–J. Lee Butts  (Gun Works)

       “Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, and whose hope is the LORD.  For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes; but its leaf will be green, and will not be anxious in the year of drought, nor will cease from yielding fruit.”

                         –Jeremiah 17:7-8 (NKJV)
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I’ve been gleaning through Ecclesiastes and sharing some of what I found.  Today, I want to look at Ecclesiastes 3:9-11.  Now hold on, Ecclesiastes is like the Book of Job, you’ve got to hang on when you read it.  It speaks of life.  In fact, to properly read Ecclesiastes you must read the whole book first then go back and dissect it.  

            9 — What profit has the worker from that in which he labors?
           10 — I have seen the God-given task with which the sons of men are to be occupied.
           11 — He has made everything beautiful in its time.  Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end. (NKJV)

These few verses contain a wealth of information.  Look at the first, What is the profit in life?  What is the purpose in life?  I will say it again, Life is living.  But the question is living for what, living for whom?  Life in itself is a mystery as we try to figure out what we are to be doing.  I always refer to the Shorter Westminster Catechism, “Glorify God and enjoy Him forever,” but in what way do we glorify Him?  That is part of the mystery.  We walk through this life with maybe a plan or a goal, but then something happens–then what?  The plan is torn asunder, the goal is smashed.  If we know how to glorify God in all circumstances we can overcome these adversities; if not bitterness, anger, hatred, and depression can appear.
       In life there is beauty to admire, there is work to do, and there is good in which to participate.  Know this–“All life unfolds under the appointment of Providence.” (Walter C. Kaiser, Jr.).  God is in charge, He is in control.  There is an eternal plan that He is working out.  This is part of the mystery of life, understanding where each of us fit into that plan.  God is not a manipulator, but He brings all things together to accomplish His plan.
       Paul writes, “We are assured and know that [God being a partner in their labor] all things work together and are [fitting into a plan] for good to and for those who love God and are called according to [His] design and purpose.” (Romans 8:28, Amplified)  Where are you in the plan?  Can you accept a set-back knowing that God is with you and will eventually bring good out of it?  Hard questions to answer, but we should be living such a life that we can completely trust God.  I read the other day on a blog where a person was facing several tragedies and said that they were “angry at God.”  Did God bring the tragedy?  No.  Could God have stopped it?  Yes, if it was in His eternal plan, but He might have something better in store.
       One thing I have never heard come up in a discussion with an evolutionist is their explanation of eternity.  If evolution is true, then how does one explain life with God in heaven; will man then continue to evolve?  We are made for God and to live with Him throughout eternity.  Time will one day cease and then what happens to the evolutionist?  When time ceases there will only be eternity.
       Don’t be afraid of venturing through this life with God.  He has blessings in every situation if we look hard enough.  He has even more blessings for us in heaven.  The journey may have obstacles that you do not like, nor expect to encounter, but remember God is leading and He knows.  C.S. Lewis said, “Our Heavenly Father has provided many delightful inns for us along our journey, but He takes great care to see that we do not mistake any of them for home.”  Rest awhile at one of these “inns.”  But understand that in the morning the journey begins anew.  God is with you, He is holding you.  Think of this analogy.  A little child in the arms of his father is unaware of many things that his father has learned.
       Let us delight in the labor that is before us for the journey will not always be easy.  The task that the Lord has given us might take real effort.  We cannot see into the future, but we can rest assured that God is already there and is with us TODAY, and will be with us tomorrow.  Paul wrote this to the church at Corinth, “At present we are men looking at puzzling reflections in a mirror.  The time will come when we shall see reality whole and face to face!  At present all I know is a little fraction of the truth, but the time will come when I shall know it as fully as God now knows me!”  (1 Corinthians 13:12, Phillips).

                         –Deuteronomy 8:15(NKJV)
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                    “Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness.”
                                 –Mark 1:12(NKJV)

