Sometimes I am surprised at the way the stuff of life randomly arranges itself, only to immediately see that God’s sovereignty was once again showing.
Today, I powered on my Kindle Scribe and opened my Digital Scripture Journal. I have been enjoying the freedom this tool gives me to take notes but not become distracted by apps and notifications. I have been reading a chapter each day for about a month and have taken to scribbling anything that seems noteworthy. The chapters are graffitied with underlines, highlights, circles, connectors, and notes in general.
But what really surprised me, though it wasn’t unexpected at all upon reflection, was the chapter that was on deck; Ecclesiastes 3. Of all the days that chapter could land, and it happened to be today. That well-known chapter about there being a time for everything. This is the chapter I walked my son through in the Spring of 2023. I wanted him to see there are different times in life, and I knew that Robyn’s time would be coming at some point. Though I didn’t tell him that, I hoped that planting these truths would help prepare him for what would eventually happen. And in November of 2023, on a Wednesday night at 8:40pm, Robyn’s time came. That was 2 years ago today. The Lord has amazing timing.
Why did I randomly choose to read Proverbs for my daily Bible reading about a month ago? At the time it just seemed like I needed to be nourished by Solomon’s wisdom. And when I decided to keep going with Ecclesiastes, it didn’t seem mystical. I just longed to refresh myself on a book that has been a sure source of help over the years. And today, I happened to be reading the chapter that helped me and Robyn think truthfully about the seasons of life and death. Wow. God is kind, even and especially in the little things.
Today though, it really stood out to me the way Ecclesiastes 3 points out that things are beautiful according to their time. My niece was over yesterday with her almost-one-year old daughter. She’s such a cute toddler! She crawled about in a perpetual state of happiness and discovery. Sometimes cackling with glee, or saying “hi” on repeat, and other times just watching all the adults as they played a game and constantly laughed. Little Mia was exuding beauty.
But it was a type of beauty. Cute kids are “appropriate” (Eccl. 3:11, HCSB) or fitting (Eccl. 3:11, NET) because they are little and new to this world. There is a real beauty to them. But even though we love the toddler age, we want to see our toddlers grow. If they stayed toddlers forever, there would be something missing and we would know it. The picture wouldn’t be quite as beautiful or fitting. We also know the beauty of the kid-era and the young-adult-era, and so on. There is a fittingness to each. And while I can’t say there is goodness to death, can I say there is a beauty at times? At least, can I say that a believer who dies well is . . . fitting? As I look at my Savior on the cross, the Maker who welcomed the path of Golgotha, can I not say that He died well? And if He can die well, cannot His children who love and fear Him also die well?
And if her Savior can die well, can I not say that Robyn, though she would have wanted much more time, died well?
And if she died well, can I say that there was beauty in it? Not beauty in death itself, which is an enemy, but in the dying while trusting your Creator?
I think I can say that. There is truly something of beauty whenever a believer trusts and follows the Lord. How we eat turkey and mashed potatoes, how we play games and laugh, how we babble with a toddler, and even how we approach our death—all are occasions of beauty if we are walking in the fear of the Lord and following in the footsteps of our Savior.
So, where is the beauty in your life? The end of Ecclesiastes 3 talks about how God is, essentially, unstoppable in what He does. As you find yourself in different seasons – each with their own beauty – remember that if you resist, you may be resisting the Lord. And He is irresistible, as you will soon find out. It’s best to lean into God’s sovereign plan, and trust that He makes all things beautiful as they are appropriate and fitting.
To the single who wants to be married, remember that there is beauty in trusting God and stewarding your singleness. Dive in at your church. Pick a family and sit near them each week. Get to know their kids and offer to help. There is beauty in your life.
To the empty-nester who misses their kids, remember that the young are watching how you live. Your faithfulness in gathering with the church, how you openly speak of your Lord, the way you get to know the younger generation, the way you walk worthy of your Lord, all of these are a unique season that only you can steward. The young will steward the empty nest one day. But today, it is for you to use for the Lord.
To the mom and dad with kids and bills, remember that God will take care of you. He has given you the responsibility of working to provide for those little ones. You are to “nurture and admonish” them, and this is both physically and spiritually. To give them physical food but not spiritual food is to starve them in one sense. Fathers, you mustn’t only work the 80 hours of overtime to bring in the bacon. You need to spend time teaching your children to follow the Lord. This means getting to know them, love them, and show them what it looks like to know and follow the Lord. Mothers, this means your exhaustion is for a purpose. One day the constant clamor and din will become a silent solitude of a clean but empty house. These days are good, though they often feel overwhelming. But there is a beauty in the mom who can’t remember where she put her coffee down two hours ago but has attended to Bible reading with her children, loads and loads of laundry, and also instructing them in how to be a normal human and use the toilet. This is God’s sovereign season right now, and you can demonstrate beauty in it.
To the one facing unending hardship, remember that God sees you (Ps. 121). He is not taken by surprise at your difficulties. Though you pray that they be removed time and time again, and He answers you not, never believe He has forgotten you or does not care. The difficult truth is that these trials are for your good and His glory. And while you might be weary beyond the scope of human weariness, His strength is greater still. He will hold you and carry you through. There is beauty in ragged steadfastness. Trust Him and carry on.
To the one facing the end, theirs or another’s, remember that God has walked this very same path. All will face it one day. Long ago, Adam faced it, and his wife Eve. Two years ago, I faced it with my late wife Robyn. And sooner or later you will too. Perhaps you have a diagnosis and know it’s coming. Perhaps it’s only a suspicion the doctors are investigating. In each of these, the Lord Himself sees you and will be your source of strength and grace in the time you need them the most.
God’s ways are perfect. His plans are above our own. He gives, and He takes away. But He only ever does good.
A Time for Everything
3:1 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. [1]
[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Ec 3:1–8.
Thoughts Worth Thinking 