9-11-2016

 Good Morning All!! 

   Ecclesiastes 11:4; “Whoever watches the wind will never plant. Whoever looks at the clouds will never harvest”.

   So what does this have to do with anything?  Well this is one of those hidden gems that get lost in the translation.  Think along this line.  Have you ever tried to plan an outside event, like a picnic or a day at the lake or maybe going to a larger city to watch a baseball game?  When you do this, especially long term, if you are afraid of it raining; you will never plan the event.  A few years ago, as we planned our 125^th celebration, we knew we would need to be able to have people eat and fellowship outside.  We were about a year out; there was no way to predict the weather.  There was no way to plan for a perfect day.  So we picked a date and prayed for nice weather.  Fortunately, we got it.

    This proverb refers to this type of situation.  If you wait for the perfect condition to plant; you never will plant.  If you wait for the perfect condition to harvest; you never will.  In almost any facet of our life, there is no perfect time for anything.  There is no perfect time to begin exercising more.  There is no perfect time to begin a new friendship or to revive an old one.  There is no perfect time for anything we do.  This is mostly because we live in an imperfect world. 

     This proverb tells us not to wait.  There is no better time than now for whatever you need to do.  There will never be a more perfect time to call your parents or your children than right now.  There will be no better time than now to begin a devotional time.  There will never be a perfect time to change your life for better so you just have to begin.

    Any time we look to change, we need to know from where we start.  The absolute first thing to always remember is that you are a loved, redeemed child of God.  Above everything else, this is what you are.  From this starting point, you have the perfect time to move forward.  If you have a strained or even a broken relationship from the past, this is a perfect time to begin to fix it.  It might take a while and some work but you can begin today; there will be no better time.  If you haven’t been in church for a while, there is no better time than now.  If you haven’t prayed for a while there is no better time to start than now.  There will never be a “perfect” time just a time to begin.  There is only a time to return to God’s love.  It is there and always will be; all we need is to trust that this love can and does overwhelm our struggles.  This incredible love will pull us through whatever assails us.  God’s love can carry you through all of lives travails, start using it and trusting it today; there is no more perfect time.

Father of wonders, we often make excuses when we face our struggles and procrastinate in turning to you.  We feel we can conquer our woes and struggle until we are mired in pain and suffering.  Give us the wisdom to call upon you today and not wait until tomorrow.  Give us the strength to trust in you.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret