Closer Day By Day

Ecclesiastes is not an easy book to write on. The preacher states what he sees and what he understands so simply and so plainly that there is really nothing more that I can comment about.

Bible Passage: Ecclesiastes 5-6

Enjoy the God-given present moment

In a nutshell, everything is vanity in this world and we all should really just enjoy and make the best of what God has given us at the present.

Tying up with some of my own personal thoughts from Ecclesiastes 3 and 4, there is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven. So there will be a time to cry; but there will also be a time to laugh. There will be a time to break down; but also a time to build up. Therefore, like what biblereadingcompanion commented, circumstances will change.

“If things are going well, wait a bit… it will change.
If things are not going well, wait a bit… it will change.”

If things are going good, thank God! But understand that this time will pass.

If things are not going well, it’s ok, for we know that soon this time will be over.

Did I sound pessimistic?

I don’t think so! Because while things are constantly changing, we have a God who never changes, and He is in control (Ecclesiastes 5:2).

But the difficulty is that men tend to place the most emphasis on the here and now. How I feel right now is more significant than how I felt just a while ago.

And thus when we meet with a down period, we feel trapped in it because we are too wrapped up with the here and now. (See also the posting and readers’ comments on 1 Peter 1-3.)

But if we are able to see things as God sees, that there is a time for every purpose, and soon the time to cry will pass, and we will be laughing again. If we are able to stand outside of ourselves and take a look, we will be able to see the transience of matters and emotions.

Sounds like Buddhism? But it’s not. Because we have a God who is in control, that is why we can look beyond the here and now, and let go to let God (Ecclesiastes 6:10).

Unhappy days will pass very quickly - this is something I heard from TV.

I have to confess that this is something I find it hard to do, for you should know by now that Treasureinearthernvessel is an emotional person. But I am learning.

Of course, it does not mean that we are not spiritual when we laugh joyously or when we weep bitterly.  The bible also says to weep with those who weep and to rejoice with those who rejoice (Romans 12:15). God give us emotions and they really do make our life more colourful. But the important thing is that we must recognize them as emotions and that they will pass. So while we are at the moment of joy, rejoice! While we are at the moment of grief, cry! But know that these moments will pass. And God is still in control. And God is our God.

So savour each moment and learn a lesson from each. The question to ask ourselves is, what do we learn from each period of our life?

Each moment is a gift of God, and we ought to simply enjoy and make the most out of what God has given. Make the most out of the here and now. You won’t get another now.

It is good and fitting for one to eat and drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour in which he toils under the sun all the days of his life which God gives him; for it is his heritage. (Ecclesiastes 5:18)

A time to keep silence; but also a time to speak.

Another point to share before I end off.

We often use Ecclesiastes 5:1 to stress the importance of our reverent attitude when we go to church.

Walk prudently when you go to the house of God (Ecclesiastes 5:1).

Being prudent can mean having good judgment and being careful about one’s conduct.

But I would like to place more emphasis on the latter portion today.

And draw near to hear rather than to give the sacrifice of fools, for they do not know that they do evil.

There is a contrast made in the statement above. If we look at the context in Ecclesiastes 5, drawing near to hear is contrasted here with the many words of a fool.

Someone shared with me that in the Book of Ecclesiastes, there are altogether 12 verses that talks about the fool. (Ecclesiastes 2:14, 2:15, 2:16, 2:19, 4:5, 5:3, 6:8, 7:6, 10:2, 10:3, 10:12, 10:14)

From these, I am sure we are able to have a clearer picture of the fool. And one very obvious characteristic of the fool is his many words.

I often wonder if I am making a fool out of myself through this blog. And perhaps this is the fear of many readers who have something to share but is afraid to share.

On the other hand, when we go to church or when we are with friends, do we talk more than we listen? The verse says to draw near to hear. I would like to see it not only to draw near to listen to sermons, but also to draw near to our brethren or even truth-seekers to hear them.

Biblereadingcompanion regretted that he spoke when he should have kept silent, and kept silent when he should have spoken in the previous Ecclesiastes post. I think this is something that we all are guilty of often.

I like the advice given: Therefore let your words be few. (Ecclesiastes 5:2) And I am immediately reminded of our Lord Jesus’ quiet confidence. He spoke when He had to (remember when? ); otherwise, His words were few. I can also think of a few brethren in church with this similar sort of quiet confidence. Don’t these people simply appeal to you? They appear like they know something that you do not know of, which would explain the quiet confidence.

While I am trying to emulate this sort of quiet confidence, I am also reminded that while there is a time to keep silence, there is also a time to speak (Ecclesiastes 3:7). When there is a need to defend our beliefs, or when our brethren are in need of comforting words, let us learn to open our mouth.

I guess once again, a good principle to live by is this: Say what we mean, and mean what we say.