Introduction:
How Should I Handle the Changing Seasons of My Life? (Eccl 3:1-15)
- I should Wisely adapt to Change and Not resist it . (Eccl 3:1-8)
- I should Trust in God's timing and Not force my own . (Eccl 3:9-15)
A.W. Tozer - "It is doubtful whether God can bless a man greatly until He has hurt him deeply."
David Gibson - "Living well in God’s world means recognizing that when it comes to our lives, we are not mini-gods, and this is His creation, not ours. We have all the pieces of our life given to us, and things come and go and seasons change, and it is only God who knows exactly where everything is meant to go, in which order, at what time, and why.”
Taylor Brown is a CONTROL FREAK!
Taylor Brown is still a CONTROL FREAK!
Click image for video
Sermon Notes (PDF): BLANK
Hint: Highlight blanks above for answers!
-
00:00-00:31
My name is Taylor Brown, I'm the youth pastor of a North Park church, but before I worked at North Park, I was actually an intern here for around a year or so. I was able to preach and get some of my first ministry experience here, so Harvest has a big part of my heart. I'm really glad to be here with you this morning. I've preached at Harvest at two middle schools and at the place down the road with the Camelot. This is my first time ever preaching here, so I'm really excited to be with you this morning in this space. So for the next minute or so, I want you to step into the mindset of a seven to 10 year old.
00:31-00:37
If you have a child that age, try to think and process how they see the world around them.
00:37-00:39
Are we ready for this mental exercise?
00:40-00:51
Now imagine that your parents are leaving you at home by yourself for an entire week because they're going on a trip and they don't want to bring you with them because they actually want it to be a vacation.
00:51-00:53
I think all the parents can kind of relate to that, right?
00:53-00:58
I know this is a really ridiculous, made up scenario, but please just play along with me.
00:58-01:04
So for 168 hours, you get to decide what you do and what you eat.
01:04-01:08
Let me ask you, what would you eat over the course of this week?
01:08-01:15
Would you carefully meal plan to make sure you hit all the major food groups and eat the right combination of fruits and vegetables?
01:15-01:16
Not at all.
01:16-01:19
You would eat all the junk food in your house.
01:19-01:21
You would eat Oreos by the sleeve.
01:21-01:23
You'd be eating whipped cream out of the can.
01:23-01:26
You'd be shoving candy down your throats, right?
01:26-01:34
Okay, someone's like, "I really want that to be the true scenario this week." Now imagine what you would actually do over the course of this week.
01:34-01:40
Would you try to get ahead of your studies during the summer, do all your chores on time, and make your bed every morning?
01:40-01:48
No, you'd be watching TV all day, playing video games, staying up until all hours of the night until you finally crashed after a massive sugar high.
01:48-01:52
Last question, how would you feel at the end of this week?
01:52-01:54
Would you feel well-rested and healthy?
01:55-02:04
No, you would have a massive stomach aches, you'd be so tired, because kids don't understand that moderation is important.
02:04-02:08
Left on their own, kids will only choose what's fun.
02:09-02:13
They won't choose to eat that which tastes the best to them.
02:13-02:19
They wouldn't understand these activities in mass quantities are very, very destructive.
02:20-03:19
Children who live this kind of lifestyle would be very unhealthy, very sleep deprived, and be very self-centered. In a much greater way, if we weren't in complete control of our lives, we would only pick relaxation, comfort, we would only choose fun. We would completely steer clear of hard work, pain, and trials. And by doing so, we would become spiritual lightweights who missed out on all the joys, all the blessings that come with depending upon the Lord. We become very self-centered people who only care about our wants, our needs, our desires. Thankfully, we are not in charge and we serve a sovereign and all-wise God who is in control of every single aspect of our lives. This morning we're going to focus our attention on Ecclesiastes chapter 3 verses 1 through 15 and learn that there is beauty, purpose, and meaning behind every single season of life that we must walk through.
03:19-03:30
This is a very timely passage of scripture to read because we find ourselves in a very difficult season right now in this world and in this country specifically.
03:31-03:39
It seems like new issues, new difficulties keep popping up every single week and we don't know what's going to happen next.
03:40-04:08
you've lost a job, maybe you're facing an illness, maybe you're really stressed out about the direction that our country is taking, it's really easy to give ourselves over to discouragement and hopelessness during this season that we find ourselves in, this coronavirus season. But God wants each and every one of us to trust in Him and believe that He always does what is right, that He He knows exactly what he is doing.
04:08-04:17
So I hope and pray that all of us, myself included, will walk away from this sermon with a greater sense of trust and dependence in our God.
