Last weekend my wife and I were
able make a visit to my grandparents in East Texas. I was taken back by the
toll Alzheimer’s has had on my grandfather’s body. As a young teen I remember
the wonderful times of fishing and hiking together. Today my grandfather is
utterly dependent on his family for the very essentials of daily living. As I
thought about the many stages of life and how our family has changed over the
years, I was reminded of Ecclesiastes chapter 3:
For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under
heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to
pluck up what is planted…a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn,
and a time to dance…
The gift of human life necessitates numerous inevitable stages. Some
of these are chosen, but many are simply a result of the human condition.
Change is unavoidable as the parasitic breakdown of The Fall takes its toll on God’s good creation. However, for the
Christian, there is an overarching purpose to all that is changing.
For example, in Ecclesiastes, “a time to be born,” finds its meaning
in the God-given responsibility of a parent to point that child toward a caring
and providential Creator. “A time to plant,” becomes an act of obedience to the
cultivation of God’s good earth. “A time to laugh,” is made possible by the
hope we have in a promised and coming Savior. And finally, “a time to dance,”
is expressed most fully in acknowledging the faithfulness of a God who also
rejoices over us.
As a Christian, the perceived
vanity of life finds its resolution in the fact that God became man in Jesus
Christ. This loving act bridged the gap between a perfect and unchangeable
Father in heaven, and His ever-changing creation on earth.
Have you found time to connect to
the Father through the Son? Has prayer become a daily activity preparing you
for the many revolutions of life? Today, let us find our place of hopeful
assurance, in quiet communion, with a sovereign and unchanging God.
Prayerfully,
Pastor John
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