The circle of life
by Charles Bertelsmeier
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There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens (Ecclesiastes 3:1).
Read Ecclesiastes 3:1–15
Ecclesiastes may not be a popular book of the Bible; however, many people are familiar with the first eight verses of chapter three, which are sometimes read at funerals. Folk singer-songwriter Pete Seeger even wrote a song based on these verses called ‘Turn Turn Turn’, which was performed among others by The Seekers.
These eight verses list fourteen contrasting activities, such as weeping and laughing and being born and dying. They remind us of the circle of life and the various activities we get involved in. When I read the list, it reminded me of the six seasons that Indigenous Australian people identify. They are not defined by calendar dates but by the activities of nature: when certain plants bloom or fruit and when certain animals or insects appear or disappear. Their lives and activities are guided by the seasons in locating food and shelter or conducting certain ceremonies.
We also follow a rhythm of life in our church services following the cycle of Advent, Christmas, Easter, Pentecost, etc. We also have our daily and weekly cycles. Generally, we see these rhythms as valuable since they give us a routine for organising our lives. But many of the items in the Ecclesiastes list are disruptive, such as hate, death and war. Although we may not have any control over these, they are often parts of life we must face.
God has given us both the predictability of the seasons of life and the unpredictability of disruptive events. The former is out of his love and grace to us in that we can relax into our daily, weekly and monthly routines; the latter teaches us to trust in his love, presence and promise to lead and grow us in our relationship with him.
My own experience of life has taught me that although having regular routines for things such as Bible reading, prayer and spending time with other Christians in worship and fellowship are really good for us, it is easy to fall into a type of lethargy in which we go through the motions. For example, I can easily read a whole chapter of the Bible, just reading the words while thinking about something else. And I get nothing out of it other than ticking off that I have read that chapter. One of the things I do to disrupt this lethargy is to continuously change the translation of the Bible I use. But sometimes God, in his love for us, has to be the one who disrupts our lethargy.
Heavenly Father, when our peace and serenity are impacted by things that happen to us, please help us to trust where you are leading us and use these experiences to grow in our relationship with you. Amen.
Charles is a retired engineer who has worked on communications projects for the air force, army and navy. He lives in a retirement village in the outer north-western suburbs of Sydney with his wife, Diane. Together, they have four children and eight grandchildren, all of whom they love spending time with. Charles keeps busy caring for their pot plants and a community vegetable garden, researching his family history and volunteering at LifeWay Lutheran Church.
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