Ecclesiastes

I had the opportunity of sharing a portion of the third chapter of Ecclesiastes with my mother today. It is titled appropriately, "A Time for Everything". It is a familiar passage in Christian circles often during a time of reflection.

"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace."
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 (NIV)

As I reflect on those particular verses, I rejoice that God has a time and a place for everything under the sun. He is in control of my life. In that control, He has also given me free will. That free will is often discussed in the realms of salvation, but there is more to it than that according to these verses. My free will enables me to choose when and how I react. When I line my thoughts and actions up with the will of Christ, the timing of Christ falls into place. However, there are times when I fall and I fail. This is when my free will is only out to satisfy my own thoughts and desires. This is the free will that longs for revenge and self justification. When walking in the steps of Jesus, I have no longing for revenge or to defend myself. I stand in His promise and His grace. I'm thankful that when I do fall; when I do fail; He forgives me in my confession and repentance. He enables me to get back up again and begin again to train myself in His ways.