This week our dear friend and sister Jana Swinney graduated from life under the sun to an eternity in God’s presence. Cancer took life from her body, but today she has a new body that is not only cancer free, but pain free in everyway.

As I prepare for the memorial service (this Friday, 10am in the auditorium), I think about Solomon’s words in Ecclesiastes 7:1-6 (NIV):

¹ A good name is better than fine perfume,
and the day of death better than the day of birth.
² It is better to go to a house of mourning
than to go to a house of feasting,
for death is the destiny of every man;
the living should take this to heart.
³ Sorrow is better than laughter,
because a sad face is good for the heart.
⁴ The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,
but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.
⁵ It is better to heed a wise man’s rebuke
than to listen to the song of fools.
⁶ Like the crackling of thorns under the pot,
so is the laughter of fools.
This too is meaningless.

I’ll bet you’ve just about had enough of the positive thinking of Ecclesiastes! Can we really accept that “a sad face is good for the heart” (vs. 3)? What’s the point here? Verse 2 above helps us interpret the whole section. We will all die - period. With that reality, it should inform our daily decisions.

In poetic form, Solomon is saying that with death a reality and the brevity of life, we should take life seriously! Take that idea and every verse in the text above makes sense. Take life seriously! Make the most of every moment! In mourning we can see what’s most important. Don’t run from a confrontation. The way of fools is just that - foolishness. If we only center life on feasting and laughter and foolishness, we’ll miss the depth of life as God created it. Yes, we are to enjoy life and pleasure (8:15), but also use the times like a memorial service or a loss of any kind as a time to turn our hearts toward God.

Jana Swinney lived a great life. She touched many people. She was steadfast and faithful. She finished well. The day of her death was better than the day of her birth for she made the most of the days in between - to the glory of God. May our ending be better than our beginning! Think about that.

Glen

As we continue in our study of Ecclesiastes on the weekends, I wanted to share some of my favorite proverbs from this book. Here goes…

As dead flies give perfume a bad smell, so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor. (10:1)

We see this all the time, especially in public leaders. All the good things one has done can be forgotten with one lie, poorly chosen words or sin. Just watch political news these days for examples.

Do not revile the king even in your thoughts, or curse the rich in your bedroom, because a bird of the air may carry your words, and a bird on the wing may report what you say. (10:20)

How many times have we said something in “private” only to have it spread publically? How many times have we wished we hadn’t said something and could “take it back?” Or how about the time you were replying to one person on email but hit “reply all” and sent a note to a ton of people with a response that exposed you. Once you hit “send” (our modern “bird”) it is out of your control.

Ever wished for the good ole days? Listen to 7:10:
Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these?” For it is not wise to ask such questions.

And my all time favorite that I’ve tried to take to heart is found in 7:21 & 22:
Do not pay attention to every word people say, or you may hear your servant cursing you- for you know in your heart that many times you yourself have cursed others.

We all are tempted to pay too much attention to what others say about us. Why give others power over us by listening to their curses. And often others say things they don’t really mean, yet we take them to heart. The curses of man (anything said and done to rob us of life and satisfaction) will never match the blessing and grace of God. May we learn to listen to what God says about us and find satisfaction in Him alone and not in what others say.

If you have time, you might want to look up a few more gems in Ecclesiastes - 5:1 & 2; 10:4; 8-11; 11:4; and 12:12b.

Have a great week under the sun,

Glen

Didn’t Tim do an outstanding job teaching this weekend?! In my blog I’ll continue to look at some challenging passages in Ecclesiastes as we continue our teaching series “Chasing after the Wind.” Mike Parejo will be addressing this subject of balance in more detail the weekend after next.

Let’s look at Eccl. 7:16-18 (NIV):
Do not be overrighteous,
neither be overwise-
why destroy yourself?

Do not be overwicked,
and do not be a fool-
why die before your time?

It is good to grasp the one
and not let go of the other.
The man who fears God will avoid all extremes.

Some folks who act like super-saints are very annoying. Like the driver of a car with a zillion religious bumper stickers who drives like a demon from hell. I am cautious around folks who super-spiritualize everything like “God told me to park in that particular place.” I’ve heard people say that the Spirit told them to do something that was clearly against scripture. When confronted, they just claim they heard God and obeyed. “Overrighteous” people can be judgmental and just a bit arrogant. Some fans are just too fanatical and obnoxious. I am a “fan” of God, but I don’t want to be an obnoxious fan.

Overrighteous and overwise folks have a problem - pride. It is inevitable. The root of all sin is pride. Pride is a focus on me. “See God how super holy I am! So God, you owe me blessings!” How foolish. God is never a debtor to us. Overwickedness is also a life of pride - I’ll do whatever I want for my benefit.

In context Solomon reminds us that our ability to be righteous is limited. We can never do enough for God. For sure our wisdom is limited. All striving is doomed. So don’t overdue it! Going to church more or serving harder will just wear you out. But don’t be a fool either and give up and indulge in evil. The main thing is to respect (fear) and trust God. In Him we find rest from striving that will never yield satisfaction. This weekend I’ll be teaching about rest. We can rest because of grace. We’ll never be good enough to earn God’s favor - that’s why we embrace grace! We rest in a good God who wants us to enjoy Him above all things. Let’s not miss that in being overrighteous or overwicked.

Living life “under the sun”:

Glen

I’m going to be looking as some challenging passages from Ecclesiastes in my blog (last week - “Like Animals?”) while we study Eccl. on the weekend. Today I’m looking at Eccl. 3:10-14 (NIV).

¹⁰ I have seen the burden God has laid on men. ¹¹ He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. ¹² I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live. ¹³ That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil-this is the gift of God. ¹⁴ I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that men will revere him.

Verses 1-8 that precede this are about a time for everything - a superb poem. Please take time to read it. As a child of the 60’s it takes me back to the Bird’s “Turn! Turn! Turn!” (1962) written by Pete Seeger (Can you hear me singing it?).

What’s the point of the poem? We are reminded we can’t control the time or the seasons or events of our lives. We are not God! God created life with these seasons of war and peace, weeping and laughing, searching and giving up, etc. So in verse 11 we are reminded that “everything is beautiful in its time.” The message: sit back and enjoy the movements of the seasons and events.

But God also created us with “eternity” (literally “an age”) in our hearts. In this sense we are not like animals. We yearn to know how it all fits together and how it will all end. But we really can’t fully fathom the past and we sure can’t figure out the future. Only God knows how it all fits together. Verse 14 suggests that God wants us to realize we can’t know everything or why this or that happened when it did in order to remain dependent on God for TODAY!

So, instead of missing the “now” in our worry about the future, Solomon encourages us to be happy and DO GOOD (vs. 12). See the ordinary activities of life like eating and drinking as a gift of God. Behind every activity in life is God who is present and wants to lead us to make the most of every moment.

Wow, do I love this book. I’m blown away by its wisdom. If I can only learn to live in the moment, see God in every ordinary event or conversation and enjoy life as a gift from God. What a challenge but also what a hope.

Living life “under the sun,”

Glen