Ecclesiastes, or The Preacher

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven..." -- Ecclesiastes 3:1

What a beautifully written book Ecclesiastes is. It's from this book Pete Seeger lifted the lyrics to write what became the Byrd's 1965 classic, "Turn, Turn, Turn"... (To everything turn, turn, turn, there is a season, turn, turn, turn...) and it's also where we get the iconic phrases,

"There's nothing new under the sun,"

"The sun also rises,"

"He who increasesth knowledge increaseth sorrow"  (Though this one seems to contradict Proverbs, which is confusing.)

This book is just 12 chapters long, and written by The Preacher, the son of David. The main message is that life is short and then you die and all of mankind's actions are futile, thus we should enjoy life while we have it... party now for tomorrow ye shall perish. Something like that. Then again, there's a lot in Ecclesiastes about being good and working hard and realizing that God is more important that all the passing vanities of life. This book is the Christian self-help book within the Bible, summing up how to live the best life, to the fullest. And in the end, another reminder to keep the Lord in your heart:


"Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man." -- Ecclesiastes 12:13

**NEXT: Song of Solomon

Proverbs

"As a dog returneth to his vomit, so a fool returneth to his folly." -- Proverbs 26:11

Quite the analogy! The Book of Proverbs is all about being wise and not an idiot, because idiots will suffer if they don't strive to learn and understand the laws of God. Some other gems:

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction." Proverbs 1:7

"For wisdom is better than rubies; and all the things that may be desired are not to be compared to it." -- Proverbs 8:11

"Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall." -- Proverbs 16:18

And I especially feel I have a lot to learn from this one: "He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty: and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city." -- Proverbs 16:32

This book was supposedly written by King Solomon and a few other, lesser known people. It's part of the wisdom literature (Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs) in the Bible, a collection of books that teach about how to discover the "tree of life" through a search for understanding. Took me three days to read Proverbs, at about 10 chapters a day. At this rate I should be finished reading the whole Bible by early October.

**NEXT: Ecclesiastes

Big Sisters On Hold

After going through the training session and a personal interview in April, I officially became a Big Sister as of early May. I got my membership card in the mail, and was told I'm on the list to be matched up with a Little in my area as soon as possible. Well, that was about two months ago now, and I've not heard anything from my counsellor at the Big Sisters office in Vancouver. I guess they're not as desperate for Bigs as I thought.

That's okay, though, because I've got a few projects pending, and I'd like to be able to have the freedom to take off next month if they pan out. Maybe even for the next few months... and it would be impossible with a weekly committment to a Little Sister here in town.

So, I'm going to stay on the waiting list and see what transpires in the next few weeks. Right now I'm still working on writing assignments but I have a few more ideas brewing, and a few more bucket list items soon to be checked off... stay tuned.

Running Thirsty

I used to run without water, but now it's impossible. Weird what your body gets used to. Strange what will happen if you let it get soft.

Today I ran 45 minutes and didn't bring my water belt with me. Since I've been training for a marathon I've brought water with me, and I guess my body just got used to having it. Within the first five minutes today I was thinking only of how sticky the inside of my mouth felt and how great it would be to have a sip of cold water. The entire run, I was spitting and gagging on thick saliva, toying with the idea of getting down on my hands and knees at the ditch along the side of the trail. The still water under dappled shadows in the forest looked incredible, and it's not something I usually notice. It's not especially hot and it's kind of overcast, but I was sweating something fierce. Every time I wiped my forehead I thought of all the water I was losing out of my pores. I wonder how much liquid we actually sweat out when we run?

Well, I made it home and had a tall glass of water at the kitchen sink before I'd even taken off my shoes. I can't imagine how Aaron Ralston felt after so many days without a drop to drink. What a nightmare. I'll remember to take my water belt with me next run. Even if it's just a short one.

Psalms

Finished the Book of Psalms today. There are 150 of them. They are songs written (I think by David and some other people) to praise God. They're what you usually hear read at funerals, and in Hollywood movies. Some of them are very famous:

"The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yeah, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever." -- Psalm 23

I really enjoyed this book. It's full of hope and direction to God's people to do good and trust in Him. I love the poetry:

"I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope. My soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning." -- Psalm 130:5-6

Interesting that the Book of Psalms contains the shortest and the longest chapters in the Bible. The shortest is Psalm 117, the longest is Psalm 119. According to Wikipedia, Psalm 119 is "one of about a dozen alphabetic acrostic poems in the Bible. Its 176 verses are divided into 22 stanzas, one stanza for each letter of the Hebrew alphabet; within each stanza, each of the eight verses begins (in Hebrew) with that letter. The name of God (Yahweh/Jehovah) appears 24 times."

**NEXT: Proverbs

Middle of the Bible

"O praise the Lord, all ye nations; praise him, all ye people, For his merciful kindness is great toward us; and the truth of the Lord endureth forever. Praise ye the Lord." -- Psalm 117

I've reached the halfway mark in the Bible. Psalm 117 is the shortest of the 150 psalms, with just two verses. It's also the shortest of all the chapters (in the King James Version) of the Bible. Also, it pretty much sums up the message of the whole book: praise God, for He is good.

Job

Why do bad things happen to good people? This is the central question in the Book of Job, which I think is the most interesting book in the Bible, so far.

Job is a good guy who has a great life and then he loses everything; his family, his wealth and his health. He sits there, feeling dejected and in pain from horrible boils on his skin, cursing his life, ruing the day he was born, but... he never curses God, even when his wife says he should, and his friends say he must have done something to deserve his bad fortune. But that's the thing, he hadn't done anything wrong at all. Satan had brought about his misfortune in order to prove to God that people are only good when things are going well. In the end, however, God is proved right -- Job never loses his trust in God, and so God brings back the good things in his life, and more, including his children who had died.

This book is powerful in its plot as well as in its poetry:

"Let the day perish wherein I was born, and the night in which it was said, There is a man child conceived. Let that day be darkness; let not God regard it from above, neither let the light shine upon it. Let darkness and shadow of death stain it; let a cloud dwell upon it; let the blackness of the day terrify it. 
"As for that night, let darkness seize upon it; let it not be joined unto the days of the year, let it not come into the number of the months. Lo, let that night be solitary, let no joyful voice come therein. Let them curse it that curse the day, who are ready to raise up their mourning. Let the stars of the twighlight thereof be dark; let it look for light, but have none; neither let it see the dawning of the day; 
"Because it shut not up the doors of my mother's womb, nor hid sorrow from mine eyes. 
"Why died I not from the womb? why did I not give up the ghost when I came out of the belly? Why did the knees prevent me? or why the breasts that I should suck?
"For now should I have lain still and been quiet, I should have slept: then had I been at rest," -- Job 3:3-13

"For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God." -- Job, 19:25-26

**NEXT: Psalms