“He has made everything beautiful in His time; He also has set the world in their hearts so that no man can find out the work that God makes from the beginning to the end.”
Ecclesiastes 3:11
If “1,000 years are as yesterday when it is past and as a watch in the night” (Ps. 90:4) and “as only one day” in God’s scheme of things (II Pet. 3:8), we shouldn’t “sweat the small stuff” that comes our way.
Isn’t it amazing how even the tiniest of candles is a welcome sight to those who sit in darkness? It may be quite small and its light quite dim—but, make no mistake, a little light is better than no light. And, today’s Manna certainly fits that description in the Book of Ecclesiastes.
The majority of the book is filled with words of “doom, despair and agony on me.” Although Solomon describes himself as “the Preacher” (1:1a), his “sermon” in Ecclesiastes is not one we’d want to hear every Sunday.
But, there in the middle of such “miserable mutterings,” he inserts such a wonderful truth: “He has made everything beautiful in His time.” Glory! Isn’t that a glorious thought, Pilgrim? Suddenly, out of nowhere. . .when he’s talking about the foolishness of pursuing wisdom, pleasure, great accomplishments and hard labor (1:12-2:23). . .and basically to just “eat, drink and enjoy the good in your labor” (2:24). . .he injects our Manna, which essentially says “Don’t lose hope; ‘in due season you’ll reap’ (Gal. 6:9)—for He makes everything beautiful.” Glory!! And, then he adds “He has also set the world in their hearts,” which reminds us to spend more time looking outward and upward than we do inward!
Oh, dear Pilgrim, if the caterpillar spent most of his time looking in the mirror while creeping along the ground, he’d constantly be saying “You know, I’m nothing but an ugly caterpillar. Nobody likes me or wants to take me home with them.” But, given time, that caterpillar will be miraculously transformed through metamorphosis into a beautiful, colorful butterfly—all by God’s wondrous design—and soon admired by many.
And, believe it or not, the same is true for us WHEN we’re “co-laborers together with God” (I Cor. 3:9).
When we’re “IN CHRIST, we are a new creature/creation; old things are passing away and all things are becoming new” (II Cor. 5:17). If He could take decaying vegetative matter, transform it into bituminous coal and later fashion it into a beautiful diamond, surely He can take our lives and make something beautiful out of them.
The key is “In His time.”
Say those words again, Pilgrim: “In His time.”
Right now you may be going through “a season of heaviness through numerous trials and tribulations” (I Pet. 1:6b). But, do not lose hope. “In His Time” He’ll use your “fiery furnace” experiences to purge away the “dross of sin” in your faith and transform it into 24-karat status. So, trust Him. Rest in Him. Wait upon Him. “In due season you’ll reap if you grow not weary or faint in your mind” (Gal. 6:9). Thank You, Lord.
July 12, 2011
