Ecclesiastes 3:1. To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
Oh friends, it’s another Friday in the life – a warm but somewhat cloudy one. And thankfully, with each passing day the summer season grows closer, and so do thoughts of vacation time. That means, each weekend the shouts of ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ are also louder. Those fortunate people living in year round sunshine and warmth cannot fathom the great desire that those of us who live in the northern climes have for summer weather. But that’s when we’re let loose like leggo-beasts; freed from all the clothing and indoor living that we are forced to wear and do for several months of the year.
And I guess that’s why we take so many liberties, bask in the freedom of it all, and consequently have so many accidents during the summer. Therefore, Cousin Sol, in his great God-given wisdom, could write as the Preacher in Ecclesiastes: ‘To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born (to bear), and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance; A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; A time to get (gain), and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; A time to rend (tear apart), and a time to sew (sew together); a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; A time to LOVE, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.’ (Eccl. 3:1-8)
Yes my people, there’s a time for everything in God’s great universe, but unfortunately right now seems to be the time for most of the negative happenings: like a time for many to die, one for many things to be plucked up that were planted, a time to kill and break down the beautiful things we’ve built over the years, a time to weep and mourn, as so many are doing in these disastrous times, a time to cast away stones and to refrain from embracing, a time for many to lose what they have and cast off relationships, a time to tear up and a time to speak blasphemy and lies, a time to hate and a time of war.
Oh my fellow believers these times of strife and hardship, of lack and greed, of envy and distrust seem to be all a part of God’s great plan for His universe. And the scholars put it thus: ‘As Solomon reflects on all of life, he expresses in a beautiful poem of 14 pairs of opposite events that God has a sovereign design behind all events. (cf. Rom. 8:28).’ Of that we can be very sure, for our God does not move in a vikey-vie, careless or unplanned manner. No sir! All His moves are planned out from the beginning and are so intertwined as to produce His purpose.
That’s why, as believers in Almighty God we have to hold on tightly to this foundational scripture: ‘And we know that all things work together for good to them that LOVE God, to them who are called according to his purpose.’ (Rom. 8:28) That’s because the Lord’s thoughts and ways are higher than ours, (Is. 55:8-9) and He doesn’t always move in straight line, or in ways that our puny and finite minds can understand. Therefore we need to hold on tightly to His promises in tough times, especially that one, where He’s going to eventually work everything out for our good.
Yes, it’s all about faith, about trust, about surrender to Almighty God, the Creator and Controller of this great universe! And what does the author of Hebrews tell us about faith? ‘Now faith is the substance (realization, assurance) of things hoped for, the evidence (conviction, sense of proof) of things not seen.’ (Heb.11:1) However, even more importantly, the author of Hebrews informs us: ‘But without faith it is impossible to please him (God): for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.’ (Heb. 11:6)
So it’s all wrapped up in our belief and faith friends. Once we give our hearts, souls, bodies and minds to Christ, then we have to stay strong and operate under the laws of His kingdom, though some of them might seem strange and are definitely not in sync with those of the world system. But then, Christ is not of this world, neither are we. So, for help in these dire times of need, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant.
Altogether: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help. Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly. And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times.
We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you. Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
Now friends, our own prayer indicates that our Christian witness is not up to scratch, otherwise our world would not be in such a vile, disgusting and strife-filled state. So please, let’s get together as ONE in Christ and improve our witness, so that the world can see our salt and light, our good works, and joyfully turn back to God and glorify Him. Much LOVE!
…God causes or allows ALL things to happen…and Christians must show absolute trust in His goodness and mercy…towards those who sincerely LOVE Him….
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
The Importance of Christians Knowing, Understanding and Believing God’s Promises in Times of Crisis!
09 Nov 2026 Leave a comment
by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a life-saving raft, a state of upheaval, a time of peace, a time of war, a time to be born, a time to break down, a time to build up, a time to cast away, a time to cast away stones, a time to dance, a time to die, a time to embrace, a time to every purpose under heaven, a time to gather stones together, a time to get, a time to hate, a time to heal, a time to keep, a time to keep silence, a time to kill, a time to laugh, a time to lose, a time to love, a time to mourn, a time to plant, a time to pluck up that which is planted, a time to refrain from embracing, a time to rend, a time to sew, a time to speak, a time to weep, Ai (Artificial Intelligence, AI qualifications, all over the world, all things work together for good to them that love God, atrocious greed, becoming more inequitable, benefittiing from their selfish schemes, big money, boggles my imagination, buffeted and bombarded by the enemy's evil schemes, called according to God's purpose, Christian need to get serious about their faith, complaining about the toughness of life, continual oppression brings revolution, continual slide into fewer opportunities, disastrous times, divine aid, divine inspiration, embrace the promises of the Bible, evil and ungodly things being done, faith, fight the good fight for Jesus, fill us with steadfast faith, firing low scale people, for the betterment of all, further feathering their already feathered nest, furthering your glorious kingdom, get worse before it gets better, God has a sovereign design behind everything, have not learned from our mistakes, herald further deprivation, hogwash, hold on to for dear life, holy spirit, humble servants, in our favour, into the enemy's ranks, Jesus Christ, jobs, keep us keeping on, keeping lives and families together, killed the middle class, lead and guide all your servants, look for another job, LOVE, make worthwhile inroads, meet the enemy in battle, mercy, no benefits, oppression, our Father who art in heaven, our world is falling apart, our world is in an uproar, over the weekend, power enamoured leaders, power hunger, praise and thank you, refrain from intimacy, rejuvenation of spirit, repression, rising up in protest, sad commentary on our leaders, sally forth with confidence, salvation, serve a useful purpose, society is at its highest level ever, sure conquerors, the all-embracing love of Jesus, the bastion of society, the bottom ninety percent, the devil's advocate, the eventual outcome, the horns of deprivation and uncertainty, the lower strata of society, the only certainty in this world, the only option is to revolt, the only solid foundation, the only true answer, the renewed vitality and enthusiasm, the same old dead-end job, the throne of grace, the top echelons, the top ten percent, the wisdom of Solomon, the wreckage being caused to so many young lives, the young generation, tired of empty promises, to begin a new week of work, to every thing there is a season, truth, uneasily balance, unprincipled technocrats, we know we're invincible, we're not afraid, wearing your powerful protective spiritual armour, weary souls, wisdom, write indelibly in our hearts, your incredible aura of love
Today’s Scrip-Bit 9 November 2026 Ecclesiastes 3:1.
