Thursday Devotional

By: Steven Grace

Verse: Eccl. 3:1-14

Theme: Change can be good; New Year/New Beginning

Devotion:

Whenever I hear this passage, I instantly think of the Byrds song “Turn, Turn, Turn”, which based its lyrics on this passage. And that song has special meaning, as it was played at the funeral of a classmate when I was only 11 years old. At the time, I never thought much about the meaning of the words, or even knew that it was based on Scripture. And how does an 11 year old process the fact that one of his friends has died, and will never get to play with us on this Earth again?

Looking closer at the passage, to me it feels like a description of the circle of life. We started as dust and we will return to dust; the time in between can and will be made up of a variety of activities. It boils down to verse 12: “I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live.” I take that to mean: don’t worry about the things you cannot control; in the end, our time is short, and we must make the most of it.

As we enter into 2015, Springdale UMC is going through some changes: we have a new leadership board, with the goal of making the administrative side of decision-making more efficient so we can spend more time in ministry and mission; we have lost some long-time members, as it was their time to return home to God; we continue to explore our current and future building and accessibility needs/concerns; we are dealing with changes in: families, worship, technology, time-management, communication, and more!; we are dealing with a trend of decreased giving (due to a combination of all the previously mentioned changes).

So what can we do to address/embrace/head-off some of these changes? As it says in the passage: there is a time for everything. It may be time for us to build; it may be time for us to weep; it may be time for us to keep; it may be time for us to throw away. No matter what decisions or issues we are faced with (not just in the church, but in your personal or professional life, too), we must remember that God is always there for us. We must pray to Him for guidance; we must accept that we might need to do something we aren’t comfortable with; we must trust that God will provide for us, as long as we are faithful and generous stewards; we must trust that God will guide us to the path we are meant to be on; and we must accept the fact that that path might not (probably won’t) be an easy one. But if we stay focused on Him, and on our mission and vision, we will find ourselves in a time when we can dance, embrace, laugh, and build up our congregation within SUMC.

As I look back on the funeral of one of my friends, I still get tears in my eye (24 years later). And when I hear the song, I remember his smile and kindness. And I am reminded that though there is a time to die for all of us, if we live a life that includes such a great smile and acts of kindness, when our time comes, we will have others remembering us for those same things.

Prayer:

O Heavenly Father. We thank you for all of the opportunities you have given us. Grant us the wisdom and vision to follow the path you have laid out for us, so that we may leave a lasting impression of your love for others to remember. Amen.