A Time for Every Matter

“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:

a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
a time to tear, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace…

“He has made everything beautiful in its time…

“The wise heart will know the proper time… For there is a time and a way for everything… [Man] does not know what is to be.” Ecclesiastes 3:1-7,11; 8:5b-7

“Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.” Ephesians 5:16

Each season we encounter, and into which our Lord leads, is ‘such a one as this’ for His divine, eternal intention. Yielding to His voice and inspiration, we learn never to waste, but always seize, the moments to glean, change, speak, do, and invest as He deems prudent and necessary. Sovereign God designs each for our sanctification and His kingdom purposes and glory. (Esther 4:14)

But there are many we would not choose, times we want never to encounter. We prefer tidy lives free of suffering, conflict, and heartache, and full of ease, serenity, and success. But the Lord who has made all things well deigns our days and times and places so we might know Him, and grow fully in the personality and plan He has ordained. We do not live onto ourselves, and must not manipulate to try to. (Proverbs 16:4; Acts 17:26-27; Romans 14:7; 2 Corinthians 5:15)

When death comes- of a loved one, or love’s fire, or a dream- process it without hurry, yet with faith toward new birth. When the time comes to prune or let go, remember the wonder and hardiness of new growth, the freedom of simplicity, the exquisite beauty of individuals coming into their own. The purposes of each counter-season is dependent on its opposite: neither to be rushed, each to be savored and allowed its way.

Are there times I resist, or shirk, in order to avoid unpleasantness or pain? What seasons do I covet of another, or try to manufacture, when the Lord clearly has me elsewhere? What if I accepted wholeheartedly the where and when of God’s plan, and made the most of it for heaven’s sake? Might I grow more gracious, compassionate, forgiving? Might I learn to weep with those who weep, to depend on God’s strength in weakness, to pray more broadly and fervently, and to trust Him with outcomes? (Romans 12:15; 15:1; 2 Corinthians 12:7-10; Ephesians 6:18; 1 Timothy 2:1-2)

Lord, in every season, may I seek, and thank, and bless, and honor You with all my heart. (Psalm 34:1; Hosea 10:12; 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)