
ReplyDeleteI love these verses because they remind me of how universal these seasons are. Everyone's life consists of the things mentioned here; and I would even go as far as to say that if you could somehow go through life without experiencing each of these seasons, you would miss out on something that would make you a better, wiser person. It's also helpful in difficult times to remember that these are only "seasons," not lifetimes or eternities.
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