DAILY DEVOTIONAL – January 22, 2020
“Geared for Good”
Prayer: Our God and Father, we trust in Your power and goodness alone. Lord, even when life seems backwards and when we feel as though we’re standing still, remind us through Your word and Spirit that You are always working for our good and Your good pleasure. Amen.
Scripture: Ecclesiastes 3:1-14
For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
2 a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
3 a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
4 a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
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;
6 a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
7 a time to tear, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
8 a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace.
9 What gain has the worker from his toil? 10 I have seen the business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man’s heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end. 12 I perceived that there is nothing better for them than to be joyful and to do good as long as they live;13 also that everyone should eat and drink and take pleasure in all his toil—this is God’s gift to man.
14 I perceived that whatever God does endures forever; nothing can be added to it, nor anything taken from it. God has done it, so that people fear before him.
Devotional – “Geared for Good”
It’s incredible how much power a few small numbers can have. The other day I was working on my calendar, trying to coordinate a whole lot of appointments and squeezing the most out of every minute I had to spare. I’m sure you can relate. As I was trying to cram everything in, I became increasingly aware of how powerful the numbers 1-12 are. Twice a day, as the hands on a clock persistently and predictably tick on by, it’s incredible to think that although people may be waking up or going to bed, working or relaxing, hurrying or taking their time, we are all watching closely and are all negotiating every part of our lives around those 12 numbers.
Have you ever observed the internal workings of a well-made clock? Since it was on my mind after my calendaring marathon, I pulled up a video of a Rolex watch being disassembled and put back together. It is fascinating how many different sizes and varieties of gears there are that all work together to make things work. Some of the largest gears are controlled by some of the smallest gears. Some gears are going ‘round all the time and some gears only move in a specific instance. Some gears and parts are dynamic in motion, some idle and others only moved by the operator when desired. Out of everything I found interesting about the inner workings of a watch, what I found most intriguing was how despite some gears that move in counterclockwise motion and some gears that don’t move at all…time kept on going and the hands on the clock kept moving.
As I continued to look at the motions of the watch, I saw a representation of what it is like to walk by faith. Although some of the watch gears move clockwise and others counterclockwise, and while some of the gears move smoothly and others more sporadic, all of those parts work together in moving the hands of the clock forward. Such it is in life, is it not? Sometimes we feel like things are ticking along just fine. At other times it seems we are standing still, and of course there are those times we feel like we are moving counterclockwise. Yet, Romans 8:28 tells us that, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” That means that even when some of the gears in our life stand still, or even move backwards, when it seems opportunity is lost or we can’t seem to break free of a rut we are in, those too are part of “all things” that God works together along with the best of times in order to accomplish His will and work His goodness into our lives.
Our passage from Ecclesiastes says there is a time for everything. We all go through times and seasons in our lives where it seems we are moving counterclockwise and things are not going the way we want them to. If it were up to you and I to control the ultimate purpose of our lives and up to us to work everything together for our own good, there would be much reason for despair. However, we have every reason for hope and joy in all seasons and times because, as Ecclesiastes says, “God has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into our hearts…whatever God does endures forever; nothing can be added to it, nor anything taken from it.”
In sending His Son to die in our place and rise again to provide for our forgiveness and salvation, God has made us good and pleasing to Himself as we love and worship Him and walk by faith. All sin is forgiven, all of life has been redeemed and by His power and in accordance with His gracious will, God uses every time and season of our life to work together for our good and His good pleasure. Knowing the love of God in Christ and trusting that all time is in His hands is what allows us to “be joyful and do good as long as we live” and even “take pleasure in our toil” as Ecclesiastes says.
So my friends, whether the gears seem to be moving forward smoothly, or sporadically moving backwards this week, know that God’s time still moves forward, that His will, will in fact be done, and that He is working all things together for your good. And remember, that God has forgiven yesterday, is with you today and has already taken care of tomorrow. Amen.