       We love to look at the wilderness.  Maybe it is to have a grand view of splendor.  Perhaps it is the rush of the awesomeness that it can relay to us.  A few might look at a view of the wilderness to think about those who first saw it and ventured into its vast unknown.  At times, some may venture into it for a day, or week but seldom to live in it.  We love to see the view of the wilderness, but do not like the idea of leaving the comforts of civilization for long.
       Why does the wilderness intrigue us?  Look out over the vista at the Grand Canyon.  Wow!  What else can be said?  Or gaze in wonder at the snow-capped Rockies while you stand on top of Trail Ridge.  But even there with the wilderness around you feel safe because you can easily get back in your vehicle, drive back down the road and be in civilization in no time.  Look out over the salt bottom at Death Valley, or view the spires that stand in Bryce.  Why are you there?  To escape?  To enjoy?  To wonder?  To see the hand of God in creation?
       Moses spent forty years learning how to live and survive in the wilderness so he could lead a stiff-necked, stubborn, murmuring people into it for another forty years.  Imagine living forty years in the wilderness.  It is hard for us to imagine that long, but this is what many of our ancestors did.  They crossed the wide Missouri and went out into the unknown with trepidation and some fear seeking a new life, a new home, and most definitely a new way of life.
       Wilderness is an old English term that means “the place of wild beasts” (Brady).  It is important to realize that these beasts are not necessarily common.  The wild beasts that we associate with the opening of western America were wolves, grizzlies, and mountain lions.  These beasts brought fear, but man had to learn how to cope and conquer.  However,  when speaking of the wilderness there is often a beast of which we are not aware of–a spiritual beast, a beast of the unknown.  Fear, danger, lack of hope, despairing of faith are among those beasts.
       The mountain men who came to know the wilderness, to understand it, and to survive in it became the guides for those who were to follow.  Moses was the same way, he lived in the wilderness and he was to lead the Israelites through the “great and terrible” elements of the wilderness (Dt. 1:19)  John the Baptist was a man acquainted with the wilderness, and Jesus knew the wilderness well.  It was in the wilderness that Jesus the man met with His nemesis and defeated him.  When He returns from this wilderness He begins to collect His disciples.  We know of the three major temptations He faced, but what of other challenges?  The hunger, the thirst, the heat, the wild beasts, the struggle to take another step.  Then there is the desire to quit.  There are many bones that lay bleached in the wilderness of men who simply laid down and died giving up hope.
       We cannot begin to read the Bible without seeing the wilderness come up.  It is an important experience of God’s people, and it always has a purpose.  In the wilderness the distractions of the city are vanquished.  There is only the sound of the wind, or of a coyote, maybe even the howl of a wolf.  The wilderness can be a place of mystery, and it impels us to seek for God and learn of Him.  Where were Adam and Eve sent from the Garden?  It had to be a wilderness of some sort.  It most definitely was not the lush paradise of Eden.  That was forever gone.  They had to learn to live differently than they did in the Garden.  They had to survive in the elements of nature.
       It is important to understand that a “wilderness” is not always a place out in the wilds.  It may be in a person’s mind.  It may be the torture of living in an abused home, or the terror of the streets, or simply walking in a darkened path where fear abounds.  Whatever the wilderness it should not speak fear, but it should show us that God is with us in the midst of any challenge just as He was with the Israelites and with the Lord Himself.  The wilderness, if properly viewed, is a place where man can and should contemplate and have communion with the Holy Spirit regarding eternal values.  Listen to the voice of the Spirit if He is driving you to that place where you can completely surrender to Him.

 

       “Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keeps those things which are written in it; for the time is near.”
                         –Revelation 1:3 (NKJV)
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                    “To everything there is a season, a TIME for every purpose under heaven.”
                                  –Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NKJV)