04:17-04:22
So if you have your Bibles, please turn to Ecclesiastes chapter 3, verses 1 through 15.
04:23-04:32
And the question I want each of us to answer this morning is, "How should I handle the changing seasons of my life?" How should I handle the changing seasons of my life?
04:32-04:37
Number one, I should wisely adapt to change and not resist it.
04:37-04:40
I should wisely adapt to change and not resist it.
04:41-04:47
The first eight verses of the third chapter of Ecclesiastes are popular with Christians and non-Christians alike.
04:48-04:53
Even unbelievers will have this section of scripture read at their funerals.
04:53-05:00
King Solomon, the author of Ecclesiastes, taps into something very close to everyone's heart.
05:01-05:34
really important realities of life that I want us to read about together in verses 1 through 8. Solomon writes, "For everything there is a season and a time for every matter under heaven, a time to be born, a time to die, a time to plant, a time to pluck up what is planted, a time to kill, and a time to heal, a time to break down, the time to build up, a time to weep and a time to gather stones together.
05:34-05:38
A time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing.
05:38-05:39
A time to seek and a time to lose.
05:40-05:42
A time to keep and a time to cast away.
05:42-05:45
A time to tear and a time to sew.
05:45-05:48
A time to keep silence and a time to speak.
05:49-05:51
A time to love and a time to hate.
05:52-05:55
A time fo war and a time for peace.
05:56-06:02
Throughout all of Ecclesiastes, these verses stand out as uniquely poetic and beautiful.
06:03-06:12
As I was studying for this message, I realized that these eight verses are made up of 28 different phrases, which can be broken down to 14 different pairs.
06:12-06:16
This list includes multiples of seven.
06:17-06:19
Now you'd be thinking, "Taylor, why does that matter?
06:19-06:24
"Why are you giving us a math lesson right now?" Well, the number seven is very important throughout all of scripture.
06:25-06:29
The number seven symbolizes completion or perfection.
06:30-06:38
So by using multiples of seven, Solomon is trying to show us this list includes all the things that we can go through in this life.
06:38-06:44
One writer puts it this way, this list includes the totality of all things that are contained within any human life.
06:44-06:48
This is a complete summary of the seasons of life.
06:49-07:00
It touches upon birth and death, planting, sowing, tearing down, building up, crying, laughing, war, peace, love, hate.
07:00-07:05
Everything that you can possibly go through in this life is accounted for on this list.
07:06-07:13
By reading this, Solomon wants to take a big step back and see our lives from the big picture perspective.
07:13-07:20
He wants us to expect massive changes, massive surprises, and even difficulties and suffering.
07:21-07:23
Raise your hand if you hate change.
07:23-07:25
You love it when things stay the same.
07:26-07:26
Not that many of you.
07:27-07:28
Who likes when things change?
07:29-07:31
I'll never understand you people, but I'm glad that you exist.
07:32-07:37
I absolutely hate change and I resist it whenever it comes into my life.
07:37-07:39
Case in point, I absolutely hate surprises.
07:40-07:42
If you want to ruin my birthday, throw me a surprise party.
07:43-07:44
I hate that.
07:44-07:48
If I walk into a surprise party, I'm just going to walk right out because I don't want to be there.
07:48-07:50
I want to know if the party is going to happen.
07:51-07:58
Unfortunately for me, and those of you who don't like change as well, change is inevitable and we have to deal with it.
07:58-08:00
We cannot fight against it.
08:01-08:10
In these eight verses, Psalm is calling us to submit to the seasons of life and adapt to the changes, adapt to the situations that come into our lives.
08:11-08:11
And this isn't easy.
08:12-08:15
This takes great wisdom, discernment, and patience.
08:16-08:22
When you enter into a season of suffering, into a season of pain, how are you going to handle that?
08:23-08:24
Are you going to grumble?
08:25-08:26
Are you going to be negative?
08:26-08:27
Are you going to complain?
08:28-08:30
Or are you going to choose the trust in the Lord?
08:31-08:36
We have to recognize that God brings these trials into our lives for a very particular reason.
08:36-08:44
Even the season we find ourselves in right now, God didn't just allow it, He brought it into our lives because He is sovereignly in control of everything.
08:45-08:50
we go through these situations God wants us to get better and not grow bitter.
