The past few weeks I have been in a bit of a funk. Dreary winter days, stressful farm decisions, anxiety about the goats kidding, the list goes on. I felt weary. I felt unmotivated. I struggled to see the purpose in all the hard work. God brought Ecclesiastes to mind. I felt stuck in the mindset of Chapters 1 & 2. Everything is vanity, nothing is new, what is the point of all the labor. I don't know if it is just the winter months bringing these emotions or if it is the state of our country, I suppose it could be both. But I wanted to share how God is speaking to my heart.
Ecclesiastes chapters 1 &2 repeat this phrase "...behold, all is vanity, and a striving after wind." The writer of Ecclesiastes struggles with the reality of the world and the purpose of everything they were doing. I felt that God brought this book to mind, because I was really struggling with the reality of our world. I was struggling to find the purpose. Everything started to feel meaningless. I see the same issues over and over again in the news, just different names. I see the same hate, the same pride, the same selfishness. It honestly brought thoughts of hopelessness. But thankfully God doesn't leave us there.. I am sure most of you have heard the song "Turn! Turn! Turn!" by the Byrds. They sing the words of Ecclesiastes 3:1-8. It starts like this:
"To everything turn, turn, turn There is a season turn, turn, turn And a time to every purpose under Heaven"
Are you singing? I know I am. I love that God uses seasons to remind us that what we see or feel today, won't last forever. Most importantly He reminds us that He has made everything beautiful in its time. This helps us see the hope we have in Jesus. Our purpose does not come from this world, or what we can offer. Our purpose comes from Christ. The writer of Ecclesiastes ends this book with this challenge. "Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment with every secret thing, whether good or evil." I love that with all the mental struggles this writer walked through, his answer was to Fear God and Obey God.
I know that many of you may follow our journey for the farm, but I feel God pulling our hearts to be open about our walk and our faith. God is good and worthy to be praised. I don't want that to be in the background of our journey. I want that to be the focus of our journey. I pray that as we move forward in obedience to what God is calling in our hearts we will build up a community of friends and farmers, who love God and love others.
How can I pray for you?
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