Reflections over the weekend

I had the privilege of leading the plushies in a bible study for the first 2 chapters of the book of Ecclesiastes. Studying this book has been a blessing to me. I remembered reading through the entire book at least twice before, once even with the help of a commentary. However, it was really when I had to know whAt I was studying that I appreciated the wisdom of this book. My ex cgl was right though. These books by Solomon are about wisdom but essentially about Jesus. It's a simple but profound revelation to me to learn that Solomon's views do not reflect God's views. But everything written in the bible is for a purpose. Reading a text out of context becomes a pretext. This book becomes so much easier to accept when I read it in that light.

I was very thankful for the plane ride to and fro when I had the time to run through the entire 12 chapters in depth. Solomon is indeed very wise in his reflections. I was bemoaning the fact that I had failed in handling the happenings of the previous week as God spoke to me about the importance of having a bigger perspective than the here and now. It was how Solomon failed as he focused only on things that happened only under the sun and when he looked only at his life in his younger years. Though his wisdom remained with Him, he spent a considerable portion of his life wasting his time and resources. I think that is precisely why God included this book in the bible; to ensure we learn from Solomon's life. What a blessing this learning has been. What's better was that Sunday's sermon seems to be a summary to the first 2 chapters. It is very appropriate that this book was chosen as a material for CG. A good progression from Driven by Eternity and The Purpose Driven Life. Praying that God will minister to everyone in the CG and help them grow closer to Him.
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