Ecclesiastes 9:11-12
11 I returned and saw under the sun that—
The race is not to the swift,
Nor the battle to the strong,
Nor bread to the wise,
Nor riches to men of understanding,
Nor favor to men of skill;
But time and chance happen to them all.
12 For man also does not know his time:
Like fish taken in a cruel net,
Like birds caught in a snare,
So the sons of men are snared in an evil time,
When it falls suddenly upon them.
Just a short time ago, are call to comment was left with a deafening silence. Yet I continue to see that you are out there and you are reading. So at this time let me thank you for that, and encourage you to continue, and tell a friend. Help Ambrosebrothers.org grow.
I wanted to move us back to Ecclesiastes today we are over two-thirds of the way through the book, and the end in sight. We have seen that all things under the son are meaningless, yet there is value in many of them, and we must continue to look to the Lord.
Today’s passage is full of truth, as we so enjoy on this site. How many times have our best plans not worked out as we planned. I think of the American Basketball team back in the 2004 Olympics. They were the biggest, strongest, and most athletic team there, yet they didn’t win. I have seen wise, intelligent men unable to find a job. I have seen good men, lose there homes, and honest men lose there families. We often get caught in the trap of thinking if we do everything we can, if were prepared for every eventuality, good things will come to us. But it reminds me of a famous quote, from a famous book “The best-laid schemes of Mice and Men, often go astray”
In today’s passage I believe Solomon is laying a warning on us. We don’t have control over what happens to us in this life. It’s all in the hands of the Lord. Yet what we do have control over is our reaction to these times. It’s a call to be ready for those times of evil that occasionally fall on us all. I know in my own life it was a little over a year ago when I lived just a portion of this warning. As the 2007 year came to a start in 1 month’s time, I ended up in the hospital with emergency appendix surgery, both of my cars with nearly 2000 dollar bills apiece, my furnace broke down, and my plumbing went out for the count.
In this world things don’t always go the way we plan. Just because were the fastest doesn’t mean we’ll win the race. Just because were the strongest doesn’t mean we’ll win the war. Despite our wisdom we may not always eat, and despite our intelligence we may never be rich. Yet God is always Sovereign, He is always in control. And all things happen for His good in His perfect will. As far as an action point goes today, let me encourage you to be prepared, but realize sometimes things don’t go the way we plan.
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