In which I consider the words of the Teacher

As I savour the last bite of my gluten-free blueberry muffin, I ponder the final chapters of Ecclesiastes. My son, in the innocence and imagination of youth, lines up his toy vehicles in the open window. The early morning crickets are still chirruping and interspersed in their morning song is the harmony of occasional birdsong. “The Earth is filled with your glory,” is being sang jubilantly through the speaker.

I close my Bible, leaving the bookmark in Ecclesiastes. I’ve just finished the book, but I want to reread it. Sticky notes gather around my coffee mug.

“Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools. “(Ecc. 7:9)

“Sow your seed in the morning and in the evening let not your hands be idle, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or whether they will both do equally well. “(Ecc. 11:6)

“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed to judgement, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.” (Ecc. 12:13-14)

Ecclesiastes closes with an endorsement to find joy in life, especially while we are still young, because our youth and strength will fade, and eventually end. Then, there is nothing left for us to do. The dead don’t have dreams to fulfill.

Many things in this small book resonated with me. I, melancholy, quick-tempered, and a bit lazy, have written only a small sample of what I wish to deeply absorb and then act on. “Much study wearies the body;” one cannot only read and learn. It must be put to action, mediated on, remembered, until the core of who I am shifts to align more with the person glorified.

I have only scratched the surface of my thoughts on this subject. For now, I must wrap up, because it’s our zoo day.

Until next time,

Sierra

Special note for the reader: this was written in present tense on the morning I drafted it, which was a Wednesday. Unfortunately, I was not able to type it up at that time, but I left it in the tense it was written because that’s how I preferred it.