Ecclesiastes 10-12
*Click here to read this passage:
There are a few bits of wisdom from Solomon’s writings that I
loved today, especially the wording from the New Living Translation:
~Chapter 10, Verse 4: “If your boss is angry at you, don’t
quit! A quiet spirit can overcome
even great mistakes.”
Other translations use the word
“calmness” instead of “quiet spirit.”
This is something that is very hard to do at times. It is much easier to be defensive, to
get angry, and to mouth off to people, or even to call out others’ mistakes
instead of owning your own. A calm
quiet spirit can make the biggest difference. I’ve learned this from experience as a teacher, as an
employee, as a wife, and as a mom.
If I fly off the handle and lose my temper, in the end I feel guilty,
the situation escalates even more, and whatever relationship involved gets
weakened. If I can remain calm
even in the face of someone who is angry with me, I end up better off, the
situation fizzles out much quicker, and the relationship involved gets
strengthened.
~Chapter 11, Verse 4:
“Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant. If they watch every cloud, they never
harvest.”
You can always come up with a reason not
to do something. The timing or
circumstances will never be perfect.
Stop waiting!
~Chapter 12, Verses 13-14:
“That’s the whole story.
Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey His commands, for
this is everyone’s duty. God will
judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or
bad.”
Solomon has said over and over,
“Meaningless! Everything is meaningless!” but with his conclusion I can’t help
but to think that he might not truly and completely believe that. If everything really was meaningless,
then why fear God? Why obey Him if
nothing matters? We fear (respect,
honor, revere) God and follow His ways because it does matter. It is not meaningless. He knows everything about us including
every secret that no one else knows.
He loves us in spite of our failures and has a purpose for our
lives. Meaningless? With God as the Lord of your life? No way!
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