A Time To Die
To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven: (Ecc 3:1 NKJV)
A time to be born,
And a time to die;
A time to plant,
And a time to pluck what is planted; (Ecc 3:2 NKJV)
First Thing in the Morning
Some people turn on the news the first thing in the morning. Some people pray and read their Bibles. Before I read and pray, I usually have a cup of coffee and a couple of pieces of toast with peanut butter and provolone cheese. Then I am ready to engage my brain for the day, and I try to spend some time reading and praying. But before I do that, I also check the obituaries which my newspaper kindly sends to me each morning. And then I check the recent posts on Facebook. Often I see the obituaries of some of my acquaintances and friends.
I have reached an age where it is usual to find that people my age and younger have reached that “time to die.” Even my high school class has a website where obituaries of my high school classmates are posted. The notices are coming more and more often.
Remember
I remember when it was customary to ask elementary students what they wanted to be when they grew up. Most of us wanted to be cowboys or firemen or policemen (remember I grew up in the 50’s and 60’s). We definitely thought life would go on forever and we would have plenty of time to enjoy life and reach our goals if we had any. But then one day, we woke up and realized that our 40 years of fruitful activity in this life was about over. For me, what is really discouraging is to see my friends die, and recently there have been quite a few. And then I come back to the disillusioned writer of the Ecclesiastes. To everything there is a season, a time to be born and a time to die.
It seems like it was just yesterday, that winter gave way to Spring. We set our clocks forward to give us an extra hour of sunlight in the evening. We planted our gardens, and our farmers planted the fields. We played and picniced and swam (as much as we could considering the pandemic). And now we see the harvest. The field corn is starting to dry up. The tomatoes are just about done bearing fruit. Apples are about ready to be picked. The pumpkins are about to make their appearance. The trees are beginning to turn colors. That glorious time called FALL is here. There is only one problem with FALL as far as I am concerned. That problem is called winter. We get to look forward to north winds, snow and 20 below weather in January. I had been so looking forward to spring just a little while ago. But the seasons have changed and winter is coming. We are reminded that there is always an afterward.
Afterwards
“And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation (Heb 9:27-28 NKJV).”
When all the dreams (and disappointments of life) are over, there is an afterwards. Many people think that when they die it is all over. Imagine their surprise when they find out that they were wrong and that a new season is just beginning. For the believer that season will be spring, summer and fall all rolled into one. For the unbeliever, well let’s just say that they will wish that they were enjoying winter.
How quickly time passes in this life. But that season called eternity will be forever. This is the season to make sure that you are prepared for eternity.
The hymn writer has penned these words:
Eternity time soon will end.
It’s fleeting moments pass away.
O sinner say, where will you spend
Eternity’s unchanging day?
Bruce Collins
Meditation for the week of September 12, 2021