All in Time: An Ecclesiastes Collab with the Wonderful Ivie
October 06, 2018
Once again it's been a while. I think that's an on brand thing for me these days.
College and the senior year of high school combined is something else so I'll continue to be absent around here but I will try to post once a month and remind everyone that I'm still alive! ;) But this month I'm super excited to be presenting to y'all a collaboration with WONDERFUL
*Drumrolllllllllllllllllllllllllll*
IVIE
So what's the collab? We spent September reading Ecclesiastes together and discussing it (when our busy schedules would allow xD) but I would a 100% do it again. There's nothing like having that motivation and partnership to read the Bible. There were so many moments when the devil attacked me and told me I was too busy and then by some wild sort of coincidence (not really) Ivie would text me something i really needed to hear. God sure knew what he was saying about there being strength in numbers.
ANYWAY RAMBLE OVER…
On to the collab!
IVIE'S PERSPECTIVE
Hello, everyone! Thanks, Anna, for having me here. <3
So, Ecclesiastes is a very deep book, filled with a lot of knowledge and wisdom. Upon first glance, you might think it to be depressing. It starts off with someone known as The Preacher or The Teacher depending on what translation you use. The Preacher is often known for saying everything is vanity. That can be a huge downer. But, if you look a little closer and a little deeper, you’ll find this book can impart just as much wisdom as Proverbs can.
As I went through my reading, I took some notes of things that really stuck out to me.
“...all is vanity and grasping for the wind.”
This stuck out to me a lot. The Preacher kept saying everything was done in vain because we all die in the end. This was depressing to see at first, but the deeper you dive into the book, the more knowledgeable it becomes.
As the book goes on, the Preacher goes on to say that there is a time for everything under Heaven and purpose behind all that happens on this Earth.
This meant a lot to me. In the season of life I’m in right now, there’s a lot of chaos going on, things that I wish I could change, but I can’t right now. And it’s hard. But I know that this is a season of growth and change for me, that I’m learning something and all these battles I’m facing are for a greater purpose. This brings me encouragement
I could go on and on about the knowledge of this book, but here are some key things I took from my time reading it:
- Everything has a purpose.
-Being wise is better than being popular.
-Selfish labor of the hands is in vain. Nothing done selfishly will bring any good.
-Never make vows because you never want to give your word and not keep it.
-Be slow to anger and be patient.
-Obey authority. (This is a big one since many don’t seem to do that)
-Enjoy life because we all have the same outcome.
-Be diligent in seeking God early in life.
-Having God in our lives will help us withstand the storms that will be thrown at us.
This study brought me lots of joy and it taught me a lot about wisdom and life. I fail everyday to seek God first, but that is something I choose to work on. God doesn’t make me seek Him. I have to actively pursue Him.
And I fail, but He is there, waiting for me as I run to Him. He has my life in His hands and I trust Him.
To me, God is everything. Yet, I often neglect my time with Him, something I really want to improve on.
Guess what? It’s okay to not be perfect. That was Jesus. We are not Jesus.
We are God’s children and we fail everyday. But He loves us anyway and He watches out for us all the time.
And I can have peace knowing that.
ANNA'S PERSPECTIVE
Nothing makes sense
How many times in your life have you been at that point?
When nothing makes ANY more sense.
I know I have been, and so when I opened the book of Ecclesiastes maybe for the millionth time for some reason I chose to see it with new eyes. Not eyes that had read this all before. And boy it hit home.
The story of a person who has tried it all and yet is still lacking all.
Actually not of any person, the story of one of the wisest persons. I don’t know about you but that never fails to bring me some comfort. That Solomon, one of the wisest persons in the entire bible was asking himself these questions just like all of us.
In no way could i possibly cover the mine of gold I reaped from Ecclesiastes but I will try to recount some of those eye openers for you.
“The more you know
The more you hurt
The more you understand
The more you suffer”
Boy something about this verse hit so close to home. Yet I came to a big realization during this verse. Remember that quote in Divergent? “Fear doesn’t shut you down, it wakes you up.” I think it’s a lot like that. Yes, pain can shut you down but if used in the right way it can wake you up.
