“The future starts today, not tomorrow.”

“Gratitude looks to the Past and love to the Present; fear, avarice, lust, and ambition look ahead.”  - C.S. Lewis



 

(Scripture text: ECCL 3:1-11)

There is an appointed time for everything,
and a time for every thing under the heavens.
A time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to uproot the plant.
A time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to tear down, and a time to build.
A time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance.
A time to scatter stones, and a time to gather them;
a time to embrace, and a time to be far from embraces.
A time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away.
A time to rend, and a time to sew;
a time to be silent, and a time to speak.
A time to love, and a time to hate;
a time of war, and a time of peace.


What advantage has the worker from his toil?
I have considered the task that God has appointed
for the sons of men to be busied about.
He has made everything appropriate to its time,
and has put the timeless into their hearts,
without man's ever discovering,
from beginning to end, the work which God has done

I love this reading for today because it always reminds me to take a step back and relax.  It is very easy for us all to stress out about where our lives are going.  We all want things to be planned.  But God reminds us in Ecclesiastes that “there is an appointed time for everything, and a time for everything under the heavens.”(Eccl 3:1).  Sometimes we just have to be patient, whether we like it or not.  There is also an important distinction in this verse.  Everything that happens or will happen has its own God-appointed time, and most importantly, there is time for everything that we could ever need.  God knows what is on our hearts, and knows what is best for us.  All will be provided, if only we are patient and trusting.

In our world, it is easy to waste time with things that aren’t of God, but not today.  Cherish what is happening, not what is to come.  Make every moment count, and leave space for God’s plans to unfold in your life.