Freely Speaking Devotion

“To everything there is a season and a time for every purpose under heaven” Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NKJV).

“It was the best of times; it was the worst of times,” begins a Charles Dickens novel from the 19th century. Raise your hand if that describes how last year played out for you. Raise it higher if you experienced more “worst” than “best” times.

The “best” time for me last year was when my oldest granddaughter, Molly, passed her driver’s test on the first try. She looks so grown-up driving around town in her bright yellow VW Beetle. There were some “worst” times, too, with hubby enduring many surgeries and the pain and recovery associated with the operations.

As the Ecclesiastes verse says, this year is a new season with new purpose. Our usual goals are to eat better, exercise more, and focus on spiritual growth. The problem with most New Year’s resolutions or goals is that they are so vague or grandiose that we will never achieve them. It is better to set small, specific goals that can be completed quickly and then select other objectives as the year progresses.

Instead of saying I think I’ll read the entire Bible this year, it might be better to choose a book of the Bible to study. Maybe read one chapter per day and meditate on the passage, asking God to help you understand what you are reading, then start a new book of the Bible next month.

The great thing about the seasons that Ecclesiastes mentions is that God is with us whether life deals us the “worst” of times or the “best” of times. He is never caught off guard when unexpected things happen in our lives. Through thick and thin, good and bad, or best of times and worst of times, God has a time for every purpose under Heaven.

How was last year for you, and what goals do you have for this new year?