I feel like as a whole society we appreciate distraction from our pain and in fact we have developed these mechanisms to numb us and distract us from all the brokeness in our world.
There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.
I love this chapter so much because number one it’s sheer poetry.(as a poet stuff like that excite me irrationally) And also that no matter how bad everything is now there will be a different time under the sun.
And because I don’t want to make this too long, I'll cut to the end.
The MOST important part of all
That after all that life is. The sensible, the insensible. The big loop of confusion it can be...only one thing really matters.
Now all has been heard;
here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God and keep his commandments,
for this is the duty of all mankind.
For God will bring every deed into judgment,
including every hidden thing,
whether it is good or evil.
And this is what it really means. Despite the changing times, the difference of the lives we live, our comparable judgements. To enjoy life while we are here but most importantly follow in the steps of Jesus.
Powered by her love of creating new realities, Ivie Brooks began writing at the age of fifteen. Armed with a love of words and the joy of escaping reality for a little while, she pens stories of all lengths on her purple laptop. When she's not writing (because, unfortunately, she can't write all the time) she's most likely dreaming about her next novel or chasing plot bunnies in her head.
You can find her at Ivie Writes, her blog, or Ivie Brooks, Author, her website.
What do y’all think? Any lessons you have learned from Ecclesiastes and any thoughts about our observations?
Also could you do me a huge favor and comment your blog links down below because my blogger app is wacky and I’d read your posts on my phone so PLEASE SHARE!
16 comments
Wow, this was a cool idea! I loved seeing your insights into this book. Usually I just dismiss Ecclesiastes, but I might have to read it again sometime!
ReplyDeleteYou definitely should! There are just those Bible books we tend to overlook I know I do it all the time but we can get so much insight when we look at things with new eyes. And thank you for reading and sharing! <3
DeleteThank you so much for this post! You and Ivie did a great job sharing your thoughts on your findings in Ecclesiastes!
ReplyDelete-Brooklyne
Thank you so much Brooklyne! <3
DeleteI so loved this post! It's so much fun to find that though the Bible is such an old book, you can always find more truths in it, to inspire you still! I love all of Ivie's bullet points, but the "enjoy life because we all have the same outcome" is really my motto in life, it feels like. I love being realistic, but I also choose to smile as life happens.
ReplyDeleteAnd what's the verse reference for "the more you know, the more you hurt"?
I, too, love how this is all so poetic :)
keturahskorner.blogspot.com
Wow amen to all of that. I believe that is Ecclesiastes 1:18!
DeletePoetic things always make me so happy :)
Thanks for commenting Keturah!!
Ah, Ecclesiastes. My favorite book of the Bible. <333 It's so cool that you and Ivie did a read-together of it!!! I love what you both had to say about what you'd read. :-)
ReplyDeleteAlso, glad you are back!!! <3
https://musicmysterymiddlearthandmitochondria.blogspot.com/
ME TOO. it's one of my favorites 😄. It was amazing and thank you so much 😊💛
DeleteAnna, this was so much fun! Thank you for having me be a part of this wonderful blog post. The way you worded things was so beautiful! <3 I've learned a lot from this study, so thanks, girl! <3
ReplyDeleteGirl thank you 💛 you gave me a lot of insight and I'm so thankful we got to do this together. You're amazing!!! ❤️
DeleteThis is amazing! I loved reading both of your thoughts on Ecclesiastes. It's such a great book! What made this even better for me is that Ecclesiastes is the book our church is currently studying.
ReplyDeleteI'm always happy to see a post from you, Anna <3
Wow what a coincidence! Thank you Zane ☺️
DeleteGreat post, Anna! (Also your blog is gorgeous WOW)
ReplyDeleteLilian | co-founder of Stellae Books (stellaebooks.wordpress.com)
main blog | greenteawithbooks.wordpress.com
Thank you!!! Thanks for commenting I'll definitely have to check out your blog!
DeleteWhat a sweet collab! <3
ReplyDeleteThanks Gray :)
DeleteHi! Thank you so much for your comments, they always make my day. I allow anonymous users to comment on my blog, but any crass, profane, pointless criticism and mean comments will be deleted. Remember to check back or click notify because I reply to all of my comments!
Have a Blessed day <3