5/11/09

And the clouds fly by

Did you ever look at the clouds and they look like they are just flying by? That is probably not the case here, although it looks like it. (Notice the trees are straight and not bending) Time is a funny thing; it seems to go by soooo slowly when you are young and then speed way up as you grow older. Lately the years seem to fly by, just like the clouds in the sky seem to in this picture. However, we know that every day and every year is about the same, (except for leap year of course) so time is an illusion. Think about it; everything has an appointed time, just as the book of Ecclesiastes tells us.

Ecc 3:1 For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven:
Ecc 3:2 a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
Ecc 3:3 a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
Ecc 3:4 a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
Ecc 3:5 a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
Ecc 3:6 a time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
Ecc 3:7 a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
Ecc 3:8 a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace.
Ecc 3:9 What profit has he who works in that in which he labors?
Ecc 3:10 I have seen the burden which God has given to the sons of men to be afflicted with.
Ecc 3:11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in their hearts, yet so that man can't find out the work that God has done from the beginning even to the end.
Ecc 3:12 I know that there is nothing better for them than to rejoice, and to do good as long as they live.
Ecc 3:13 Also that every man should eat and drink, and enjoy good in all his labor, is the gift of God.
Ecc 3:14 I know that whatever God does, it shall be forever. Nothing can be added to it, nor anything taken from it; and God has done it, that men should fear before him.
Ecc 3:15 That which is has been long ago, and that which is to be has been long ago: and God seeks again that which is passed away.
Ecc 3:16 Moreover I saw under the sun, in the place of justice, that wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, that wickedness was there.
Ecc 3:17 I said in my heart, "God will judge the righteous and the wicked; for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work."
Ecc 3:18 I said in my heart, "As for the sons of men, God tests them, so that they may see that they themselves are like animals.
Ecc 3:19 For that which happens to the sons of men happens to animals. Even one thing happens to them. As the one dies, so the other dies. Yes, they have all one breath; and man has no advantage over the animals: for all is vanity.
Ecc 3:20 All go to one place. All are from the dust, and all turn to dust again.
Ecc 3:21 Who knows the spirit of man, whether it goes upward, and the spirit of the animal, whether it goes downward to the earth?"
Ecc 3:22 Therefore I saw that there is nothing better, than that a man should rejoice in his works; for that is his portion: for who can bring him to see what will be after him?
Solomon had great wisdom and yet great folly; a man blessed by God, but one who deserted him in his old age. This man was a contradiction of terms; a puzzlement, and yet at the end of Ecclesiastes he finally got it right when he said:

Ecc 12:13 This is the end of the matter. All has been heard. Fear God, and keep his commandments; for this is the whole duty of man.
Ecc 12:14 For God will bring every work into judgment, with every hidden thing, whether it is good, or whether it is evil.

The "Now" is all we have; use it wisely, who knows what tomorrow will bring. Everything will happen according to its time, including our life, so whether the time seems to go by quickly or not, fill each day up to the brim and LIVE; God is watching and I hope that "today" is the one where he gives you an extra special blessing.