Standing Firm

Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong. [1 Corinthians 16:13]

Biblical TeachingsPodcast EpisodeYou Are Who God Says You Are

A Time For Everything

Cathy

For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven. A time to be born and a time to die. A time to plant and a time to harvest. A time to kill and a time to heal. A time to tear down and a time to build up. A time to cry and a time to laugh. A time to grieve and a time to dance. [Ecclesiastes 3:1-4]

QUOTE: Until you value yourself, you won’t value your time. Until you value your time, you will not do anything with it. (M. Scott Peck)

I thought an important concept to include is a time for everything because depending on the season we are in our emotions and thinking will be affected. I love that God shows us there is a “time for everything” and there will be “seasons” in our lives. Fourteen pairs of contrasting activities make this a poetic masterpiece with very deep meaning.

“A time for everything” reminds us that there will be a potpourri of activities we WILL experience. Thankfully, life is not all weeping, but laughter is also a part of life. Life is not all laughter, either, but after the clouds come the sunshine. It also shows that there is an ebb and flow in life and that nothing is permanent; all seasons are temporary, the good and the bad.

VERSE 3:2 reminds us that each one of us has a beginning and we have an end. We have been put on this earth with a purpose and with a set amount of allocated time. We don’t know that amount of time, but we may be able to extend or shorten our time by the choices we make. Every single minute counts as there is only a certain amount of time.

In a garden, you plant certain seeds at different times of the year and the soil needs to be prepared for the seeds. Same in life, there are specific times that God wants us to prepare the soil, there is a time to plant our seeds (for a ministry, a business, a book, a song), and there is the time for harvest. The preparation, planting, and harvesting do not happen together. There is also a time in between preparing, nurturing, and caring for the seeds while they grow.

VERSE 3:3 There is an actual time that killing may be appropriate. Some scholars believe this may be during wartime, for self-defense, or capital punishment. Others believe it’s referring to taking life for food, such as fish or lamb. There is also a time for healing which presumes there will be a time to mend relationships vs hurting someone.

This one little point can mean so many things depending on your life. But what I believe it’s saying is that there is a time to build a business and there is a time to walk away from a business; there is a time to live in a certain place and build your life and there is a time to leave and do something else; there is a time to work towards something and then there is a time to change direction. We need to learn to listen to that quiet voice of the Lord when we are walking in one direction and he wants us to be going the other way or when the plans have changed, or when we need to move on. Ouch, I know this involves change and sometimes tremendous courage and growth.

Verse 3:4 You need to give yourself some grace girlfriends. God has given you permission to take time to be sad. At no time are we promised as believers that we will have perfect sunny blue skies every day. In fact, we have been told many times the exact opposite. There will be hard times and there will be sadness. Everyone deserves a moment to grieve but with a time limit. Then, we need to get up and keep on keeping on. What’s awesome is that on the flip side, we also will have times of great happiness, fun, and laughter. We are to enjoy our life and the things that make us happy from enjoying the beautiful creation God has made, to chocolate, to doggies, to skiing on a powder day!

Mourning is excruciating and a heart-wrenching pain. Thank you, Lord, that you have given us permission to take time to grieve. The entire purpose for mourning is to release the pain of whatever loss we may incur. Give yourself permission and the grace to take time to grieve your losses. Then remember to celebrate and dance! I love that God specifically uses the word dance. It is such the extreme opposite of mourning because dancing implies that you are free of care and can move without any hindrance.

A TIME FOR EVERYTHING reminds us that each day that we wake up is a gift from God. Enjoy the present and each season we are in, treat each day as a precious gift, and take full advantage of every moment we are given. Be kind to yourself, give yourself grace, be patient with yourself, and continue to love YOU during each of these seasons.

God knew there would be seasons and ups and downs, so remember during those biscuit-flying seasons to say to yourself: I AM WHO GOD SAYS I AM.

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DAILY ACTION STEP
Say to yourself out loud
I AM WHO GOD SAYS I AM

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FRIENDLY REMINDER: take out your journal and write down your thoughts, takeaways, and progress for this week!

TAKEAWAY GEMS

  • There will be seasons of life.
  • There is also a time to do a specific thing.
  • There is a time to not do things.
  • There is a time for EVERYTHING.
  • There is a time to be born and a time to die.
  • There is a time to plant and a time to uproot.
  • There is a time to kill and a time to heal.
  • There is a time to tear down and a time to build.
  • There is a time to weep and a time to laugh.
  • There is a time to mourn and a time to dance.

QUESTIONS TO “THINK ON”

  1. What are you specifically doing with your TIME?
  2. How are you using your gifts, talent, and time wisely?
  3. What seasons have you experienced? What lessons have you learned over time?

ACTION STEP TIME TO LOVE YOU: Determine to have one activity scheduled in your calendar at least once a week if not daily to take care of YOU (on top of prayer and God time). This love time should be something that calms, pampers, and comforts YOU. Examples may be simply making sure you take mini breaks throughout the day, enjoying a cup of tea, indulging in delicious chocolate, or taking a hot bath. Find something that shows love to yourself.

WEEKLY SCRIPTURES

DAY 1: But you must not forget this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day. [2 Peter 3:8] 

DAY 2: Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end [Ecclesiastes 3:11]

DAY 3: For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven. A time to be born and a time to die. A time to plant and a time to harvest. A time to kill and a time to heal. A time to tear down and a time to build up. A time to cry and a time to laugh. A time to grieve and a time to dance. [Ecclesiastes 3:1-4]

DAY 4: Those who obey him will not be punished. Those who are wise will find a time and a way to do what is right, [Ecclesiastes 8:5]

DAY 5: My future is in your hands. Rescue me from those who hunt me down relentlessly. [Psalm 31:15] 

DAY 6: How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone. [James 4:14] 

DAY 7: So be careful how you live. Don’t live like fools, but like those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days. Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do. [Ephesians 5:15-17]

 

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