       Notice, I have capitalized “time” in the verse above.  I have written many times regarding the subject of time, that substance we seem to never have enough of or are always running out of.  Time, in a way, is sort of mystical.  There was a beginning when God created and thus time started, and we are told that one day time will be no more.  So I want to look at a few things, again, regarding time.
       Let me ask you a hypothetical question.  What is the most valuable thing to you, and possibly on earth?  Most will say family, or my spouse, or my children.  Some may venture to say their health.  I used to ask this question of my students when I taught Apologetics.  Of course being in a Christian school they would mostly answer with something real spiritual:  God, or Christ, or salvation.  I would then counter–I think that it may be choice.  Without God giving us choice, how could we be saved?  Without choice, how could we choose Jesus Christ?
       However, let me say that this is only speculative–something for you to ponder–that it could be time.  Time may be the most valuable thing that you possess.  I say that even in regard to choice, it is time that dictates or provides the situation for you to make a choice.  See there is a “time for every purpose.”  
       I was reading last week and this thought struck me.  There was a conversation similar to what we are speaking of now–time.  A man said that the most important thing that he had was friendship.  The man was countered with the question, “What is it that you do with friends?”  To which he replied, “spend time.”  Hmmm.  The same could be said of family.  
       Perhaps you are one who thinks that wealth or money is the most important thing.  What do you do with it?  You spend time thinking of how to spend it, on what to spend it on, or some more conscientious may think of ways of how to save it and make more money.  All of this takes time  
       When you go to a funeral you remember the time you spent with the deceased.  You remember the times you had with them.  You remember what you did together at this or that time.  Walter Kaiser says that it is important to take “each day as it comes, as a gift from God.”  There may be no tomorrow–that is time only hoped for.  You have today, a certain amount of time.
        I really like what the old minister, Joseph Alleine wrote, “Let us live this one day well!”  He goes on to say that we have been given a new day to the start of a new week, “let us spend this week for God.”  In other words, let us be going about the Lord’s business–using our time for Him.  That takes us to the second part of that verse, “There is a time for EVERY PURPOSE, under heaven.”  You are here to wisely use the time that God has given you.  You are here to spend time working for the Kingdom, not to wantonly spend it on worldly pleasure and foolishness.  This is one reason why we need to start the day with the Lord, to see what He has for us this day.  To make a list, written or mental, of what we should try to accomplish throughout the day for we have a purpose, and we only have so much time to fulfill it.  Remember that God has a plan that embraces every man and woman and all their actions at all times.  
       The words of Paul in Ephesians is really a solemn, almost haunting word, “See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the TIME, because the days are evil.” (Ephesians 5:15-16, NKJV)  In other words, look at what you are doing with your time.  We are to be good stewards of our time, it is even more important to us that money.  It is time that we spend with family and friends.  It is time that we must be about the Lord’s work; time to be fulfilling our purpose.
       Jesus recognized the value of time when He walked this earth.  He was bound by it, just as we are, and therefore, He must work within time.  He made the statement, “I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day [while there is time]; the night is coming when no one can work.” (John 9:4, NKJV, words in brackets are my explanation.)
What are the words of that song, “Yesterday’s gone, and tomorrow may never be mine…”  Therefore, today is ours–this particular time in history.  There is no instant replay, you can’t live over what time is lost.  Time gone can never be repeated, that is why we are told to be conscious of what we are doing with our time.  I would then ask, what are you doing with your time?  What are you trading for your time?

                    –Zane Grey  (Wanderer of the Wasteland)

       “So you see, the Lord knows how to rescue godly people from their trials, even while punishing the wicked right up until the day of judgment.”
                    –2 Peter 2:9 (NLT)
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Does your life ever seem like a roller-coaster?  Up, down, and around, then up some more, then flying downward again.  Just when the job seems to be going right, a new person is hired and your personalities clash.  Just when you pay off the car loan, there is a storm and it wipes off your roof.  The good and the bad, ah, such is life.  Even though Asaph wrote Psalm 80, it is often referred to as Joseph’s psalm.  Perhaps you can relate, maybe somewhat, to his life.  Happy-go-lucky kid, who was thrown in the pit, then sold to slavers, then worked in luxury as a slave, then lied about and thrown into prison . . . on it goes.

          1 — Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, You who lead Joseph like a flock; You who dwell between the cherubim, shine forth!
          2 — Before Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh, stir up Your strength, and come and save us!
          3 — Restore us, O God; cause Your face to shine and we shall be saved!
          4 — O LORD God of hosts, how long will You be angry against the prayer of Your people?  
          5 — You have fed them tears to drink in great measure.
          6 — You have made us a strife to our neighbors, and our enemies laugh among themselves.
          7 — Restore us, O God of hosts; cause Your face to shine, and we shall be saved!  (NKJV)

You do realize that in life, if you are a Christian, that you go through the same storms, battles, droughts, floods, and other disasters that your heathen neighbor does.  When God chastises a nation or brings judgment upon a nation, most often everyone suffers.  Oh there may be times when He protects in a miraculous way His people like He did the Israelites at Goshen, but most often we go through the fire.  The difference between us and our neighbors is that the Lord goes with us.
       When anyone, heathen or believer, nations or individuals turn against God and go in a different direction there will be unpleasant consequences, and sometimes they are dire.  They are meant to get our attention and bring us to repentance.  People think they can do as they please, revel in pleasure, but in the end the consequence is pain, frustration, and can be death.
       There is no hope except in God and that is what He wants to remind you when the hard times come.  Turn to Him in times of sorrow.  Turn to Him when you have forsaken the way that He has told you to take.  Rebellion brings a price and can only be remedied by repentance.  Ah, but verse 7 offers us a ray of hope.  We turn to Him; we look for His deliverance with hope and faith.  We know that with true repentance He will save us.  It is a wonderful thing when the face of the Lord shines upon His people in restoration.

                    “Since all that I meet
                    Shall work for my good,
                    The bitter is sweet,
                    The medicine food;
                    Though painful at present,
                    ‘Twill cease before long;
                    And then, O how pleasant
                    The Conqueror’s song.”
                             –John Newton