Ecclesiastes 7:9-14
Best of
Times - Worst of Times
-
7:9
Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for
anger resides in the lap of fools.
10
Do not say, "Why were the old days better than
these?" For it is not wise to ask such questions.
11
Wisdom, like an inheritance, is a good thing and
benefits those who see the sun.
12
Wisdom is a shelter as money is a shelter, but the
advantage of knowledge is this: that wisdom
preserves the life of its possessor.
13
Consider what God has done: Who can straighten what
he has made crooked?
14
When times are good, be happy; but when times are
bad, consider: God has made the one as well as the
other. Therefore, a man cannot discover anything
about his future.
This
is the Word of the Lord ... It is meant to change
the way that we think, and the way that we live.
Commentary
by Bob Pardue
During the Best of
Times, Be Happy; During the Worst of Times,
Consider
The title of this article is
comes from a well-known saying; "It was the best of
times; It was the worst of times."
Life is like that. God allows
us to have good and bad events in our lives. Why?
No one knows for sure but it makes sense that we
can't appreciate one without the other. If we never
had sadness we wouldn't know what happiness
is.
Who created
what?
The challenge we have is that
we sometimes tend to believe that the good in our
lives was created by us and then blame God for the
bad times.
Be careful not to become too
confident by thinking you are in complete control
of your future. God may hand you some of the "bad
times" just to bring you back to Him.
Give thanks
Thank God for the good times
and the bad because both are bound to happen.
Things are going to happen in your life, good and
bad but remember that God will be there for you
during the rough parts of your life and He
celebrates the good times just as you do with your
children.
The truth about bad
luck
Mark Twain wrote about bad
luck in his novel, "The Adventures of Huckleberry
Finn" .
In one part of the story,
Huck touched a snake skin (which was a sign of bad
luck) and then experienced some really good
things in his life. Huck confronted Jim about his
superstition because nothing bad happened to
him.
Huck boasted about all the
good luck they were having and said that the snake
skin didn't bring them any bad luck at all.
Jim didn't buy Huck's
doubtfulness . He simply said; "Don't you worry,
Huck. It's 'a comin'."
What about our snake
skin?
Things may be going great in
your life but remember, if you haven't experienced
your "bump in the road" yet, don't you worry, it's
a comin'.
The good news is that, when
it happens to you, God will be there for you if you
only ask Him.
Love in Christ
- Bob
If you have never made the
commitment to receive the love and life-changing
experience of Jesus Christ, please take a moment to
go
here and take the
first
steps to salvation.
Verses about good times and bad times
according to Solomon are from Life Application
Study Bible: New International Version
Lesson to Remember
Ecclesiastes
7:8 -
Money,
Patience and Success
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