Ecclesiastes 3 Seasons of Life

Ecclesiastes 3:1-13 Seasons of Life

Thanks so much to Sarah for asking me to write about this passage.  I have been praying about this and reading over it for the past couple of weeks.  It’s so cool the things God has revealed to me!

V1 “For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven”

Wow… EVERY activity!  This just shows that God really does have a plan.  What you are going through is part of His plan, and He will use you and every season of life that you go through for a purpose!

“I have learned to be content with whatever I have. I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything.  I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little.  For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.” Philippians 4:11-13

Philippians 4:13 is actually about contentment! Think about how you can be content in every season of your life.

V2 “A time to be born and a time to die.

A time to plant and a time to harvest.”

“You saw me before I was born.  Every day of my life was recorded in your book.  Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.” Psalm 139:16

Your entire life is planned out.  Every season, every hardship, every accomplishment, every celebration.  Have peace in knowing that God is going to use every season in your life to stretch you, help you grow, and further His Kingdom.

V3 “A time to kill and a time to heal.

A time to tear down and a time to build up.”

“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.  The righteous person faces many troubles, but the Lord comes to the rescue each time.”

Psalm 34:18-19

“Worry weighs a person down; an encouraging word cheers a person up” Proverbs 12:25

V4 “A time to cry and a time to laugh.

A time to grieve and a time to dance.”

So many people have such a hard time taking time to grieve and be sad because they think they are supposed to be happy all the time.  But LOOK, it says right there… it is okay to mourn, it is okay to cry. You will go through difficult seasons in your life and it is okay to grieve and healthy to do so.

“Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes in the morning” Psalm 30:5

 It won't last forever, it's just a season.

V5 “A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.

A time to embrace and a time to turn away.”

This could be anything in life that you need to let go of.  It could be people, stressors, or any other challenges.  There may be a time when you need to let go and turn away.  This is why prayer is so important.  Seek the Lord and He will guide you.

“If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you.” James 1:5

V6 “A time to search and a time to quit searching.

A time to keep and a time to throw away.”

This verse reminds me of the saying “Let go and Let God”.  Sometimes we need to stop searching so hard for answers.  Sometimes we just need to let go and give it to God.  And trust that He will use the circumstance for good. Romans 8:28

V7a “A time to tear and a time to mend…”

The first part of this scripture reminded me of a vision the Lord gave me on March 7, 2014 (Wow… almost exactly two years ago; God’s timing really is perfect) when I was at a youth retreat at my church.  We were all in a time of prayer.  We were “soaking”.  (I will go into more detail about what “soaking” is in a later post).  But we were basically sitting in a place in the room alone, talking to God and focusing on what He wanted to tell us while the worship team played music.

I remember God gave me a vision of a giant piece of fabric.  It was so big, I couldn’t see the end.  I remember seeing the top of the piece of fabric and it started to tear.  It started out tearing very slowly, then it started tearing faster and faster, until it suddenly stopped RIGHT before the end of the piece of fabric.  Then, these hands came with a needle and thread and began to mend the piece of fabric.  Again, slowly at first and then faster and faster until the entire piece was mended back together and made whole again.

I wrote: “God will mend my problems with His own hands.  It may seem like I am going to completely fall apart, but God is aware and will sew me back together.  And even though the stitching remains, I have been healed and have proof of what He has done for me.”  (I was going through a very difficult time in my life with one of my very closest friends in the hospital and I had to trust in the Lord and rely on Him through this difficult season.)

But it is so amazing what happens when we trust God and seek Him in every aspect of our lives.

“Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need” Matthew 6:33

This time was very difficult for me.  But I can honestly say that it is one of the times that I have experienced the most spiritual growth because I was seeking God for my comfort.

“When troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.  For you know when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.  So let it grow, for when it has fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.” James 1:2-4

Matthew 11:28   1 Peter 1:6-7     2 Corinthians 12:9

V7b “…A time to be quiet and a time to speak.”

This is a hard one, I know.  Sometimes it is easy to speak without thinking.  But we see right here, that it is not always best to speak; there is a time for that.

“You must be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry” James 1:19

V8 “A time to love and a time to hate.

A time for war and a time for peace.”

“Don’t just pretend to love others.  Really love them.  Hate what is wrong.  Hold tightly to what is good.  Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other”

Romans 12:9-10

We are told to hate what is wrong.  But we are also told to love everyone.  Even our enemies. Romans 12:14

“Never pay back evil with more evil… Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone”

Romans 12:17-18

The enemy comes to steal, kill, and destroy.  We need to fight against him.  Do not allow him to conquer you. John 10:10     1 Peter 5:8-9

“Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good” Romans 12:21

V9-11 “What do people really get for their hard work?

I have seen the burden God has placed on us all.  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.”

We need to trust in God’s PERFECT timing!

“he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion” (Philippians 1:6)

He ALWAYS makes things beautiful in His timing.

“Look, I am making everything new!” (Revelation 21:5)

And we do not know all that God is doing.  That may be frustrating to some people, but I think that is so exciting!  God will reveal these things that He is doing, to us in the right timing.  What an exciting thing to look forward to!

We need to trust that He will use the season of life we are in for His glory!

“Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later”

Romans 8:18

V12-13 “There is nothing better than to be happy and enjoy ourselves as long as we can. And people should eat and enjoy the fruits of their labor for these are gifts from God.”

Enjoy gifts from God! Be thankful for every season of life you are in.  Be thankful and trust that God will use these times to increase your faith.

 

It is important for us to understand that while we will go through different seasons, hardships, accomplishments, good times and bad times, OUR GOD WILL NEVER CHANGE.

“Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens.  He never changes or casts a shifting shadow.” (James 1:17)

We serve a GOOD God and when we call on Him for help and guidance, He will help us.  He will strengthen you.  He will shine His love and His favor and His glory upon you.

“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” Romans 8:28

Leave any comments if you want to add anything to what I have said!

Feel free to share with your friends! Let’s spread God’s word! He’s doing BIG things!!!

Thank you Lovely People J

Dani xoxo