“Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them.

While the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain:

In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows be darkened,

And the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the sound of the grinding is low, and he shall rise up at the voice of the bird, and the daughters of musick shall be brought low; 

Also when they shall be afraid of that which is high, and fears shall be in the way, and the almond tree shall flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail: because man goeth to his long home, and the mourners go about the streets:

Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern (different stages of life that death may come). 

Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return to God who gave it.” Ecclesiastes 12:1-7

King Solomon was God’s chosen heir to his father King David’s throne.

God had given him the blessing of asking for anything and it would be given. Solomon chose wisdom and God granted it beyond measure.

God was pleased with his choice and graciously added to Solomon incredible wealth and peace from all wars for his kingdom.

However, Solomon still being human, as are we all, at the end of his life found that he had not only disobeyed God in his multitude pagan marriages and worship of pagan deities, but he had also failed to recognize the greatest gift, the gift of time.

Upon this realization and his return to the truth of the true God Jehovah, he wrote this passage among many realizing the frailty of life.

As he wrote this as a gentle reminder to the young to not make those same mistakes.

Instead to serve God and enjoy a full life by choosing the right paths. We can clearly read many emotions coming through, depression, sadness, and regret at the realization of age, the happy days that are past and the joy that was taken with them.

In life we too can find ourselves in those dark, dark places, where the evil days have come, days that have taken loved ones away, and as he so beautifully and poetically described the stages from miscarry to old age while giving us that shred of hope that even after the life of the earth is over the eternal awaits.

But even knowing that, our hearts are still left helplessly broken and we have no pleasure in our days because we cannot see a future ahead.

It was not just Solomon who suffered this, it would be a stretch to find anyone written of in the Bible that did not go through these emotions.

Job from our last post, Jeremiah the Prophet had both expressed quite clearly that they had moments of wishing that they had never even been born.

Jesus himself praying alone in the garden that the cup would pass from him, that the horrible death that he had been sent to accomplish would not come. He also prayed that it would be his Father’s will and that his will be done.

The third time that he prayed his sweat became drops of blood, this was his answer and while no human offered him comfort, his Father sent holy angels to strengthen him.

Many others found throughout the pages of the Bible were fraught with sorrow, anguish, discouragement, and distress and I personally believe that we were given all those accounts to give us the hope to go on.

The common denominator with all their accounts is this, once they expressed their anguish, many of them to God, and some he sent angels and to some he himself came. such as when Elijah the prophet just wanted to go, and not home but to go out if this world.

Having these emotions and times in life does not mean there is something wrong with us, it means that we are human.

And once they worked through those emotions and voiced their hurts and fears to God the door opened for divine intervention, and they found help and renewed hope.

God did not love any of these more than he loves you.

He loves his children and when we are in pain he is in pain.

I have used this many times but when Mary and Martha were crying because their brother Lazurus was dead, Jesus cried also, he knew that he was going to raise Lazurus from the dead and this proves to us that he was crying because his daughters were devasted, it broke his heart to see them heartbroken and it breaks his heart when ours is also.

When he told us to “Come unto him” he means literally with everything and he will listen and he will heal us, that does not mean that it will never hurt again but he gives us his supernatural help to see a way forward.

With that I want to give you some scripture to pray as you talk to him and ask that he take it all away. Let his word encourage your soul in his promises, which he will never ever break nor can he, by his own words he has promised us that.

Jeremiah 29:11: “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end (future).”

Psalm 50:15: “And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.”

Isaiah 43:2:” When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.” (He will save us through all the sorrows and trouble, even when we feel overwhelmed)

Psalms 57:17: ” The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite (literally crushed) heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.”

This means we give him our pain and he will never reject us in doing so.

2 Corinthians 12:9: “And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”

He wasn’t saying that he enjoyed suffering it was that he had come to understand that his worst moments were in fact the moments that the presence of Christ was nearest him.

John 14:18: “I will not leave you comfortless, I will come to you.”

Matthew 28:20: “…and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”

Love & Peace to you today.

NBJ 2024/ Rev. N. Brown Johnson