08:51-10:47
Instead of asking God why is this happening, let's start to ask God what do you want me to learn through this trial? Let me tell you from experience the why question will just drive you insane and stir up doubts and fears in your heart and your mind while the what question will help you to make progress in your relationship with the Lord and become more like Christ. On the other hand, when you experience a season of tremendous blessing and abundance, don't just congratulate yourself. Pat yourself on the back and forget to thank God for his blessings. Don't forget to thank God for his goodness. When something you work really hard for falls apart, don't just refuse to ever try again. Learn from your mistake, learn from your failure and move on. When a loved one passes away or a close friend betrays you, don't just shut down completely and hold everyone else at an arm's length. Mourn this loss and ask God for his help so you can move forward and learn to live with this pain. You can't always control what happens to you, but you can always control how you respond to what happens to you. Did we catch that? You can't always control what happens to you, but you can always control how you respond to what happens to you. Will you respond with hope and wisdom or you respond with foolishness and despair? All right, secondly, how should I handle the changing seasons of my life? I should trust in God's timing and not force my own. I should trust in God's timing and not force my own. Let's move forward and read verses 9 through 15. "What gain has the worker from his toil? I a man to be busy with. He has made everything beautiful in its time. I want that verse to really stick with you. Let's read it again. He has made everything beautiful in its time.
10:47-11:31
Also he has put eternity in a man's heart, yet so he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end. I perceive that there is nothing better for them than to be joyful and to do good as long as they live. Also that everyone should eat and drink can take pleasure in all of his toil, that is God's gift to man. I perceive that whatever God does endures forever. Nothing can be added to it nor anything taken from it. God has done it so that people fear before him. That which is already has been, that which is to be already has been, and God seeks what has been driven away. So in addition to hating change and surprises, I will admit that I am definitely a control freak.
11:32-11:34
Raise your hand if you're a control freak like me.
11:35-11:39
You're not very go with the flow type of person, you have to be in control of everything that's going on in your life.
11:39-11:41
Who's more of like a relaxed, easygoing person?
11:41-11:43
You don't really worry that much about the future.
11:44-11:48
Now I really wish that I was more like you and less like myself in that way.
11:49-11:51
You know, the control freak has this mentality.
11:51-11:53
If you want to get something done right, you have to.
11:54-11:57
And that's how I always feel in different ways in my life.
11:58-12:04
And case in point, I absolutely hated group projects in high school and college.
12:04-12:06
Who else hated group projects?
12:06-12:07
'Cause you know why?
12:07-12:12
I was the one in the group who cared the most about the projects, so I did most of the work.
12:12-12:20
Now some of you were like me, the neurotic people who did everything, and some of you were the slackers who took advantage of people like me.
12:20-12:30
In the spring of 2013, I was a senior at Geneva College and I was on the cusp of graduating and I made the unwise decision of saving one of the hardest classes for last.
12:31-12:32
Now there's a class called political science.
12:33-12:40
This is a class at Geneva that's known for its senseless busy work, its difficulty, and a lot of people push it off until the last moment.
12:41-12:44
And our final assignment was a group project.
12:44-12:49
I heard those words come out of my professor's mouth and I just like died a little bit inside.
12:50-12:53
And he assigned the groups at random, which is even worse.
12:54-12:59
Now let me ask you, do you think I was given the hardest working members of this class.
12:59-12:59
What do you think?
13:00-13:04
I was given the biggest slackers, didn't seem to care if they passed or failed.
13:05-13:08
And so I was the one who elected myself to be the leader of this project.
13:08-13:10
I was texting people, emailing them.
13:10-13:12
After a week, no responses.
13:13-13:14
No one responded to me.
13:14-13:16
I was getting so angry.
13:16-13:19
I was like, there's no way these people are gonna drag me down with them.
13:19-13:23
I'm not gonna fail this assignment and mess up my final semester at college.
13:23-13:24
So you know what I did?
13:24-14:04
Geneva is small enough that I was able to find out where they lived. I tracked them down. I went to their apartments and their dorms. I made them carry out their end of the deal. In one case, I actually looked over a guy's shoulder as he was typing out the assignment to make sure that he was actually doing it. And then you're wondering why is there a picture of this? My friends and I have a Facebook page, a private Facebook page called Four Years at Geneva where we post pictures and videos from our time there. My one friend followed me to document this. He took pictures of me leaning over this guy's shoulder and trying to show him how he was doing the assignment wrong. That was the next picture. There's me lecturing.
14:04-14:32
Apparently I was lecturing him for a long time. I don't really know. But my stalking paid off and we got an A minus on the assignment. So it kind of worked out in the end. Who thinks I went too far in stalking these people? Some of you are like, wow, I really judge this guy a lot. I don't know about this. Who thinks I was perfectly justified in what I did? All Regardless of what you think about my stocking story, we can all admit that I am a control freak who has a hard time letting things go.
14:32-14:34
We all can struggle with this at times, can't we?
