June 7th

Today's reading from the One Year Bible Chronological Reading Plan is Ecclesiastes 7-11:6.

Just like Proverbs, I feel like we are speeding through Ecclesiastes so fast it's just not sinking in. Especially since this weekend I just haven't had made the time to study too much. There is a great sermon series on bible.org by by Keith Krell, but I've only read a couple of them so far.

He discusses Ecclesiastes 7:1-14 in his sermon titled When Bad is Better. Basically Solomon is saying in these verses that adversity is better than prosperity because it forces you to have an eternal perspective and it encourages the growth of godly character.

It is an unfortunate truth that we learn the most and grow the closest to God during times of adversity. When are come to the end of ourselves and recognize how much we need God. When He alone is our hope and our strength.

As much as we enjoy the good times, those simply are not times of tremendous character growth.

I really wish there was some way to reverse that trend, but unfortunately that's not how it works. Of course, we can and do learn things during good times too, but in general it's pretty safe to say that we learn deeper through adversity.

From the above sermon...
A man or woman of faith trusts God. Therefore, when times are good, be happy. Enjoy what you have. Don’t waste the opportunity by trying to accumulate more. Don’t wait for retirement. Enjoy now. One of the saddest things in life is the fact that when our children are young and most enjoyable we fathers tend to be busier than ever, establishing ourselves in business and preparing for the children’s future. Unfortunately, too often, by the time we have their college education secured they are gone and there’s little opportunity to enjoy them. When times are good, be happy. But when times are bad, be patient. Be patient because the same God who made the good times has allowed the bad. Neither situation is outside of His sovereignty and there is no sure way of knowing what’s coming next. Try as we might, we cannot prepare for all contingencies, and while God expects us to be prudent, He does not want us to play God. There are times when you just have to play the cards which you have been dealt. Remember that it is God who is the dealer. What you have has been given by Him. Adversity is better than prosperity. (emphasis in bold mine)

Tomorrow's passage: Ecclesiastes 11:7-12:14, 1 Kings 12:1-20, 2 Chronicles 10:1-19, 1 Kings 12:21-24, 2 Chronicles 11:1-4, 1 Kings 12:25-33, 2 Chronicles 11:5-17. For less flipping, read Ecclesiastes 11:7-12:14, 1 Kings 12, 2 Chronicles 10-11:17.