Ecclesiastes 3:1 & 6 ~ How to Gain by Losing
There is a right time for everything:
A time to find;
A time to lose;
A time for keeping;
A time for throwing away;
In many ways, King Solomon a man God had blessed with wisdom in every aspect of life, was stating the obvious when he wrote verses 1-8 of Ecclesiastes 3 but not all timing is discerned or obvious to everyone. Wisdom must be applied in practical ways to every day matters of life. It is my belief, people in general and Christians in particular spend more time focused on what they can gain instead of what they need to lose when in fact, the more negative behaviors we lose, the more spiritual maturity we gain!
- When children lose their baby teeth, they gain their permanent teeth
When a person loses weight, they gain energy and a positive self image
Losing clutter, leads to gaining space
Losing a negative attitude helps to gain peace of mind
Losing anger leads to gaining the joy of Jesus
Losing the hurt from the pain others have caused, leads to gaining emotional healing
Losing unhealthy habits of excessive drinking or recreational drug use, leads to gaining sobriety, respect, and a productive life
And losing worry, leads to gaining trust and rest in the Lord!
God desires and enables us to lose behaviors and thoughts which (A) do not reflect His character, (B) do not edify and build up others, and (C) do not reflect the image of our creator God. In order to gain and live by God’s perspective we must,
- Lose/surrender our will to His divine will
- Lose a rebellious, stubborn spirit
- Lose a prideful heart
- Lose an unteachable attitude
- Lose any unloving thoughts
- Lose any selfish desires
- Lose any malice toward anyone
And, declare like the Apostle Paul in Philippians 3:8, “I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ!”
Blessings & Favor,
Pastor Holmes
#34~8.2019