14:35-14:39
We can all struggle with letting go of the control that we think we have.
14:40-14:45
But the older I get, the more I realize how much of my life is completely out of my control.
14:46-14:48
And this realization shouldn't terrify me.
14:48-14:49
It shouldn't terrify you.
14:51-14:59
it should fill us with peace, comfort, and hope because we know the track record and the character of the God that we serve.
15:00-15:03
All of us have certain plans for our futures.
15:03-15:07
We all have certain timetables for when we want our dreams to become a reality.
15:08-15:17
But Solomon bursts our bubble in verse 11 when he tells us that God has put eternity in a man's heart yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.
15:18-15:26
In other words, we have a deep-rooted desire as human beings to intimately know the future and completely understand God's plans.
15:27-15:31
But unfortunately, God is far beyond our limited minds.
15:31-15:39
He is beyond our full comprehension and there are going to be things about His ways that will never make sense to you in this life.
15:39-15:43
As Solomon tells in this passage, we were made to live forever.
15:43-15:47
And one day, we will see the Lord face to face in heaven.
15:47-15:49
His plans will make sense.
15:50-15:52
What he did in our lives will begin to come into focus.
15:53-16:00
Until that day, we have to be content to have some of our biggest questions about God and this life go unanswered.
16:01-16:02
Are we willing to accept that?
16:03-16:05
Are you willing to accept that?
16:05-17:38
Even though you can't look into a crystal ball and see your future, you can know that your God's planned out exactly what your future looks like. Your future is a firm and fixed plan that God has and nothing and no one can stand in his way, not even you. You know, sadly, we often think that we know better than God does. Sometimes I try to give God advice when I'm praying. You ever do that? I try to tell him what to do, how to do it, and when it needs done. To be clear, it's a good thing to pray for specific things and pray for specific outcomes, but it becomes a huge massive problem when you hold God to these plans and get angry at him. When he doesn't follow your exact timetables. God isn't your employee who you can boss around and tell him what to do. He is your employer. He is your boss. He is the one who is in charge. He is the one who knows what is best for you. What's that song? Some of God's greatest gifts are unanswered prayers. I can definitely look that and say that is very, very true. Now this is a illustration that's not going to hit Pastor Jeff very well, but hopefully you all like it. Who is a fan of the Lord of the Rings movies or the books? Now Jeff passed out during the first movie several times, so he's not going to really get what I'm talking about. Now who's never read a single one of those books or watched any of those movies? All right, so some of you haven't. For those of you who haven't read these books or watched some movies, it's basically a fantasy setting and there's these little creatures called hobbits. They're like little dwarfs in this area of this country called Middle Earth.
17:39-17:56
And the beginning of the first movie, a wizard named Gandalf comes to town, and Frodo, a hobbit, he sees him, he runs to the wagon, and he says to Gandalf, "You are late." And Gandalf looks at Frodo in the face and he says, "A wizard is never late, Frodo Baggins, nor is he early.
17:56-18:02
He arrives precisely when he means to." You know, a lot of times we say the same thing to God.
18:03-18:03
God, where are you?
18:04-18:09
God, don't you care about what I'm going through? I need you to show up right now.
18:09-18:13
And God's trying to give us the same exact message that Gandalf gave to Frodo.
18:13-18:19
I am never late, nor am I early. I arrive precisely when I mean to.
18:20-18:23
Regardless of how you feel, God never forgets about you.
18:23-18:28
God never delays. He knows exactly what He is doing. He knows what is best for you.
18:28-18:31
And that's why He doesn't always give you what you want.
18:32-18:35
That's why he brings trials and hard times into your life.
18:36-18:40
These hard times are evidence that God loves you, not that he hates you.
18:41-18:49
God brings these times into your life to smooth out your sinful and rough edges and mold you into the image of Jesus Christ.
18:49-18:59
As you read the Bible, it becomes very clear that every single godly man and woman used by God to do great things had to go through immense pain.
18:59-19:10
The famous theologian A.W. Tozer once wrote this, "It is doubtful whether God can bless a man greatly until he has hurt him deeply." That really changes our perspective, doesn't it?
19:10-19:13
I in no way want to trivialize your pain this morning.
19:14-19:18
I in no way want to minimize the grief that you may be feeling right now.
19:19-19:25
Walking through the valleys of life is never an easy journey and there are gonna be days where you feel like giving up.
19:26-20:00
There are gonna be days where you feel like life is random and chaotic, but I want you to know this morning that God never, ever wastes your pain. Ever. The road to sanctification, becoming more like Christ, is paved with suffering, but its destination is eternal life. The road of worldliness is paved with comfort and relaxation, but its destination is everlasting destruction. So I want you to answer these questions honestly morning. Do I believe that my God's perfect plans are better than my own?
20:01-20:54
And secondly, do I trust in the Lord or do I trust in myself? Do I trust in the Lord or do I trust in myself? Trusting in the Lord isn't a one-time decision you make at your conversion when you bow the knee to Jesus as your Lord and Savior. It is a difficult decision that needs to be made multiple times a day. There is no harder decision than choosing to trust rather than doubt. Choosing to have hope rather than giving in to hopelessness. Our view of God is often blocked by our insecurities, our fears, and our doubts, but true faith is keeping your eyes fixed on Jesus when you suffer and go through pain. True faith is believing that God is good, that God is in control when you're walking through the valley of the shadow of death and you cannot see what lies ahead.
20:54-21:00
True faith is trusting in God even when it seems like he doesn't know what he's doing.
21:00-21:03
Even when it seems like he's not in control of your situation.
21:04-21:10
True faith is believing that God will make something truly beautiful out of everything in this life.
21:10-21:17
You know this life is really similar to standing really close to a massive painting at the Carnegie Museum of Art.
21:18-21:23
If you've ever been there, just try to imagine yourself standing in front of this massive, massive painting.
21:24-21:30
And you're at one end, and you see these beautiful combinations of yellow, blue, red, and green.
21:31-21:34
And this part of the painting fills you with a lot of enjoyment and excitement.
21:34-21:39
As you move down, you come across these seemingly random splotches of brown and grey.
21:39-21:42
And this section just seems kind of random and pointless to you.
21:42-21:48
And you continue to move on and there's one part of the paint that's just pure darkness.
21:48-21:53
It looks like the painter just threw a bucket of black paint against the canvas for no reason.
21:54-22:00
As you back up, you are blown away by the scope and the beauty of this masterpiece.
22:00-22:05
Those sections that seem just random and pointless add depth and nuance to the painting.
22:06-22:11
Those sections of black make the other colorful parts just pop that much more.
22:11-22:14
You know, one day we're going to see our lives like that.
22:14-22:19
One day we're going to see our lives from an eternal perspective and everything will change.
22:20-22:23
We'll see that trial we went through that seemed to have no meaning.
22:23-22:26
We'll finally understand that's why God did that.
22:26-22:28
That's why he led me through that.
22:28-22:34
You'll see all the people that you were able to bless by being Christ-like through that experience.
22:34-22:38
All the threads of your life will come together and finally make sense.
22:39-23:28
realize that God was in control all along. Our lives were not chaotic. Our lives are the work of a divine painter. I'm gonna close our time this morning with a quote that really comforts my soul. "Living well in God's world means recognizing that when it comes to our lives we are not many gods and this is his creation not ours. We have all the pieces of our life given to us and things come and go and seasons change and it's only God knows exactly where everything is meant to go, in which order, at what time, and why. So instead of doubting the Lord's goodness and stressing out about what might happen in the future, let us trust this masterful artist and believe that he will make something truly beautiful out of whatever we're going through right now, no matter how ugly and dark it may seem. Let's pray.
23:30-24:07
Sovereign God, we thank you for who you are. We ask for forgiveness for the ways we fail you. We thank you that even though we fail you, you love us and the grace of Christ upholds us. We thank you that when you see us, you see the perfection of your Son, you see the holiness of Jesus. Lord, fill in where we have weaknesses. Help us where we are inadequate, Lord. Help us to keep our eyes fixed on your Son and believe that you know exactly what you're doing. Lord, Lord, there are those in this room who are really struggling right now and feel like they have no idea what to do next.
24:07-24:11
Lord, come alongside them this morning and comfort them and speak to their hearts.
24:12-24:19
And for those of us who are about to go into a trial and don't even know it, please prepare us and get us ready to trust in you.
24:20-24:21
In Jesus' name, amen.
Small Group Discussion
Read Ecclesiastes 3:1-15
Why should it encourage us to know that the Lord is sovereign and in complete control of every single aspect of our lives?
Why does the Lord bring trials and difficult seasons into our lives? How is the presence of suffering in our lives the proof of God's love for us?
Discuss examples from the Bible where God used pain and suffering to prepare His servants for ministry. Share a time when the Lord used a painful trial to help you become more like Christ and bless others.
What does it look like to trust in the Lord and not yourself? How can you strengthen your dependence upon God over the upcoming week?
How can we as believers make the most of this current quarantine? How is the Lord calling you to grow and bless others?
Breakout
Pray for the strengthening of those suffering during this uncertain “lock-down/quarantine” season.