3 There’s a season for everything
and a time for every matter under the heavens:
Reflection
A new sermon series is about to begin, and I asked Pastor Joe if he could give us a sneak preview. As he is still listening to God as the series unfolds the single word Pastor Joe offered is “TIME.” Probably the most familiar verses of scripture with reference to “time” are Ecclesiastes 3:1-8. Let us reflect today on the first verse and the remaining verses will come in the days ahead.
A little background into this book of Wisdom tells us it was originally attributed to Solomon. Modern scholarship says more accurately that it is attributed to an anonymous “Preacher.” The word “preacher” is translated into Hebrew as Qoheleth or Koheleth, which is what our Jewish kin call the book of Ecclesiastes. Commentaries say: “Ecclesiastes is the Hebraic version of the theory that history and nature move in a circle, an ever revolving and recurring cycle. It is a philosophical idea wide-spread in the non-Jewish world of the Babylonians, Egyptians and Greeks in the late 4 th or early 3 rd century BCE.”
Comparing various versions of verse 3:1 inspired me to think about where this scripture says TIME is located and active: some say “under heaven” or “the heavens”; another says “on the earth”. The International Children’s Bible says simply “there’s a right time for everything. Everything on earth has its special season.”
A right time for everything! This might sound pessimistic, but I find an assurance in that statement that brings me great comfort. The sun will come up every day and we have no reason to doubt that fact as we experience it each morning. Even the birds celebrate every day as dawn emerges. Once humans realized the sun rises and sets every day we began celebrating the passage of time. Before our grandchildren knew how to tell time, we measured time by counting “how many sleeps.” Our fast-paced, scientific society has made us feel as though we control our lives. We have calendars, schedules and devices to keep us “on time.”
However, there are certain things that happen no matter what we do or say. It is a fact of life. There is a time for everything! I believe that our Creator endows every living being with an internal clock that keeps us on a schedule of self-preservation. Rest and Food are basic needs for all creatures. Whether living in a structured environment or in a natural habitat, God’s family knows what time it is. Enter my goldendoodle, Baxter. He always knows what time it is, and he depends on me to fulfill his “time for everything on the earth.” In the morning, he waits patiently for his morning walk. When we come back it’s time for scratches and breakfast, followed by a brushing and a treat. A major part of his day is time for sleeping, while keeping one eye open for anything exciting to happen. When he wakes up and decides it’s time for a walk, he stares expectantly at me. He knows when it gets to be 4-5:00 pm it’s time for supper. And he knows that supper is completed with kitchen clean up (one of his favorite times) and another walk. Ah, what a life! There is definitely “a time for everything under the heavens” as far as Baxter is concerned. Life is a cycle for all God’s creatures. “To everything, turn, turn, turn. There is a season, turn, turn, turn; and a time for every purpose under heaven.”
by Kathleen Stolz
For Pondering and Prayer
Once Joe gave me the broad theme “Time” my reflections started with all the songs I know that refer to time. The idea of an ever-revolving cycle has been captured beautifully in the song “Turn, Turn, Turn” made popular in the 60’s by the Byrds. I fell in love with the song before I knew the lyrics were from the Bible. It is a folk song that was created in 1959 by Pete
Seeger and made popular by countless singers in a variety of styles throughout the 60’s, 70’s and into the twenty-first century. As you ponder and reflect on today’s scripture what songs and images come to mind for you?
Prayer: Timeless Spirit, we give thanks for the order and certainty you bring to our lives, even when we are in a hurry. We give thanks for the time to consume nourishing food; for time to sleep when we are tired and arise when we are rested; for time to celebrate your presence bringing order out of chaos. When we feel there is not enough time, remind us “There’s a season for everything and a time for every matter under the heavens. Amen.