Ecclesiastes 3:1. To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
‘Ahoy there mih bredrin, it’s a cloudy and cold Monday! What’s new with you eh?’ And all I get in response is a sour sneer: ‘What you think eh? It’s Monday, and I’m back in the same old dead-end job, working for pennies, with no benefits, listening to a set of people continually complaining about how life tough, like I didn’t know that.’ And playing the devil’s advocate, I ask: ‘So why don’t you look for another job?’ The look got even uglier: ‘Look for another job?’ came the astonished reply. ‘In this economy? Hn! When last have you looked for another job with just the basic qualifications eh?’
‘Not for a while,’ I answered. ‘Well then, you better had don’t start looking …unless you have AI qualifications, because that’s all they’re hiring nowadays, for big money too!’ I sagely nodded and replied, ‘I see.’ ‘Yes, AI is all the rage now, and they’re firing low scale people like me, and bringing in AI to do my lowly job. It’s a wonder I still have a job!’
Ah mih people, life is indeed getting rougher and tougher for many of us, but especially for those in the lower strata of society. And it doesn’t seem as though things will get any better in the near future. As they say, it might just have to get worse before it gets better. Can you imagine it? At a time when society is at its highest level ever, with the most wealth, education and technological advancement, our world is falling apart, it’s becoming even more inequitable than it previously was.
The atrocious greed and power hunger at the top is terrifying. They’ve conveniently killed the middle class that was once the bastion of the society. Now you’re either in the top ten percent or in the bottom ninety, for there’s nothing in between anymore. Unfortunately, our world is now being run by a handful of unprincipled technocrats and power enamoured leaders, who are only interested in further feathering their already highly feathered nest, while those below them uneasily balance on the horns of deprivation and uncertainty.
It boggles my imagination to behold the evil and ungodly things they are doing yet pretending that it’s for the betterment of all. As the man said, ‘Hogwash!’ Only the top echelons are benefitting from their selfish schemes. And the people, especially the young generation, are tired with all the empty promises and the continual slide into fewer opportunities with even less benefits that only herald further deprivation. No wonder they are rising up in protest all over the world.
It’s a sad commentary on our leaders, who either don’t care, and/or don’t see the wreckage they are causing to so many young lives. What’s wrong with mankind eh? Have we not learned from our many mistakes down through the years, that continual oppression and repression eventually brings revolution? Apparently not. At some stage the people will get so fed up that they believe their only option is to revolt. And no one truly wins when that happens, but in the light of the then existing circumstances, that always seems to be the only answer.
However, the only true answer seems to be found in the wisdom of Cousin Sol, speaking as the Preacher in Ecclesiastes, where he puts forward the reasoning that Almighty God has a sovereign design behind all events of the universe He created. Listen, as he expounds his theory. ‘To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; A time to get (gain), and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; A time to rend (tear apart), and a time to sew (sew together); a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; A time to LOVE, and a time to hate (refrain from intimacy); a time of war, and a time of peace.’ (Eccl. 3:1-8)
Yes friends, that’s the only way to rationalize what’s going on in our very troubled world, that’s facing more unfortunate upheaval every day. And for the individuals, particularly Christians, we need to truly get serious about our faith and embrace the promises of the Bible like we’ve never done before, because that’s the only solid foundation there is in these disastrous times. And it’s promises like this one found in Romans, that we desperately need to hold on to. ‘And we know that all things work together for good to them that LOVE God, to them who are called according to his purpose.’ (Rom. 8:28)
Now that’s something we need to write indelibly in our hearts and hold on to for dear life, like it’s a life-saving raft, because it is indeed one, as it assures us that regardless of what happens, in the long run, the Lord our God will work it all out for our good. So, although our world is in an uproar, and we don’t know what’s going to happen next, we can rest assured that the eventual outcome will be in our favour if we accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour and endure with Him to the very end. Now, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, for some much-needed divine aid to keep us keeping on.
Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise and thank You this Monday morning for our jobs; jobs we sometimes don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose; keeping lives and families together. We also thank You Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm You’ve wrought in our weary souls over the weekend. It’s that rejuvenation of spirit which now allows us to sally forth with confidence into the evil and ungodly world, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s evil schemes.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing Your powerful, protective spiritual armour! We surrender our all to You, and humbly ask that You allow Your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit to lead and guide all Your servants, as we go out to meet the enemy in battle. Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, thereby furthering Your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ! Amen!’
And with that divine inspiration, let’s get out there and fight the good fight for Jesus! Much LOVE!
…the only certainty in this world…is the all-embracing LOVE of Jesus…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien